If you bully...

If we are going to eliminate bullying in our schools do we have to come up with innovative strategies? I say "No"... Let's return to what works. So here are my strategies for eradicating bullies from our school communities.
 1. If you bully, all electronic devices are off limits for the rest of your school year. You need information,,,
 read a book; you need a ride, use the school phone; you want a status, talk to someone face to face.

 2. If you bully you do good old-fashioned manual labor. Put on some gloves and pick up garbage around
 the school. Parents may not argue...if they do they are handed another pair of gloves.

 3.If you bully, you do not return to school until you and your parents writes an apology to the victim. Then
 you hand that apology to the victim in person while looking at them in the eye.

 4.If you bully you will be afraid to tell your parents because the punishment will be worse at home.

 5.If you bully, you don't play sports...your exercise will consist of mowing all your elderly neighbor's
 lawns, and cleaning all three family bathroom floors with a toothbrush, (We were luckier, most of us only
 had one)

 6. If you bully, you will be "Scared Straight".

 7. If you bully, "free time" is a memory.

 8. If you bully, you are assigned a seat in the cafe for the year. Then you stay and clean the cafe after lunch.

 9.  If you bully, you lose all pass privileges. No more bathroom passes...plan better.

 10. If you bully, you stay home with your parents. Sorry parents, you raised them...you fix them.

Ten Words worth Defining...

Ten Words worth Defining…
1. Parental Love: Actions, responses, feelings, and decisions in which on several occasions the correct word is simply, “No”.
2. Integrity: Actions that you see on the outside are the same as what the person is thinking on the inside.
3. Winning: A moment in time to be cherished and remembered… not to be embellished, or placed on the same platform of importance as the process necessary to attain that win.
4. Losing: Events in life from which you should draw strength, wisdom, patience, perseverance, grace, humor, and vision.
5. Role Model: An imperfect human being whose outstanding skills, charisma, charm, looks and appeal is minimized by the immensity of his or her morality.
6. Education: A lifelong pursuit down a perilous potholed path with several open doors lining the route. Another easier parallel path exists, but the doors are closing quickly, barricaded or locked.
7. Courage: Actions leading to lasting positive changes; with clear expectations of being pummeled, and the joy of recognizing our true friends.
8. Discipline: Holding back in order to move forward.
9. Respect: The foundation upon which all interactions with my parents and teachers were built.
10. Happiness: Looking in the mirror and walking away with an internal warm smile.

10 of my favorite Parent statements through the Years!

In paranthesis are my responses:

1. I know my child and I know he would never lie to me. (You are living in a fantasy world, mom!)

2. Why don't you worry about the big things like drugs and weapons instead of
wasting your time bothering my kid about dress code and being tardy? (If I bother your child
about these "small" things, I won't ever have to worry about the big ones.}

3. If my child said F$#@ Y&% to you, what did you do to cause him/her to say that? (Are you kidding me?)

4. My child doesn't think that you like her. (I don't...but I still want to facilitate her educational
experience.}

5. He never acts that way at home... (Ha, ha,...that's a good one!)

6. Why are you stressing my child out with all these expectations? (Why aren't you reinforcing my
expectations at home?}

7. Don't talk down to me just because you have a college education... (Sure, I'll express my views intellectually.
The problem is that you won't understand a darn thing I said. So at least give your child the opportunity to
understand some day.}

8. My child says that you are boring... (Which rock did you look under that had a note stating that preparing
children for a solid education was entertaining?}

9. I've talked to many of my daughter's friends and they all say you called her on the carpet. (You are foolish
for listening to a bunch of teenagers that challenge anyone that facilitates brain function... and by
the way, you might try calling her on the carpet as well.}

10. My child is failing your class. What are you going to do about it? (Not a darn thing...he's failing because of
his decisions not because of my actions!}

Ten Statements made by Teachers that Enhance your Child's Education.

1. Your brain should be tired by the end of the school day because you challenged yourself today...not because
you wasted brain cells texting until 3:00 AM this morning.

2. Yes....spelling counts!

3. If you would like to do better in my class, take all electronic devices out of your room and hand your
cell phone over to your parents after 8:00 PM every night.

4. Who said anything about being easy?

5. Please use full sentences.

6. When a middle or high school student tells the teacher that they don't have a pencil, paper or their book
after the first week, the teacher's response should be..."That's your problem, deal with it".

7. When I'm talking...you aren't!

8. Work is an expectation, not an option!

9. Studying is hard...Digging ditches is harder!

10. Your parents owe you food, shelter and an education...everything else is a priviledge. If you decide to ignore
your education, there will be no extracurricular activities, no time with friends, no electronic devices, no
name brand clothes, no use of the car, no spending money, no dating, etc., etc.

10 ways to Improve Respect & Discipline in School.

10 Ways to Improve Respect and Discipline in Schools.
1. Hire administrators and teachers that couldn’t care less about being politically correct.
2. Eliminate warnings, negotiations and rescheduling in the discipline protocol. The only warning is on day one when the student receives their student manual.
3. Forget about teaching to the test. Teach to the focal point of passion.
4. Expel the 5 % of the kids who couldn’t care less about school and who daily impede upon the educational opportunities of others.
5. Celebrate the quality, heart and passion of teachers and mean it.
6. Tell the parent that comes in looking to find fault in everyone as a cover for their child’s imperfections…to take a hike….then have the SRO escort them out of the building.
7. If a student does not do their homework, prepare for class or study…give them what they deserve…..an “F”.
8. Expect all students in American schools to speak in full sentences, look you in the eye, do the multiplication table through 12, spell properly, exude manners, and speak English.
9. If you pass everything, you play. If you fail anything, you sit.
10. Manual labor should be the standard form of discipline for not doing your homework. Let them get used to what it will be like in 10 years if they don’t carry through with their education.

The Way it Should Be!

The principal and assistants will be greeting the students at the door each morning and will walk the halls every moment of every day. If students walk towards the door out of dress code, they won’t pass through it. Students will have a right to the halls only if they are in proper attire. The disruption of electrical devices, inappropriate clothing and other peripherals will disappear. Language will be clean, appropriate and respectful. Students will address adults as Sir, Ma’am, Mr. or Mrs. They will not use words such as dude, dawg, or man in any conversations directed at adults. They can save that for the beach, the mall or their own back yards. Wouldn’t it be great to enter classrooms where the words, “Please”, and “Thank you”, will be embedded within the dynamics of meaningful learning?

Students that break the rules will face consequences every time. There will be no warnings, two-week adjustment periods, negotiations or deals. The warning is put in place the day the student is handed the student handbook. If it is a policy established by the school board, we will enforce it. Student consequences will be effective. Detentions will be served with a purpose. These students will scrub the desks, clean the walls, pick up the garbage and scrape gum from places they put it. If they must sit in a desk, they will write and write and write until they get it right! Major infractions will lead to suspensions and Saturday Detentions. If the infraction involved defiance or verbal abuse toward a staff member, the student will not return without a parent conference and a thoughtful apology written to the teacher.

Discipline will become the norm not the exception. Students will be on time in the morning and for every class. Students will take up the four minutes between the classes to get to class, utilize the rest room and get into their seats. They don’t need to talk to their friends, exchange hellos and greetings, and scurry to their locker. They need to plan ahead and prepare for the whole school day. There will be time for socializing before school, at lunch and after school gets out. Other than that it should be six hours of hard work, intellectual challenge, and critical skills development. They will engage their brain cells from bell to bell. Students will bring their tools of learning to class every day. No longer will well-planned lessons by teachers be tossed away because half the class doesn’t come prepared with pencil, paper, and books. I will not accept a statement from any parent or child that they can’t afford or have that paper or pencil when a cell phone or I-Pod is hanging out of the child’s pocket. Students should expect to be exhausted by 2:30 every day because of working brains not because of wasted hours of useless conversation, doodling or late night Facebook chats with friends.

Three Pillars revisited

Three Pillars
It is time to stop. It is time to take action on a crucial issue that all of us know is in a critical state. We talk about it at cocktail parties, at coffee shops and at our kids’ ballgames. However, most people are afraid to openly discuss this issue because of concern for the security of their jobs. Educational leaders need to be willing to listen to ideas about academic rigor and success without creating an atmosphere placing an umbrella of distrust, angst and fear over the school district. Every mature, caring, consciences adult cares about the issue. We have talked, soap-boxed, and philosophized long enough. It is time to take action. The three foundational pillars of quality education have eroded and continue to fall apart at an appalling rate. The three pillars are Respect, Discipline, and Courage.
My goal is not to kick students out. My goal is to provide an environment that is safe and lends to an atmosphere of academic rigor. This rigor can only exist in a setting in which there is a foundation of Respect, Discipline, and Courage. We have a systemic problem. Unfortunately, we have allowed the crumbling of the pillars to continue to the point where academic rigor is not occurring in most classrooms in this country. Teachers are burning out at an alarming rate. Courageous administrators are becoming increasingly difficult to find and cultivate. Many parents are doing the right thing, but many are not doing their job; making tough decisions that are best for their kids. They are too busy, self-centered, and absurdly concerned about becoming buddies with their children. The long-term result is that you have parents that are neither solid parents nor friends. They provide their children with stuff but lack in provision of values.
What do we really expect from these kids? Values, ethics, morality, and community pride have been buried under the pounding competitiveness of mass media. All of us smile and share the quality memories of the Dick van Dyke show. However, we let our kids watch prime time shows like “Two and a half Men” where you can see sex, hear sex, and laugh about the promiscuous sexual values. We want our children to be honest, well-mannered, and profanity free. However, we allow our kids to watch reality shows laden with an inappropriate language that promote dishonesty, and unethical behavior. We talk about the community pride that existed in our neighborhoods during the day. However, we don’t bring ourselves or our children to church, attend their activities, interact with our neighbors, or support their tough teachers.
The school system of today designates a vast majority of its energy and resources towards testing, curriculum initiatives and data evaluation. Testing has gone totally off the deep end. Some schools test students almost 20% of the time they are in school. The reality is that incessant testing benefits only the superintendent that is applying for a new job and dresses up his/her resume with a 3% test score increase in their previous district.
We are bombarded with so many curriculum initiatives and the reality is that most never come to a point of fruition, most disperse when the superintendent moves on and they just sap the energy from quality teachers that already know what works. We know that real success will occur when the basics are woven together with the selected benefits of technology. However, district leaders are so consumed by advanced technology that they don’t realize that Johnny can’t do his multiplication table, can’t interpret a simple graph, can’t read the town newspaper and can’t write a sentence with clarity, free of grammar and spelling errors.
The morale in this school s in this district is awful. I’m so tired of listening to the company line, “It’s all about the kids”. The focus should be that “It’s all about the community”. A school district’s vision and mission should incorporate a framework of care and concern for the all the adults as well. I’ve been in education for 21 years and I do love working with the kids. However, unhealthy, overworked, stressed adults are not conducive to the provision of outstanding education. Take a moment to look around and listen. The faculty and staff are exhausted, probably half of them are on high blood pressure medication, and a good amount of them are on anti-depressants. Most of them are outstanding human beings filled with ideas, creativity and the drive to help students learn how to learn. However, they are beat, the energy has been zapped and the excitement has been terminated by the ridiculous burdens of new initiatives and the lack of support that they receive from administration.
“Respect” is a term saved for history class in most schools. Teachers are fed to the lions on a daily basis. I have observed so many classes where it takes several minutes to quiet students down and then the disruptions continue throughout the class time. Students interrupt, speak inappropriately and at inappropriate times, refuse to participate, and address the teacher and other students in a disrespectful manner. The result is 55 minutes of waste and the weakening of potentially strong minds. Their vast exposure to life’s hard and cold realities have numbed or nullified their feelings and emotions. They have seen the frailty of human integrity so often that they don’t expect it of themselves, their parents or anyone else of significance around them.
“Discipline” is the backbone of educational quality. Discipline involves hard work, focus, sweat and the engagement of brain cells. This happens in classrooms with greater infrequency on a daily basis. The reason is quite simple. Our culture has convinced students and parents alike, teachers need to make every day fun, to make sure every child feels great about themselves and that each child is in their comfort zone. What a bunch of baloney! We all know that accomplishment and growth cannot occur without some struggle, pain, discomfort and down in the dirt hard work. I remember a great line from the movie, “Lean on Me” spoken by Morgan Freeman playing the character of Principal Joe Clark. It went like this,” Discipline is not the enemy of enthusiasm”. I believe that every child desires and thrives for discipline and structure. It provides direction and purpose for these young adults.
“Courage” is another character trait losing its worth and significance. Our school leaders spend countless hours on policy. Then they proudly announce it to their community. They hire an energized, bright principal to enforce their policies. People fight back and challenge the policy. The principal does the courageous thing and stands firm on the issue. Then we see what happens oh so often. A board member or superintendent gets soft, bends and then the integrity and the purpose of the policy become lost in political and legal umbrage.
Discipline in our schools is not effective. The School Board has set and approved a Discipline Code and policies. The major priority of the assistant principals is to enforce those policies, with the principal in position to handle appeals, high level situations and PR. Discipline is not being effectively enforced in the schools. Let me give you an example. I was asked to supervise in the auditorium, café and a classroom during testing last week. Here is what I experienced when I tried to do my job. Two older African American students laughed at me and two had this exchange; “Doesn’t the dood know I’m black? He doesn’t cuz he’s try to tell you what to do…Ha, Ha”. Another male, when asked to follow instructions, said to me, “F#@& you” and B$@* me”. A female student said to me, “Shut up” when I asked her to remain quiet during testing. I wrote up the boy who said “F#@& you” to me and the administrator did not suspend him. That is absolutely absurd. Any student that demonstrates that type of gross disrespect towards a staff member should be suspended without negotiation even if the student is related to a member of the School Board. Administrators must protect the staff from this type of harassment and behavior.
If a dress code is established, we need strong administrators that will be at the door every morning greeting every child with enthusiasm and vigor. No one should be allowed in that is not following directives. They should be sent home, parents called in with appropriate attire for the student and every electrical device, hat, etc. should be turned over at the door….No questions…no exceptions!!. Do that for about three weeks, take the hits from the parents, hold the course…and you will see a whole different place. If an irate parent goes to the superintendent, the principal should be supported without question. If that parent moves to the board, the superintendent should have the Board watching his/her back.
It takes “Courage and Guts” to really make things work. If we want our institution of learning to become a special place of accomplishment, lasting relationships and community spirit, then we have to make tough decisions. You can take all the data and throw it down the toilet. Forty years ago, our students were number one in the world in math and science. Now we can’t crack the top twenty. Forty years ago, the number one discipline issue was gum-chewing. Now it’s lack of “Respect” and “Discipline”, along with all the peripherals associated with those two points. If you truly desire accurate data, set a policy, enforce it and hold the line no matter how many rhetorical punches you have to absorb!
This all needs to be said. The time to change is today…. not tomorrow….not next fall. If you want “Rigor”, then the pillars of “Respect”, “Discipline” and “Courage must be rebuilt. If the foundation is strong, you will see test scores go up, the cultural atmosphere will blossom and students and staff will have fun and work hard with smiles on their faces. Otherwise, our present direction withers the potential of our students, suffocates the fire of idealism and burdens the shoulders of our community. Our driving goal should be that the warm, calm winds of academic rigor, community pride and ethical actions will permeate through the walls of all our schools.
Thanks,
Mike Sanz

Discipline that will work

Discipline will become the norm not the exception. Students will be on time in the morning and for every class. Students will take up the four minutes between the classes to get to class, utilize the rest room and get into their seats. They don’t need to talk to their friends, exchange hellos and greetings, and scurry to their locker. They need to plan ahead and prepare for the whole school day. There will be time for socializing before school, at lunch and after school gets out. Other than that it should be six hours of hard work, intellectual challenge, and critical skills development. They will engage their brain cells from bell to bell. Students will bring their tools of learning to class every day. No longer will well-planned lessons by teachers be tossed away because half the class doesn’t come prepared with pencil, paper, and books. I will not accept a statement from any parent or child that they can’t afford or have that paper or pencil when a cell phone or I-Pod is hanging out of the child’s pocket. Students should expect to be exhausted by 2:30 every day because of working brains not because of wasted hours of useless conversation, doodling or late night Face book chats with friends.