documentary review war on kids
Tia Wright
School and Society: Tuesday and Thursday 9:25-10:40 The War on Kids exposes the problems with today's school system. It talks about the irrational fears of schools and how it contributes to the issue that they have robbed children of basic rights in schools. Extreme measures are being taken as a punishment even for the most minor incidents, and children are now subjected to prison-like security, arbitrary punishments, and pharmacological abuse through the forced prescription of dangerous drugs. Even with these measures, schools not only fail to educate students, but the drive to teach has become secondary to the need to control children. The documentary begins with a history of the zero tolerance policy. In the 1990's, most schools established guidelines in institutions in order to keep the campuses safe from weapons and drugs. However, schools would soon find themselves deciding which items are considered weapons and what is considered drugs. In today's society, even knives at lunch and ibuprofen are considered hazardous to the safety of our schools. Even kindergartners are being expelled and suspended for playing cops and robbers, using their fingers as guns, or drawing "dangerous" pictures of a man with a gun. Let me address the thought in many minds while watching this film. What 5 year old child is going to cause danger or harm to a school? That's just the issue, it seems our society cares more about safety due to illogical fears, rather than our children's education. That in itself is causing our education system to fail rapidly and increasingly. The documentary also informs us of other incidents occurring in the schools. A 3rd grade student was suspended for a kiss on the cheek, a 5th grader was expelled for bringing ibuprofen to school. Many argue that this kind of action taken by authority is a threat to the basic rights. Forcing students to go through metal detectors, and permitting drug searches without consent is not only robbing
School and Society: Tuesday and Thursday 9:25-10:40 The War on Kids exposes the problems with today's school system. It talks about the irrational fears of schools and how it contributes to the issue that they have robbed children of basic rights in schools. Extreme measures are being taken as a punishment even for the most minor incidents, and children are now subjected to prison-like security, arbitrary punishments, and pharmacological abuse through the forced prescription of dangerous drugs. Even with these measures, schools not only fail to educate students, but the drive to teach has become secondary to the need to control children. The documentary begins with a history of the zero tolerance policy. In the 1990's, most schools established guidelines in institutions in order to keep the campuses safe from weapons and drugs. However, schools would soon find themselves deciding which items are considered weapons and what is considered drugs. In today's society, even knives at lunch and ibuprofen are considered hazardous to the safety of our schools. Even kindergartners are being expelled and suspended for playing cops and robbers, using their fingers as guns, or drawing "dangerous" pictures of a man with a gun. Let me address the thought in many minds while watching this film. What 5 year old child is going to cause danger or harm to a school? That's just the issue, it seems our society cares more about safety due to illogical fears, rather than our children's education. That in itself is causing our education system to fail rapidly and increasingly. The documentary also informs us of other incidents occurring in the schools. A 3rd grade student was suspended for a kiss on the cheek, a 5th grader was expelled for bringing ibuprofen to school. Many argue that this kind of action taken by authority is a threat to the basic rights. Forcing students to go through metal detectors, and permitting drug searches without consent is not only robbing