Several sixth-grade boys refuse to settle down and focus, despite several requests from their teacher. They're too busy trash talking — including using foul language — to pay attention to the adult in the classroom. And while a frustrated teacher tries to get them under control, learning for the rest of the class is on hold.
The scene is fictional, but variations play out every day in too many metro-area public schools — particularly those with high concentrations of low-income, disadvantaged students of color. So which set of kids is the priority: The disruptive ones, or those behaving badly?
All students deserve an education, though clearly different strategies must be used to keep classrooms under control. Suspension policies recently adopted by St. Paul and Minneapolis schools have been under scrutiny for leaning too heavily in favor of the kids who have been suspended — disproportionately higher numbers of African-American and other boys of color.
Minneapolis Superintendent Bernadeia Johnson created an office of Black Male Achievement this year. She also imposed a moratorium on suspending 4-, 5- and 6-year olds, and more recently called for administrative review of any suspensions of kids of color. And St. Paul school leaders have provided incentives to administrators to reduce suspension rates.
Minneapolis schools have been reviewed and cited by the U.S. Department of Education after investigators found widespread, inconsistent suspension treatment for black students. As part of a settlement, the district must report its progress on reducing suspensions for students of color to the federal office.
Trouble is, the reasons for disruptive behavior don't neatly fall into one-size-fits-all categories. Nor do the teacher responses to student actions. Some students act out because of chaotic home and community lives. Some have mental or behavior issues and have been inappropriately mainstreamed. And some who are mouthing off end up suspended, when another kid doing the same thing stays in class.
Just last week, two dozen parents complained that student behavior is out of control at Ramsey Middle School in St. Paul. During a meeting last week, they told school administrators that nine teachers quit working at the school and several families have moved their children to private schools since classes began in September. And they're not alone among parents of Minneapolis and St. Paul kids.
Answers lie in a combination of protecting the rights of the majority of kids to learn, while addressing the root causes of disruptive behavior. And more can be done to help teachers with classroom management skills. Among the effective approaches cited by researchers are:
