Concerns were raised Monday in the Disciplinary Committee of the Hamilton County Board of Education that the number of disruptive classes in county schools is growing.
School board member Rhonda Thurman, according to WTVC, said teachers resignedly attempt to teach throughout the disruptions because they know the school’s front office will do little or nothing about the problem. In the end, she said, any disciplinary action taken ends up undermining the authority of the teacher.
Anecdotally, county teachers have said discipline — not money — is the main reason they leave the profession. A school board member said Monday his wife would no longer substitute teach in the schools because she did not feel safe.
But figures on the state’s report card for individual county high schools, considering the number of suspensions handed out and expulsions made, indicate discipline is improving.
“[The figures allow] us to see trends in student discipline,” the report card reads, “providing a clear view of whether schools have been improving over … the last few years. The goal is to decrease discipline rates.”