<p>I noted that the kid who was the focus of the article was fighting with another kid in his class when the alleged abuse happened. Apparently the teacher had to break up the fight. Leaping to the conclusion that the teacher abused the kid seems questionable on the basis of that one incident. </p>
<p>I'm sure that there is abuse, but not so sure that this was an instance of it.</p>
<p>I'm also sure that the entrenched bureaucracy does its best to keep the school board and the superintendent in the dark about this and many other things.</p>
<p>consolation--there was not simply one kid or one incident. In the article referred to in this thread it states---</p>
<p>But even more alarming, in the vast majority of cases, teachers found guilty were only given a slap on the wrist. Of the 568 verified cases, only 24 led to termination. Records show one teacher who quote "battered students for several years" was simply given a "warning" by the Board of Education.</p>
<p>^^ I can read, lindz. At that point I was commenting ONLY on the kid featured in the article.</p>
<p>As I said, I'm sure that there is abuse, but not so sure that the incident in question was an example of it.</p>
<p>Clearly, they need to clean house. As regards the number of terminations vs incidents, I think that you need to know what happened in the other cases. A teacher who physically lifts a child who is hitting another child and sits him down hard on a desk, for example, is quite different from a teacher who slaps or punches kids. Neither is good policy, but one is "battery" and the other isn't.</p>
<p>Sounds like they need to get more investigators on the job.</p>