Paddling opponent addresses school board

BELL BUCKLE -- Bedford County Board of Education, meeting Thursday evening at Cascade Elementary School, heard a brief presentation from Tom Johnson of Tennesseans for Non-Violent Discipline urging the school system to disallow corporal punishment. No action was taken.

The school board also considered a number of policy revisions required by new state laws and heard a report on the county's progress under the recent School System Report Card.

After publicity surrounding a recent incident of corporal punishment at Community High School, two different groups opposed to corporal punishment had asked to address the board. Chairman Barry Cooper elected to allow only one presentation, limited to five minutes, with no mention of the specific case now being investigated.

Johnson said that of the 22 states that allow corporal punishment, Tennessee has the fourth-highest rate of its use. He said 10 of the 11 schools in Bedford County used corporal punishment in 2002.

Johnson claimed that statistics actually show fewer discipline problems, not more, in areas where paddling is not allowed.

Johnson said the paddle was invented, not as a tool for disciplining children, but as a tool for disciplining slaves. He said that since educators are not trained to paddle and there are no specific regulations for paddle size or force, there is a risk that they may hit children harder than intended or cause unintended injury.

"It's just reckless to keep doing it the same way," said Johnson. He also alleged that paddling was a potential violation of Title IX, which promotes gender equality in schools, because girls could be placed in more discomfort if they are paddled at a certain point in their menstrual cycles -- or else, their privacy could be violated if they had to be asked about their cycles before paddling.

There was no specific dicussion by the board of the recent paddling case, except that Cooper thanked board members for their restraint in responding to public comments.

Report card

As the Times-Gazette reported earlier this month, the county showed overall improvement in its annual School System Report Card as released by the state. School Superintendent Ed Gray walked board members through some of the statistics and said continued efforts will be needed to preserve the gains made this year.

Gray said the figure for percentage of students at the poverty level cited in the report card is based on census figures from 2002 and varies wildly from the school system's own figures. The figure cited in the report card indicates that only 16 percent of local families are below the poverty level, but the school system indicates a much higher level of families at poverty level, 44.65 percent.

It was reported that representatives of three middle schools in Rutherford County with demographics similar to those at Harris Middle School will visit the school next month to study its academic programs. Harris performed particularly well in the report card, said officials, and Rutherford officials want to see what the three schools in question -- all of which are struggling with their ratings -- can learn from the school. School board members said that news runs counter to the conventional wisdom that larger school systems are somehow better than Bedford County's.

Board member Glenn Forsee asked Gray about the progress being made by Latino students in the school system. Gray said that at the last Eakin Primary School awards banquet, Latino children won more reading awards than any other group. But that progress comes primarily with younger children. If Spanish-speaking children don't enter an English-speaking school system until their teenage years, they are much less likely to progress.

Policy changes

The board also approved several revised policies which were required by state law or the federal No Child Left Behind Act. These included a family engagement policy, promoting parent involvement in schools; a bullying / harassment policy; and a policy governing use of private vehicles to transport children to functions such as athletic events. The school system already had policies in place for all three; these adjustments simply bring the wording in line with what is required by state law.

The board deferred action on a new policy governing worker's compensation because of some questions about the wording of it being unclear.

Other items

* The school system will negotiate with the City of Shelbyville over a water retention pond which the city would like to place behind Eakin Primary School. At one time, the plan was for the school system to deed the site of the pond over to the city; now, the city is only asking for an easement. City officials say no fence is necessary around the pond, but school officials disagree, saying the pond (which would fill during a heavy rainfall and then drain gradually over the next 24 hours or so) could be a potential safety or liability issue for neighborhood children. They would like the city to build a fence around the proposed pond and take the responsibility for maintaining it.

There are similar ponds on the Harris Middle School property, but school officials say those aren't as close to residences and that the older children at the middle school are in a different situation.

* The board awarded bids on maintenance and custodial supplies, air filters, paint, light bulbs and a computer-controlled wood router.

* The board approved a memorandum of understanding between Cascade High School and Cascade Youth Football League allowing the league to use school facilities and to place a small portable building on the school property.

Thursday's meeting was one of a series held at various schools around the county. Prior to the business meeting, board members attended a "meet and greet" reception and heard a choral presentation from Cascade Elementary students.