Saturday, April 21, 2007
Kevin Jennings - When Will We Learn? The call for anti-bullying laws and policies
In the wake of the so-called "No Child Left Behind" law passed in 2001, the focus in schools has shifted almost entirely to standardized test outcomes, leaving little time to address issues like bullying and harassment. We continue to ignore this crisis at our own peril. Sooner or later another alienated young boy will act out his rage and our screens will be filled once again with horrific images and the lives of countless families and loved ones will be irrevocably altered by tragedy. As Cho Seung-Hui wrote, "You have vandalized my heart, raped my soul and torched my conscience. You thought it was one pathetic boy's life you were extinguishing." Sadly, the acts of the bullies who drove Cho over the edge led to the extinguishing of more than 30 lives. Yet no one in the education world has stepped forward and said it is time for meaningful national action to end bullying in our schools. When will we learn?
The clock is ticking on a time bomb of a boy who is just waiting to explode on another campus somewhere right now. If we don't do something meaningful about bullying soon, that boy is going to go off and we'll keep getting what we've been getting. Please: don't make me say "I told you so." Insist that Congress pass an anti-bullying law now.
The clock is ticking on a time bomb of a boy who is just waiting to explode on another campus somewhere right now. If we don't do something meaningful about bullying soon, that boy is going to go off and we'll keep getting what we've been getting. Please: don't make me say "I told you so." Insist that Congress pass an anti-bullying law now.
