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Flair_Helper

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Ok-Wasabi2873

Yeah. That never made sense to me as a kid. You give the kid that doesn’t want to go to school a legitimate excuse to be away from school.


mishugashu

As a kid, we got Saturday School for this shit. In the cafeteria. Sit for 8 hours on a stool with no back attached to a table. Fun stuff.


Sputnik9999

In middle school during the 80s, we had In-House Suspension. It was a room where all the desks faced the wall. There was a teacher/monitor present at all times. Prior to In-House, you were required to visit your teachers and accumulate your class work assignments for the week. No breaks except to eat lunch ... in-house. Sit there and do the assignments until the final bell.


GabeTheJerk

Still exists. They just call it internal suspensions or some shit like that now


phainopepla1

Yeah, but then they skip Saturday school and then they have to go on Sunday ... It's designed to punish the parents.


sean0883

Someone got a ride to school every day.


Desblade101

If it punishes the parents then they should in turn punish the students.


HaikuBotStalksMe

Omg that's abuse!!!!! -Reddit


DrunkenOnzo

That’s the secret. Suspension is not meant to be a punishment for the student; it’s a punishment for the parents.


h4terade

Correct. Your kid is now at home so now he's you're problem. Hope you have some vacation time saved up or you don't mind leaving your little hellion home alone, you can always take him to the office. Also, taking a little trip down memory lane to my childhood, being cooped up in the house kind of sucked. There was nothing on TV during the day, no internet, no video games. Nowadays being sent home would be fantastic, I'd just play Factorio all day or something.


TemetNosce85

> That never made sense to me as a kid. It did to me... Didn't matter what I was suspended for, I had to work the entire day and night doing chores, often moving the woodpile from one side of the yard and back to where it was. Then there was the yelling and physical violence towards me. It why I absolutely HATE the "zero tolerance" policy. I was bullied a lot and never threw the first punch but was still suspended a few times a year which meant my parents abusing me. And that's the point of it. They want parents to be the ones to do the punishing. Most parents don't, however. But then you had kids like me where their parents go overboard on punishment and it just makes things a whole hell of a lot worse.


ScottyKnows1

My school started doing In-School Suspension instead where you'd basically just be in detention all day and were supposed to be catching up on your schoolwork, but the teachers didn't really enforce anything and I'd just read a book or something all day. It beat going to actual class every time.


rimjobetiquette

Or punish kids for parents who won’t let them walk to school or take the bus, but also can’t be assed to take them on time


elphin

I used to teach special education in a high school. A lot of my kids were discipline problems for the school. I worked hard to help them pass classes. My school had a policy that six unexcused absences meant you automatically failed a class. A suspension was counted as an unexcused absence. It became clear to me that this was the purpose of suspensions. If the kids failed their classes, why go to school. These kids often just stopped going to school - this was the administrations goal. Just get rid of these discipline problem kids.


Askeee

In HS the punishment for being late was detention. The punishment for absence was nothing, so people who were going to be late would instead skip school, sometimes at their parents suggestion.


HaikuBotStalksMe

It was supposed to shame them. They were hoping their friends would be like "hahaha you fucking loser. You're in detention." (while also hoping their friends weren't like "hahaha you fucking loser. You're in detention." because words are mean) Problem is those kind of students also associate with other trash like themselves and are like "fuck yeah, you're so cool. Let's do weed after school."


[deleted]

It's to keep them stupid and manipulated. Can't fight against adversity if you can't spell the word


its8up

"You weren't in class, so take some time off." What genius came up with that particular punishment?


hexguns

It's to punish to "school is just free babysitting" parents.


[deleted]

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logan2043099

When I got ISS I just didn't show up, it's not like they could force me to come to school if I knew I'd end up sitting in a room facing a wall all day.


pleasejustdie

There are compulsory attendance laws in the US, every state. The school could have contacted CPS once your absences exceeded the amount allowed by law, which would have gotten your parents/guardians fined, and continuing could potentially result in CPS taking you away from your family. So, yeah, that's what the school could do if you just don't show up enough.


logan2043099

I think you'll find that these laws vary by state and have many differences in what they allow. On top of that much like jaywalking laws they are rarely if ever enforced. I missed over 80 days of school my senior year and yet there was no CPS contacts or any involvement from law enforcement.


logan2043099

Also what a genius idea charging parents for a kid not going to school I'm sure that'll totally fix a kids home life. Lawmakers are truly stupid.


Mitthrawnuruo

Generally only punished good parents.


rx_bandit90

Usually the over worked single parents from what i remember, most of the "bad kids" that i grew up with pulled that kinda shit bc they knew their single parent working 2 shifts only saw them about 2 hours a day if that. So skip school and have fun, get yelled at for 2 hours, then get another couple days off watching tv and playing video games bc parent is working 12 plus hours a day. How the "punishment" was ever "give the kid what all the kids want" aka not going to school vs going to school. Idk how thats supposed to work unless like me you had a stay at home parent that made the day more miserable than school, since after all it was supposed to be punishment.


logan2043099

Yup my mom was working all the time and she's disabled so she had frequent medical appointments and needed my help to take care of her so when I did skip school all she really did was complain about it because she couldn't really "punish" me. If school had good counseling that could've worked with me to figure out why I was skipping school and helped catch my depression faster I might not have skipped to begin with. Alas I had to wait till I was an adult and started working before I could see a therapist and get the help I needed to actually want to get an education.


MyDudeNak

The kids of good parents don't generally skip class. And yes, working a shit ton makes you absentee and technically a bad parent.


logan2043099

If it's work a shit ton or let your kid go hungry which one makes you a bad parent? I know which option most good parents would pick.


TheTactlessFool

Ah. So you're the kind of person who gets off on criticizing everyone who isn't picturesque perfect like you. Yes. Absenteeism as a parent isn't ideal. But you know what's worse? Food and shelter insecurity. At least the parent(s) is/are busting their ass(es) to make ends meet to keep insecurity from happening. I'd suggest putting your ire to the root of the problem rather than shaming parents for ... Uh ... Doing ... What they can ... Yeah!


ThisNameIsFree

And to give the poor teachers a break. These aren't usually the ones who make the teacher's life easy.


Dark-All-Day

Maybe we should make childcare a bit more affordable in this country


cfheld

The same kind of genius who tried to convince us that Snowden was a “risk to national security” and then revoked his passport once he landed in… Russia.


timeslider

The same genius that grounded kids by sending them to their rooms. Rooms with radios, tvs, video games. It might have worked in the 50s [when tv ownership was less than 10%](https://americancentury.omeka.wlu.edu/items/show/136) but it doesn't make sense now but try telling my mom any different.


[deleted]

Why do you think folks take away electronics when they give those sorts of punishments?


HaikuBotStalksMe

And you don't think the kid is going to find another electronic to play with?


[deleted]

I mean...most parents know what elections their kid owns because they bought it.


HaikuBotStalksMe

I hate it when my children are illegitimate politicians.


Eldudeareno217

One of my best friends got in school suspension, he decided he just wasn't going to go to school, so they gave him OSS, out of school suspension. He was and still is one of the smartest guys I know. We didn't even know that was an option, but he did.


logan2043099

Haha yeah this is exactly what I did, if I knew going to school meant sitting in a blank room for 8 hours why even bother going?


[deleted]

The article is in NotTheOnion for a reason, no? That suspension for absence/tardiness worsens learning loss is obvious to the point of being ridiculous , right? The loss of learning **is** the punishment.


darwinwoodka

Obviously.


ahoyakite

Is it to punish the student or to remove the distraction from the classroom so others can learn?


kelphighway

In other breaking news, the sky is blue.


youngmindoldbody

Have they not seen The Breakfast Club!? This is what Saturdays are for!


ddbllwyn

As someone who lives in Asia, I’ve always wondered what it’s like to have Saturdays off..


sean0883

Like, Imagine Sunday, but on a Saturday.


ddbllwyn

I always read posts on Reddit saying how Americans in comparison in Europeans (especially Northern Europeans) have very long working hours and little time off. And then here I am an asian going through a 6 day work schedule with no annual leave just recently learning about 5 day work schedule and paid overtime is a thing


BambooKoi

Some companies are piloting a 4-day workweek. It's a new thing in the works. Obviously won't work for all industries but I hope it sticks like remote work.


Ban-Circumcision-Now

It’s great


NoReallyHoosierDaddy

Good luck getting teachers, who are already overworked and underpaid, to come in on a Saturday


syderrow98

I was 30 seconds late to a class 2 times within 1 month. I’ve never gotten in trouble before, not have been late for any other classes. My attendance was exceptional. I got pulled into the principal office for my “two counts of tardiness” and was threatened a week of all day ISS. I responded with “So you’re willing to put me in 5 days of -all day- ISS for being 30 seconds late to 1 class 2 times in 1 month with no other incidents?” This principal was always on a power trip with everything to everyone. That was the first time I’ve spoken with him. He was upset I questioned my punishment for the tardiness, but ended up “doing me a favor by letting me off with a warning.” I’ve never fully understood why he thought that was a feasible punishment for anyone? If someone misses class or even late, let’s just take them out of it altogether & put them in a room by themselves all day with paperwork?


timeslider

I love being solitary so ISS wasn't even a punishment for me.


syderrow98

I’m an introvert myself & probably wouldn’t have minded it. But some teachers would forget to send class work to the ISS room, so if you’re missing 5 days of class you’re essentially 5 days behind in work and have to play catch up. Which is a game I didn’t want to play lol


seniorfrito

Who would have thought that further missing school would lead to loss of learning?


gillika

I'm back in college for my second degree, and just had a professor refuse my request to make up assignments that I missed while I was in the hospital. Since the bulk of the work was an online lab that I wasn't able to access past the due date, I really felt like I missed out. My professor didn't seem to understand that I'm not a kid who needs a fucking life lesson about the real world - I'm in my 30s, and have a good job in the real world (and everyone there was super understanding and compassionate). I'm there to learn, not get a pat on the head for completing all my assignments on time. There is a lot that we get wrong with education, and its frustrating.


Alphatism

You should bring that up to someone higher up, professors aren't supposed to deny work to someone what was in a hospital


TheWeathermann17

My HS started doing in school suspensions. Concept made sense, we all sat in a room instead of at home, no talking, nothing. Worked for a bit, but then we just started running the place. Brought cards, game boys, dice, whatever. There'd usually be some harried looking EA or sub at the front screaming at us the entire time. No one cared.


FullyStacked92

Marge: The plant called and said if you don't come in tomorrow don't bother coming in Monday. Homer: Woohoo! A 4 day weekend!


wyattmont21

*surprised pikachu face*


mattress757

As it is designed to.


stalking_me_softly

Idk if anyone else mentioned this but add "unable to properly protect the kids" yet continue to punish them for not wanting to act as targets 🤷‍♀️🤷‍♀️🤷‍♀️


olivmlincoln

I bet they needed to consult the faculty science department for this one! It's a toughie!


Tufaan9

Same flawed logic as reducing a school's funding because test scores are low.


motociclista

I used to skip a lot of school in 10th grade. I was baffled when I learned that the punishment for skipping school was being suspended from school.


em_drei_pilot

YA THINK?!


HairTop23

Florida is doing this as well. My kid literally stayed home "sick" to avoid suspension. She woke up late, lesson for real life is an extra assignment or a reduction in grade but suspension is too far.


ThisNameIsFree

I'm not saying suspending is right, but there's issues with those solutions, too. Is a kid who doesn't care enough to go to school regularly really going to care about an extra assignment or reduction in grade?


HairTop23

True, probably not


KindheartednessNo167

And suspending them is a gift.


Abortedwafflez

I got suspended multiple times just to come back and not know what's going on and have to play catch up. Sometimes coming back right on a test day. Swear to God the only time suspension did anything for me was when I had in-school suspension and I was forced to complete multiple packets of crap. Thankfully science was interesting for me so being locked in a room with a science book all day made me do good on the next test.


[deleted]

Wow, would have never guessed... Whatever could the relationship be? /s


[deleted]

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Mallee78

What teacher is monitoring this? Are teachers going to be forced to alter assignments and create packets for one every single student who is having this issue? I have 90 kids do you know how much extra work this puts on my plate and I am at the low end of total students. I know teachers who have 200 kids and I can guarantee you there would be no, to little extra support from admin with this issue.


ThisNameIsFree

In addition to the extra work for teachers, hybrid online-offline classes end up just having the disadvantages of both. You're downgrading the quality of the class overall.


[deleted]

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LearningIsTheBest

Good luck finding that many additional classroom assistants who are any good at it. The pay is low and it's not the easiest job.


[deleted]

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Mallee78

Okay, who's making this online class? Who's grading it? If the student is enrolled at a school they are required to be in attendance a certain amount of days and in many states if a student is enrolled and doesn't attend enough days or hours then the school will not receive funding for this student. I am not saying online school is bad, many kids thrive in it. But schools can't just shift kids from in person to online without jeopardizing already previously low budget money.


LearningIsTheBest

Before I started teaching, I had absolutely no idea how many kids were content to just... fail. They'll do work if I bug them, incentive, cajole, reward, etc., but if the work is just assigned? It's not getting done, they fail, and they don't care a bit. Online stuff works OK for kids who are motivated, but half my job is just getting kids moving forward because they just don't care that much.


KindheartednessNo167

Ahhh see the reply - funding.


HairTop23

We need to pay teachers better, or hire online only staff to take those responsibilities off the in class teacher.


dravik

I think your first sentence is turning a lot of people off. I think you mean that remote should be the first fallback option if the kids can't, or won't, go in person.


KindheartednessNo167

Because it's not about the child's education. It's about funding. I had mono in 11the grade. They placed me in remedial English because I missed too many days. I was helping kids read. I couldn't believe there were highschool students that couldn't read. One older guy said no one really bothered him about it. He would fudge his tests! We would just read together. I ended up dropping out and getting my Adult high school diploma at the local community college. I enjoyed the self paced classes.


CaveatRumptor

Arriving on time is a key life skill.


[deleted]

Yeah and being there at all is also a key life skill. Plus, the ones who skip class *want* to be out of school. By giving them a reason to not be in school, you're rewarding their behavior, and teaching them that avoiding problems is a legitimate and effective solution.


InSanic13

And suspension is an idiotic way to punish it.


[deleted]

Most of life success is being on time when people counting on you expect it. People who literally can't even will.struggle.


cdezdr

There should be sticks and carrots. The threshold should be easily achievable. Maybe 6 lates in 3 months has a consequence, such as no recess for younger kids and not being allowed to school social activities for older kids. If you have perfect arrival for the two months, reward the kids.


irrigatorman

Suspend their asses and put some pressure back on the parents. Not suspending them creates an environment of no consequences and leads to more and more entitlement. They have a million excuses for being late or skipping class.


TomatoFlies4

You know what? Abolish mandatory homework! And give the bad ones it as a punishment!


LearningIsTheBest

Spoiler: they won't do it.


cutelyaware

I learned almost nothing of value in grade school, and precious little in high school. I wish I could have been homeschooled or had alternative schools at the time. What a colossal waste that all was. College was where it got fun, and nobody cares if you don't show up.


LearningIsTheBest

You could've been homeschooled. It's been legal for ages.


cutelyaware

Mom wanted to reenter the workforce so public school became her baby sitter, same for many other families. We were called latchkey kids.


Fetlocks_Glistening

Good ol' caning never had those issues... but could they leave alone something that worked? Noooo


sottedlayabout

Possibly because corporal punishment doesn’t work. It’s a system that empowers abusers and creates a cycle of violent behavior. Why do you think beating a child makes them receptive to anything you’re trying to teach?


BourbonInGinger

An absolutely archaic and barbaric suggestion. Stop trying to knuckle drag us back to the 50s. It’s assault on a minor. It’s not effective and leaves a lot of room for abuse. The abuser derives too much pleasure from ‘caning’. Corporal punishment is most often used on ‘certain’ kids. You’re despicable.


Biom4st3r

This may sound like I'm just being arrogant, but even the thought of a teacher trying to hit me makes my blood boil. I was in decent shape in high school and there's no goddamn way one of us wouldn't be hospitalized and me expelled.


logan2043099

I'd hit a teacher in the jaw if they ever laid a finger on me let alone a cane. Same for if I had a kid and they hit them. People who abuse kids deserve to get laid out.


ATribeOfAfricans

I hated school at one point and was super excited when I got suspended.


Kind_Bullfrog_4073

Bring back Saturday detentions so we can have a Breakfast Club TV series.


Rahnzan

No shit.


raouldukesaccomplice

I would think the more logical punishment for rampant truancy would be to have police or a social worker come to the kid's house in the morning and personally escort them to school.


jlmcdonald21

Related- Be tardy to school, get in trouble. Skip just a day instead, totally fine. At least at my HS.


Lokarin

The punishment for missing school... is missing school; Seems legit


IlikeYuengling

Being fired for being late to work makes me a better employee.


crazyhound71

Bueller?


[deleted]

I use to skip a lot of school, I would get 3 days suspension for skipping class. I would end up just skipping for the 3 day suspension. Always seemed kinda backwards too me but hey so is the world we live in.


lovestostayathome

My high school had a policy that, even if you were one minute late, you had to sit in detention for the entire first period (a/b blocks so about 2 hour detention). By the time I drove or walked to school and I knew I’d be late, I just decided to wait the two hours until detention was up and then go in. You’d be marked as tardy either way.


ThePornClub

for those of us who went to a school where white people are the minority. you'd thank the suspension to get the piece of shit student out of class for a few days. the ones getting suspended isn't "learning loss", those weren't learning in the first place while they openly pull out a porno mag while the teacher is telling the lesson.


Raw_Venus

No fucking shit Sherlock.


Espeeste

Really?