Issue link: http://digital.copcomm.com/i/129419
SUSPENSION What the RESEARCH RETHINKING Suspension What makes sense? BY SHERRY POSNICK-GOODWIN PHOTOS BY SCOTT BUSCHMAN A Are student suspensions hurting academic achievement? Some CTA members are helping kids stay in school by finding alternatives to suspension while keeping safety as the first priority. "Zero tolerance" policies emphasizing suspending or expelling unruly students became widespread in the 1990s as schools responded to fears of violence, weapons and drug use. California schools issued 778,084 suspensions and expulsions in 2009-10, according to the U.S. Department of Education. Of these suspensions, 40 percent were for "defiance" and minor infractions. About 400,000 students were suspended in California; this number is smaller because some students were suspended more than once. Daron Andrade, William Berry and Brenda Gordon say teachers have taken back Gardena High. 18 California Educator May 2013 shows 40% of 778,084 suspensions in 2009-10 were for "defiance" and minor infractions Students can't learn if they are not in school. They fall further behind in their studies. They may be unsupervised. Students feel a lack of connection to school, which fosters worse behavior. "It's time to return to common sense," says CTA Secretary-Treasurer Mikki Cichocki-Semo, a member of the hearing panel on suspensions and expulsions in San Bernardino Unified. "Kids, as well as teachers, are entitled to due process. And we need to look at what's best for students. There should be alternatives to suspension and expulsion whenever possible." Educators question the value of suspending students for minor infractions, especially in light of last September's passage of AB 1729, mandating that suspension be imposed only when other means fail to bring about proper conduct. Fighting, drugs and weapons are still cause for suspension. With the support of, and in coalition with, The California Endowment (see page 22), CTA and its members are helping to lower suspension rates and keep kids in school. Here are CTA members who are