Developing an Effective Policy to Deter Fighting in School

An issue that many school administrators face on a constant basis is fighting in school. Fighting has become a dangerous epidemic in many schools across the country. Students often engage in this barbaric practice to prove toughness rather than attempting to settle a dispute peacefully. A fight will draw a quick audience, who without considering the potential ramifications see it as entertainment. Anytime rumors of a fight emerge you can bet that a large crowd will follow suit. The audience often becomes the driving force behind a fight when one or both of the parties involved are reluctant.

The following policy is designed to prevent and discourage students from getting into a physical altercation. The consequences are direct and severe so that any student thinks about their actions before choosing to fight. No policy will eliminate every fight. As a school administrator, you must take every precaution to ensure that you make students hesitate before taking that dangerous step.

Fighting

Read More

Discipline in Schools

By Melissa Kelly

Fighting is unacceptable for any reason anywhere and will not be tolerated. A fight is defined as a physical altercation occurring between two or more students. The physical nature of a fight could include but is not limited to hitting, punching, slapping, poking, grabbing, pulling, tripping, kicking, and pinching.

Any student who engages in such actions as defined above will be issued a citation for disorderly conduct by a local police officer and could be taken to jail. Any Where Public Schools will recommend that battery charges be filed against such individuals and that the student answer to the Any Where County Juvenile Court System.

In addition, that student will be suspended indefinitely from all school-related activities, for ten days.

It will be left up to the administrator’s discretion as to whether an individual’s participation in a fight will be considered self-defense. If the administrator deems the actions as self-defense, then a lesser punishment will be issued to that participant.

Recording a Fight

The act of recording/videoing a fight between other students is not permitted. If a student is caught recording a fight with their cell phones, then the following disciplinary procedures will be followed:

• The phone will be confiscated until the end of the current school year at which time it will be returned to the student’s parents upon their request.
• The video will be deleted from the cell phone.
• The person responsible for recording the fight will be suspended out-of-school for three days.
• In addition, anyone who is caught forwarding the video to other students/persons will be suspended for an additional three days.
• Finally, any student who posts the video on YouTube, Facebook, or any other social networking page, will be suspended for the remainder of the current school year.