I must say the tough stance on student behaviour taken by Leonie Kearney is a most welcome good news story about education . Although the namby-pamby do nothing crowd must be horrified that being tough and having high expectations of our young people while they are in school is actually working. The business of our high schools is to prepare our children for a place in a larger society and they have to learn that respect and good behaviour are actually virtues.
NO APOLOGY: Tullawong principal Leonie Kearney says her school's crackdown on violence has worked, including handing out 600 suspensions. Picture: Liam Kidston |
In 2007 behavior management was one of the major stressors to our staff,” Ms Kearney said.
Students were swearing at teachers, bullying and assaulting others.
So in 2008, 653 short-term suspensions were handed out, up from 78 in 2006. And seven of the 1321 students at the school were excluded.
Ms Kearney said behavioural expectations had been set high and students were now meeting them.
“As a high school principal, I make no apology for taking strong disciplinary action for students who behave badly,” she said.
“Poor behaviour has no place in our school.
“Our school is a place for learning. It is not a drop-in centre for those . . . hell-bent on the destruction of others.
“We have the belief that every one of our students has the right to learn, our teachers the right to teach and all are able to participate in the teaching-learning process free from distraction and in safety.”
Parents & Citizens Association president Andy Carl said behavioural problems had reversed, while respect had risen among students and their parents, who were now proud to be a part of the school.
“I think you have just got to be tough with kids and I think a lot of schools aren’t tough enough,” Mr Carl said.
Queensland Association of State School Principals president Norm Hart said discipline crackdowns using suspensions and exclusions had been highly successful in improving student behaviour.
Ms Kearney said suspensions this year were down by a third.
“I expect it to go down even more this semester,” she said.
The State Government is now considering whether to grant school principals even stronger powers to quell bad student behaviour.
Far to many left wing ideologues have given up on the idea that young people can really benefit from well defined behavioural boundaries, and real consequences for breaching those boundaries. I wish Ms Kearney well in her efforts to prove the “anything goes ” crowd wrong and I hope that more schools follow the example of Tullawong High and develop the intestinal fortitude to do that which is clearly necessary for the benefit of the upcoming generation of young people.
Cheers Comrades
Filed under: Education, Political Correctness, Queensland | Tagged: Leonie Kearney, Tullawong State High School
Oh yeah, short and sweet for this one.
About time !
As this is one of the schools that is close enough for me to send my kids to I found this story very pleasing indeed David. It gives me hope that the surrender monkeys (on student behaviour) in the Education unions will not hold sway forever.
I don’t understand why you think that “teh left” would be against this ? It sounds like a good idea to me, and it is working. Good on her.
I have noticed a trend in your writing. You tend to set up propositions, then allege that “teh left” would be against it…but with no proof.
Bit sloppy, eh ?
Torannah
It does not surprise me that a Melbourne lefty should hold the opinions that you display in this comment, as for the second part of your comment all I can say is if you disagree with my opinion then make the appropriate argument against it.
I have seen how the rights agenda and the desire to be “touchy feely”about discipline has lead to the situation where a Head teacher being strict with their charges is newsworthy, when such things should be the norm. The way that the teaching profession has been hijacked by the ideologues of the left is quite evident to anyone who cares to look into the matter. That certainly has been my experience here in Queensland, are you suggesting that things are different in Victoria?
I’m sorry, perhaps you did not understand me.
I said very clearly in my post that “it sounds like a good idea to me, and it is working. Good on her.”
I like what this principal is doing.
I agree with her methods.
Being strict on kids is good.
Etc.
What I have a problem with is you making a blanket statement about how “lefties” would be against something like this, without showing any proof that this is the case. You simply assume it.
It then confuses me further when you say “It does not surprise me that a Melbourne lefty should hold the opinions that you display in this comment”. You say that “lefties are against strict policies in schools” and then say you “are not surprised that I hold the views that I do.”
But I clearly support strict policies in schools.
Weird. I think you are all over the shop, mate.
(Also disturbing – you call me a Melbourne lefty. How do you know I am from Melbourne ? You aren’t some sort of freaky stalker cracko, are you ? Because stating where you think I am from is a bit creepy)
Normally “lefties”, in this situation, would be out on the footpath waving placards, demanding the principal and staff be sacked Torannah.
The left would be advocating that there be no discipline, that the kids should be allowed to soar with the eagles, when perhaps, it would be better to teach them how to walk on the ground first ?
Torannah
I do an IP search on every new commentator and yours shows you posting from melbourne, SOP when you get as many trolls as I do.
Read into that what you wish but when anyone can invent any persona to comment on the net it pays to be careful.
You think that I make unreasonable assumptions about lefties. Well the fact is that there are plenty minions of the far left who advocate a very l undisciplined approach to education that you don’t is a tick in your favour. But keep in mind that the main point that I wanted to make here is that this woman is doing the right thing and my comments about lefties is not a big deal that you are making it out to be.
No, it’s not crap, and they do complain, bitterly. I have seen the results of upset parents, who usually don’t know what the hell is going on, actually force teachers and other staff to resign, due to their ignorance of their own child’s behavior.
Normally, when this situation arises, many things occur.
The department steps in, to mediate any complaints from the parents or anyone else. What the principle is doing here, is nothing new ? I know you agree with it, and that is terrific, but a lot of trendy new age parents wouldn’t.
Parents are very protective of their children, and the “not my little Johnny” syndrome is prolific.
I worked in the system for a little bit, as an outsider to be sure, but saw some of the influence that parents have, or try to have. I have seen how parents can go overboard, with children’s rights of freedom, and watched, as it has all gone south. Kids are there to learn, and insane utopian views of how the world should be, are inflicted on the school hierarchy.
I don’t know why I just said that, as you said, you agree in this instance. Is that only in this instance ? or is that your view of how it should work always ?
When I was in school it wasn’t very violent except for what the teachers would do to you if you didn’t follow the plan.
If a couple guys wanted to fight after school ended you stepped a couple feet off school grounds and had at it. It was ignored by the adults despite the hundred cheering kids watching the fight. One guy won, one guy lost and then you shook hands and usually ended up being best buddies. It’s natural.
Like usual when the government tries to oppose the human nature you end up with a problem.
I went thru primary school Shawn, at pretty much the end of the “corporal punishment” era. (as I have disclosed here in the past). It was the days of the cane , and those suckers bloody hurt ! I got a couple, as probably I should have, but in the long run, It didn’t do me any harm, nor did a biffo over the back of the earhole by my Dad. I still idealised my dear old Dad. Didn’t give me any long term hang ups. I don’t hit my kids, and have never felt the need.
When I grew older, my old man gave me a pretty nasty wack, for something pretty trivial at the time, and so told him never to do it again, or he would get it back ten fold. He never did again.
The point to this tale ? Discipline never hurt anyone, in the long run, if done correctly.
Teachers don’t beat the kids, man, they aren’t even allowed to touch a child, let alone physically punish one.
The current “goody two shoes” policy of touchy feely, psycho babble, is not working. One only has to walk down a busy street after school to see that.
What these kids need is discipline whilst growing up. Again, walking to the shops in an afternoon, plainly shows that they aren’t getting that discipline at home are they ? It is tough, I know, these days, as more often than not, both parents in Oz have to work full time jobs these days, so now, more importantly than ever, is the time, schools are being asked (indirectly ?), to step up, to fill the void left behind from this demand ?
Tnx for the fix up Iain !
easy to do David, You just have to remember to put left AND right arrows on your HTML prompts
What I think is that the pendulum started to swing away from concepts of respect and discipline in the sixties and seventies culminating in the early eighties with the rise of “punk” anarchism. Add to that the refusal of so many parents to grow up them selves (how many do we see doing the mutton dressed as lamb thing?) who want desperately to be friends to their kids rather than being good parents.
I’d say Torannah has a point there Iain – you’re smearing of the the left as giving up discipline at school is factless, misguided at best and a deliberate porky at worst…
…but whatever – congrats to the headmaster and school concerned!
Bravo!
Thanks again Iain. I reread the post many times before hitting the submit button, but, obviously, like sum speling misteaks, thay dont regista ?
Discipline is a dicey thing these days. If you are seen disciplining your kids anytime in public, you run the chance of being arrested. What was that case, on TT a few weeks ago in a Mackas I think it was ? I think you are partially right, but I think you have to add the uprise of “pop psychology” in the seventies. The professionals always now want to over analyse every dammed thing, and demand absolute perfection.
The problem with that, is that we are all human, and as such make mistakes. Parents, being bombarded with all this pop psych crap, don’t know what to do, and in the end do nothing. Kids, being very primal, pick up on this confusion, and take advantage of it, any way they can. Hence, the advent of the teenage tantrum ?
Well said David . as a graduate of a catholic school the nuns certainly taught me how to behave. The namby-pamby crowd just don’t seem to understand how to discipline kids, and with all this “alternative education” it just feels like things are getting worse. I don’t believe in beating kids but a clip round the ears never hurt anybody, least not me.
The kids are a reflection of the parents.
There is gonna be a big correction in the economy and that is going to change things.
Of course the mindless dweebs like PKD will want more government and that will be the end of this great lifestyle we took for granted.
Would agree with that 100% Shawn.
Agreed parents are busy people these days. Having to work continuously, to pay the mortgage and other expenses, like keeping up with the Jones’, but that is a pretty weak excuse. I have seen the results, of parents getting caught up with what they are doing, and the schools down here, being treated as cheap child care etc.
Even though some here are still in denial mode, we are already in the correction phase Shawn, and have been since before our last election. Agreed, we need less government, but that is the way of Labor down here. They are for more bureaucracy, and always have been.
Be interesting to see, now there are massive holes in the budget estimates, how they are going to find the money to pay for it all ?
Of course the mindless dweebs like PKD will want more government and that will be the end of this great lifestyle we took for granted.
Oh grow up Shawn. You don’t know anything about anything.
I am amazed you can write so intelligently on homlessness and so childishly on virtually everything else like AGW and even this 5 year olds comment.
I certainly agree with Tim, more discipline has to be a good thing. Stern but fair!
PKD
For some strange reason this brings to mind the episode of “ripping yarns” called ‘Tompkinson’s school days
I’ve never heard of this programme!
I’ll have to check out the vids when I get back from running the kids into the ground (or vice versa!)
Cheers!
Well ?
Bugger me if that didn’t ring a few distant bells ?
I thought recruit training was bad ?
Oh grow up Shawn. You don’t know anything about anything.
I am amazed you can write so intelligently on homlessness and so childishly on virtually everything else like AGW and even this 5 year olds comment.
I don’t know about that PKD.
The Earth is cooling and your attempts to deny that will become weaker and weaker.
And there is going to be a second wave of financial collapse coming.
Time will prove me right.
The videos are very funny.
Through the vids, I somewhat expected a piano to break out somewhere along the line, with the theme from Chariots of Fire ?
Shawn,
Whether you are right or not wasn’t the point.
That you act a behave like a spolit child was the point…
…perhaps you could benefit form a year at Leonie Kaerney’s school.
Even if you don’t learn the basics of science at least you should learn that politeness and good manners don’t cost you anything, but do get you some respect…
Give it a rest PKD. It gets tiresome listening to the left wing whiners.
Have one of them Lattes and settle down.
This is your type of educator. Trying to make the boys into girls. Them lefties never run out of ideas.
http://www.windsorstar.com/news/Schools+reinforce+masculine+stereotypes+prof+says/1781483/story.html
Thanks for proving my previous comment – you need a year at Leonie’s school…sigh