A Shrewdness of Apes

An Okie teacher banished to the Midwest. "Education is not the filling a bucket but the lighting of a fire."-- William Butler Yeats

Friday, October 13, 2006

I'd hate to be the janitor....

Oh, Good Grief. Really. Get a "load" (SORRY!) of this one:

CHARLESTON, S.C. - A fifth-grade teacher allowed five students — a boy and four girls — to use a trash can as a toilet during a school lockdown drill when no one was supposed to leave the classroom.

The Charleston County teacher, Philip Frandino, was reprimanded last year for putting cardboard around a student's desk and keeping him isolated from his classmates for two hours for talking, The (Charleston) Post and Courier reported Friday.

On Tuesday, Frandino gave the Charlestowne Academy students permission to use the trash can. When a girl used the bathroom, other girls held up jackets to shield the view while other students stood on the opposite wall with their backs turned, school district spokesman Jerry Adams said. Boys also did the same for the boy.

"It's not acceptable," associate superintendent Patricia Yandle told the newspaper.

During the drill, which lasted less than an hour, Frandino called the school's main office and said students needed to use the restroom. It's unclear what the he was told to do, but Yandle said he was not told to have students use the trash can.

"We always learn something" during lockdown drills, school district spokesman Jerry Adams said Friday. "And clearly communications between the classrooms and the main office to get directions on things was one of the issues here."

Adams said as much privacy was given as possible. He also said students were given sanitary wipes.

The teacher was on administrative leave with pay. Frandino did not comment on the situation to The Associated Press.

Adams said officials were still looking into the incident.

"In a drill like this, teachers and principals have discretion and they have to make decisions," Adams said. "I'm not going to second-guess that today."

The school sent a letter to fifth-grade parents explaining that in an effort to follow lockdown procedures and ensure students' comfort, the teacher allowed the trash can to be used as a toilet. The lockdown was practice for an intruder entering the building.

Last year, Caren Weldon walked into Frandino's fourth-grade classroom and found her son surrounded by a cardboard box.

She planned to re-enroll her child this year, but didn't when she found out Frandino would be her son's fifth-grade teacher, she told the newspaper.

"Thank you, Lord, my child is not in that class," she said. "It just shows he makes poor decisions when it comes to the children."

Yandle said if the school had been on an actual lockdown and students needed to use the restroom, she would have encouraged them to think about something other than the bathroom.


What. An. Idiot.

6 Comments:

At 10/14/06, 10:53 AM, Blogger Laura(southernxyl) said...

I've often wondered why they don't build schools with a restroom between every two classrooms. Just a toilet and a sink, and locking doors on each side, like in a college dorm. I realize there would be some things to deal with as far as cleaning and so on, but look at the advantages:

No assaults or rapes in the bathrooms, no kids "holding it" all day b/c they're afraid to go.

Profound reduction of kids wandering the halls.

Instant accountability of vandals and graffiti artists.

Less disruption of class.

Opportunity for the kids to learn to be thoughtful of each other the way adults are expected to, again possible because of the greater possibility of accountability.

And no kids wetting their pants during a lockdown drill.

 
At 10/14/06, 1:28 PM, Blogger Fred said...

Unbelievable.

Much of the problem exists because it's so difficult to fire incompetent teachers.

 
At 10/15/06, 6:59 PM, Blogger Chaz said...

I wonder if the Assistant Superintendent participated in the lockdown. I bet she didn't and used her bathroom anytime she pleased.


What morons that make such a big deal about a rationale teacher decision. Were the students supposed to piss in their pants!

 
At 10/15/06, 8:49 PM, Anonymous Anonymous said...

I want to know why the school didn't consider this before creating the lockdown procedure. While I think the man is an idiot for creating a bathroom in his classroom, I also think the school does need to consider this.

 
At 10/16/06, 3:27 PM, Blogger Janet said...

I was thinking the same thing about administration. Letting children use the bathroom is a tricky thing. I try to limit it to one at a time during normal circumstances, once in the morning, once in the afternoon. Of course there are always emergencies but bottom line is teachers know their kids. I think not letting the children "relieve" themselves from what I heard would have been more cruel and severe a punishment.

 
At 10/17/06, 8:18 PM, Blogger Mrs. T said...

We were told not to let students leave during ITEDs last year (Iowa standarized tests.) and one girl did pee her pants.
It's rather demoralizing to pee one's pants in 11th grade, no?

 

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