Child violence is on the rise! How do we get kids off the streets? How do we stop gangs?

To solve your problem, let's do what Ontario schools have been doing: Kick the kids out of school! If you think I'm joking, I'm not! I'm serious about this one.

The Ontario Safe Schools Act was passed in 2000. It was a measure implemented to ensure a positive scholarly environment for school employees and the students. In fact, Bill 81 clearly states the purpose of the bill is to promote civil codes of conduct with the following outlined:
"3. To maintain an environment where conflict and difference can be addressed in a manner characterized by respect and civility."

However, recently, Ontario schools have reached record numbers for the amount of suspensions taking place! 152,000 students were suspended in 03-04, 40,000 more suspensions then in the previous year. Do you feel ill yet?

So what does Bill 81 say about discipline?

Section 302 of the Bill addresses discipline with the following:
"(2)A board may establish policies and guidelines with respect to disciplining pupils, and the policies and guidelines must be consistent with this Part and with the policies and guidelines established by the Minister under section 301, and must address such matters and include such requirements as the Minister may specify."

Are you still with me? To recap, everyone in a school must follow the codes of conduct which includes addressing conflicts with respect if that doesn't happen, then disciplinary actions must take place and are not limited to the students, teachers and administration are accountable as well!

Stay with me, I'm getting to a point here.

According to the Bill, a request to suspend a child must go through a council or a board in order to review and make the decision. HOWEVER, the kicker is, if you read on in the document you'll see that pretty much any stupid action a student makes in school can be cause for immediate suspension without a review. In fact, the last deviant activity that a student may possibly commit is listed as this:

"6. Engaging in another activity that, under a policy of the board, is one for which a suspension is mandatory." So technically, a student can get suspended for ANYTHING!

Now here's my point. I think that threatening children with suspension from school is a deplorable punishment. Studies have proven that higher the education of a pupil directly effects on the positive way these students will interact in society. A difference between perceiving violence as a solution to problems and not. So why would the apparently sage individuals who created such a document, as well as those implementing it wish to provide such a disservice to the next generation of Canadians?


Kids will be kids. And, suspension is apart of the ultimate punishment for children. The minimum suspension term is 1 day to a maximum of 20 days. However, the average suspension term that Ontario Schools are implementing is 20 days to a maximum of 1 year! What the fudge!?

So who are being suspended?
The article in the Toronto Star details the disabled as well as minorities are being targeted. Students who already have a high risk of dropping out of school and potentially leading deviant lives! One student suspended was a 6-year old autistic child who grabbed the teacher's assistant's breast! He was suspended for sexual harassment. I believe that a 6-year old had as much intention to molest a T.A. as a turnip wants breasts! Let's be realistic here!

Who is the administration accountable to?
According to the bill, it's accountable to anyone involved with a school. A parent, a teacher, a guardian, etc. In fact, the bill is supposed to be reviewed periodically to ensure that it is fair, with a major review taking place in 2005.

Well, reviews have been taking place, but, MPP Liz Sandals (Guelph-Wellington), chair of the Safe Schools Action Team, said the format won't change tonight or in Thunder Bay and Sudbury next week. She said the discussions are designed to ensure every participant gets a chance to speak. However, only 10% of those attending the meetings will actually have a chance to speak, but, they won't be heard by the entire Ontario Safe Schools Act Action Team. How painfully futile and ineffective.

In the end
We have a ridiculous system. It's just not working, children are being punished for doing the absurd activities that children are known to do. They don't fully understand the depth of their actions they only think they are being cool. I think it's highly irresponsible of the powers that be to allow decisions on a child's suspension to take place outside of a review. I also believe that using suspension as a first course of action is intolerable.

By stunting students education I believe is not just punishing the student, but, is encouraging potentially volatile behavior that will undoubtedly effect the community on a whole. That is, if the child decides to drop out and engage in deviant behavior, which, the studies supports taking in account the majority of those suspended are minorities and those with disabilities.

What I suggest is solitary confinement for the child, if the child does something heinous, like death threat, violent behavior against a peer or a school official, possession of illegal narcotics, you get the point. The child, alone, is confined to an empty room with nothing more than the days lessons. The child is required to come to school early before the majority of the students arrive, and leaves the school after the other children leave the school. They are escorted in and out, they aren't allowed to speak to anyone other that the teachers charged with keeping watch over them.
The can see out the window at the kids playing but aren't allowed to interact. They are segregated for a day, no more than a week. And, the punishment can also include helping out in the school after the solitary confinement. They can help in the special ed classes, they can help out in the office, they can pick up garbage on the school property.

The benefit, the child is punished in a non-violent way that does not effect the child's right to an education and with the combination of school service it instills a sense of involvement with the school in the child.

Nothing funny about this post. I'm just disgusted at the flippant over use of the school system's equivalent of capital punishment.

If you want to read the Ontario Safe Schools Act for yourself please go here:
http://www.edu.gov.on.ca/safeschl/eng/ssa.html
If you want to write to Liz Sandals and express your view on the OSSA you can write her here:
lsandals.mpp.co@liberal.ola.org
or visit her website here http://www.lizsandals.onmpp.ca/index.htm
To read today's article at Toronto Star go to: http://www.thestar.com

If you email Liz Sandals and you get a response, let me know so I can publish it here.