Should zero-tolerance rules be abolished?
As avid readers might have read in another discussion, such policies discourage the review of individual cases. As a natural result, you wind up with students being punished for perfectly benign “violations” that are of no risk to anyone, nor are they violations of any rule that existed prior to the “zero-tolerance” policy. I read a news article about a high school girl – an honors student – who was suspended during her own graduation ceremony. Why? Over the weekend, she had been helping her sister relocate to a new apartment. The box containing the silverware spilled, and a steak knife was still on the rear seat of her car when she parked in the school parking lot. The knife was seen through the car window, the “zero-tolerance” policy on weapons was invoked, and the girl – with no prior record – was suspended. When a student violates the rules, each incident should be assessed individually. If the school wants to categorize it, fine – but do it carefully. A student carrying a pair of
