Zero Tolerance in Schools Has taken away Common Sense

Schools and School Boards in large part have opted for Zero Tolerance policies.  These policies make it black and white what happens in any event.  No decisions to be made, no common sense to be used. 

The problem is, that the people who we pay to teach our kids are using the policies without the slightest common sense.  That have taken the Common out of Common Sense.  It isn't so common anymore.  On a regular bases you read about it in the paper, hear about it in the news, Schools utilizing the Zero Tolerance in the craziest of ways.  3-4 and 5 year olds being suspended from school for kissing a girl.  That is sexual harassment or assault based on the zero tolerance.  The kindergartner for playing cowboys and indians, kicked out because pretending to have a gun zero tolerance. 

Those are the ones that make the news, but it goes way deeper than that.  In our school district they have a Zero Tolerance for fighting.  Great idea.  I agree. If you are fighting you are suspended.  However then they take it the extra step.  Not only are you suspended, you are given a disorderly conduct ticket by the police and it is Zero Tolerance.  So if you are walking down the hall and someone jumps on you and tackles you, guess what? Yep that's right, Zero Tolerance.  You get the same treatment as the kid that jumped you.  Where does that make any sense to anyone?  It doesn't. Our educators just don't want to have to use Common Sense.

I agree that Teachers have to deal with a lot of crazy stuff in schools.  I am pretty sure that I couldn't do what they do.  School Administrators have to be able to use some common sense in these decisions. 

I have told my kids repeatedly how times have changed so much since I was in School.  Very rarely did the police ever get called to our school to deal with the students.  The principal and the parents pretty much took care of any problems that occurred.  Once you get to Middle School now the principal isn't even involved and a police officer is on duty at the school all day.  The assistant principals and police officers deal with the kids.  In our school it isn't even about building a relationship with the students, it is about catching them and busting them.  Everything goes to the legal system. 

We really need to take a step back.  We can't just blame the schools, although they have a lot to do with it, the parents also need to shoulder some of the responsibility.  We can't be our children's best friend, we have to be the disciplinarian, guidance counselor, teacher and friend.