Can you believe this? Those TN teachers are horrid-crazy

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:eek: OMG, I can't believe they would think that was OK!!! My kids recently had a drill, which normally would have been unannounced, but in light of the VATech tragedy they called every family in the school to let the kids know it was coming up, that it was only a drill. Then the day of the drill, it was basically a fake lockdown where the scenario was that a stranger was on campus without clearance. Nobody threatening them with a non-existent GUN!! :mad: :thumbsdown:
 

amy919

New member
Both of those things are just plain crazy. I would be furious if that was my child. What in the world were they thinking?!?

Amy
 

broken4u05

New member
I heard about the first not the 2nd. wow to both though. We have had drills before. I think we were told before hand about some and not others. But they would have code red drills and even have someone come around to doors and nock on them and set off alarms and everything. We have had some real codes though too. someone did bring a gun to school didnt do anything but we had to stay in your rooms till the cops came and than notes to parents given out.. But this is high school. I do not think they would do the drills like that in middle school. and than this is just wrong to do at any age. Like the person on the radio this morning if i was a parent to one of the kids i would be getting everyone involed fired.. just wrong
 

flipper68

Senior Community Member
Contrary to popular opinion, elementary schools HAVE to do code red drills. We also have fire drills and tornado drills. Several of the school shootings did occur at elementary school. Then there are custody disputes, parents with mental illness, and weirdos in the neighborhood. I haven't seen/read about the "fake attack," but at my school (K-5) we practiced 'code red' 2-3 times a year and it should have been more (so the STAFF knew what/how to do things). We also had a real 'code red' last spring when an inmate escaped the local correctional facility. Another thing to consider is overall school design - with the circular/open/"pod" design that was/is popular, it is almost impossible to insure some areas of the building are secure because once you round a corner, there are 3-4 options to move from there. Same with where the school office is located compared to the main doors - can the office see the doors? We also had the issue of students in portable classrooms that needed access to the main building - how do you keep the outer doors locked/secure when there is a constant stream of students moving in/out? How do you maintain the idea/perception/policy of parents/visitors are welcome and at the same time keep the building secure? In developing code red procedure, there are so many things to consider: Beginning with what is considered a 'code red'? How do you account for all of the students and staff? Are there kids in the bathrooms or other public spaces? Are there students outside for recess or PE? ow do you communicate with staff w/o alarming the students? How do you notify parents? [We ended up having all students dismissed that day into the hands of an adult. Amazingly, with 750 students, there were less than 2 dozen students waiting for adults 30 minutes after dismissal.] What about parents waiting outside for children at dismissal - are they in danger? IMO - more students were stressed by fire/tornado drills because of the loud signals than by a code red drill. But again, I haven't seen details about the drill in question.
 

Knittingfor4

New member
Well, that's public schools for ya. Crazy! I wouldn't send a dog to public school :thumbsdown: There'll be lawsuits for sure, but I'm not sure the movie one will go anywhere in this backward society. Some idiot judge will probably say it was good for the kids :confused:
 

Victorious4

Senior Community Member
I can understand the need for these code red drills, but I can also see them being rather traumatic for the kids -- IMO, the adults should have one version, the kids a toned down one.... I'm also remembering kids being frightened during basic fire drills & someone got trampled in my Middle School, had to go to the hospital :( GUNS? wow, just wow. I'd actually think that "normalizes" the presence of guns rather than detering them.

& Broke Back Mountain -- wow, I haven't seen it yet, but the adults I know who saw it before hearing the storyline were shocked (not in a bad way, necessarily, just surprised because they didn't expect it). I can't get that link to work, but goodness, aren't there supposed to be signed waivers for anything shown at elementary schools containing any form of sexual content?
 

amy919

New member
My boss' son's school goes to a very expensive private school. They sent home a note a few months ago advising the parents that they would having a similar kind of drill. The parents freaked out and they ended up cancelling it. Obviously, these parents were not informed ahead of time. What this particular school ended up doing was performing a drill for the staff only when the kids were off for an in-service day. That made much more sense to me. As much as I think it's important that the kids be aware of these types of situations, I want to make sure the people I'm trusting to care for them know what to do.

Amy
 

broken4u05

New member
Ok there are drills where over the speakers they say this is a code red than a code only the school knows and than there is this:
During the last night of the trip, staff members convinced the 69 students that there was a gunman on the loose. They were told to lie on the floor or hide underneath tables and stay quiet. A teacher, disguised in a hooded sweat shirt, even pulled on locked door.

Never in my school when we had drills did they tell us that there was someone in the school or anything.. After the code is done they say the code again and after 5 mins they say what happened.. If we passed or failed or if it was for real.

They did not just say hey this is a code red they scared the kids out of their minds.
 

Morganthe

New member
I can easily understand the need for 'Code Red' drills. My mother & I went through similar types of drills for Nuclear attacks. Yeah, pretty much useless to hide under desks, but it helped make everyone feel better :rolleyes: We also did Earthquake drills too.

What I would like to know is WHAT IDIOT decided this would be ok on a FIELD TRIP to a State Park? :eek: It's not even on school property. I remember being on one of the last week long trips to camp in 6th grade to the Cascades before they dropped the program due to budget & liability issues.
At 12 years old, adults telling me that something was not a drill, happening at night, and being scared out of my wits would have definitely affected me. Forget going to sleep that night, or any other nights. Then to find the adults in authority LIED?? Shame on them!

And Broke Back Mountain to 8 year olds? :eek: Has someone completely lost their wits or what? I've seen the film. While I appreciated a lot about it, I cannot recomend it to young people or even my elderly parents.
It is a Hard "R" rated movie with a bit of nudity, suggestive sexual activity enough to know what's going on, and a subject matter that is very emotionally complex. I wouldn't have shown it to seniors in high school unlike Schindler's List. There's absolutely no context where it could be viewed in public school.

Perhaps the film could be shown in college for certain subjects. I'm not sure what, but probably something with social history, filmography, or even social development. Same thing with that "Drill" too. Just like the proverbial incident in a Criminal Justice or Sociology class where a suspect races in, causes some sort of chaos threatening someone and then departing suddenly. Now THAT teaches students how unreliable witnesses can be to details, minor or major details of a crime scene.

Neither are experiences that children need to be subject to. I'm so sorry for both sets of kids :(
 

Loves2sing

New member
Okay first of all, what good would come out of showing Brokeback mountain? If she was showing it to promote tolerance to homosexuals, then she's a moron. There are way better ways to promote tolerance without showing a group of kids a very sexual movie. I would be outraged, and my dd would be finding a new school. And her comment of what happens in Ms. whatever's class stays in her class? What an idiot. If you feel the need to say something like that because you are scared the kids will tell their parents, then you know you are doing something wrong. Any thing ANY adult does around ANY kid should be clean enough, that said kid could tell any other adult about it with out the other adults getting upset. Kwim?

And the drill? I don't see how that drill taught those kids anything but a fear of their teachers and fellow classmates. The teachers should be invovled in training for that, but it is not up to them to decide that they have the right to put my child through that mental turmoil. Those poor kids. What a bunch of jerks. Did they truly think that they were teaching these kids a valuable lesson, or did they think it would be funny? I would like to hear the teacher's reasoning. Bad judgment on their part for sure!
 
B

broxbourneDELETE

Guest
And her comment of what happens in Ms. whatever's class stays in her class? What an idiot. If you feel the need to say something like that because you are scared the kids will tell their parents, then you know you are doing something wrong. Any thing ANY adult does around ANY kid should be clean enough, that said kid could tell any other adult about it with out the other adults getting upset. Kwim?

Ms. Buford.
Ms. Buford.

Remember her name in case a new sub shows up in your school.

Telling a child to keep a secret is wrong and creepy. I routinely tell my son that he is never, ever to keep any secrets from mommy and daddy. I use examples like, "If Miss Joanna from pre-school told you not to tell mommy something, come home and tell mommy anyway. If our neighbor Mr. Smith tells you not to tell mommy something, come home and tell mommy anyway. If Aunt Karen tell you not to tell mommy something, come home and tell mommy anyway. No secrets from mommy, not from Aunt Karen, or Miss Joanna or anybody." I do not really suspect these people of anything. I threw in the name of an aunt to illustrate that if he would tell me a secret from someone as dear as an aunt, then he would sure tell me a secret from anyone else. I guess I will never have a surprise party but I can live with that
 

Loves2sing

New member
If my teaching my child NOT to keep secrets from me keeps me from having any surprises, then so be it. If Dh wants to surprise me, don't tell Jenna then. I completley agree that our kids should not be taught to have secrets from us, that is how sexual abuse keeps going on for years. My parents taught me to tell them everything, and my big mouth saved me from the on going horrors my sister went through at the hands of our much older cousin. If he had not overheard me spilling "our little secret", I don't know what he would have done to me, well, actually I do, cause he did it to my sister. But I thank God all the time that I listened to my parents about that. My sister didn't want to get our cousin into trouble, so she kept quiet. Now as an adult, I know that she regrets her childish mistakes, and will forever.
 

Knittingfor4

New member
That secret thing is sad. My ds teacher told the kids to keep the M-day drawings a secret and he did, then after he gave it me he told us that he had to keep it a secret. I didn't think anything of it. But things are soo messed up today. I heard a call on Dr. Laura last week about a grandma who was in a bathroom sneaking a granola bar and her granddaughter, about 3, came in and begged for some. Grandma gave her a piece and told her not to tell the other KIDS because there wasn't enough. The mother grabbed the girl as soon as she came out of the bathroom and grilled her. The girl was crying and said grandma told her not to tell. Now they won't speak to Grandma and she can't see the girl :thumbsdown: Crazy!
 

Victorious4

Senior Community Member
There's a book about Telling vs. Tattling / Secrets vs. Surprises -- I'll have to find mine to remember exactly, but it's framed with questions to get kids to think....
 

Loves2sing

New member
I think just to make it easier for the kids, no secrets should be allowed. When you give them gray areas, it just confuses them. I would rather play it safe.
 

Shelsy

New member
NOt that it makes much difference, but the movie was shown to 8th graders (not 8 year olds). Still, that Ms. Buferd has some nerve.

The drill story is really disturbing to me. Imagine the emotional scars, and for the supposedly good reason of preparing them In Case Something Bad Happens. The logic!
 

Victorious4

Senior Community Member
I think just to make it easier for the kids, no secrets should be allowed. When you give them gray areas, it just confuses them. I would rather play it safe.
I hear you -- except knowing the difference helps kids not take the blame upon themselves when someone does something bad to them....

I was molested between the ages of 4-6 years old. My parents were big on no secrets, always tell them if someone ever tried to touch my "privates", etc. Perpetrators are so d@mned sneaky, though. I tried to tell, but like many kids all I could figure out how to say was "he's yucky" (& I was in a "gifted" school). About 1/6 boys & 1/4 girls are sexually abused in some way & over 90% of the perps are trusted family members or friends. I get it. Believe me, do I get it. I know how even those few episodes during that relatively brief timeframe can mess a person's sexuality & sense of self up for a long long time.

But, "no secrets at all" is a potentially dangerous method that does not teach kids to think about which situations are harmful & how to most effectively cope with it. It can cause kids to let fear fester because they feel like they're expected to set things to right. Telling is an important part of protection, don't get me wrong, but the MOST important thing is for kids to understand that it's the GROWN UPS' responsibility to set things right. Getting mom a gift is a surprise, not a secret. It's OK to tell mom you have a surprise gift, but it's also OK to wait to let her find out what it is. Pretending there aren't any gray areas is what actually leads to more confusion. If a child feels like something just isn't right, then they should simply feel SAFE ENOUGH to tell over & over again. Not only with mommy, but every other adult in the child's life, too. Repeatedly. Mommy can't be the only one a child can trust to tell such fears. What does tell mean, exactly? Should a kid who develops the coping mechanism of tuning the incident out, leaving reality for a dream state, be expected to verbalize the details? Is that honestly a reasonable expectation? Women survivors of rape often can't do this, let alone children with such minimal vocabulary. There are gray areas of safety & gray areas of abuse. It's not all black & white. It just isn't.

The books I'm talking about are standard issue for kids in the foster system & at advocacy centers for women & children seeking help for abusive situations, written by professionals who dedicate their lives to helping heal & prevent child abuses.
 
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