I cannot fathom what possible valid educational objective there could be in this incident? How can scaring the crap out of a bunch of children like this possibly be justified?

Staff members of an elementary school staged a fictitious gun attack on students during a class trip, telling them it was not a drill as the children cried and hid under tables.

The mock attack Thursday night was intended as a learning experience and lasted five minutes during the weeklong trip to a state park, said Scales Elementary School Assistant Principal Don Bartch, who led the trip.

"We got together and discussed what we would have done in a real situation," he said.

But parents of the sixth-grade students were outraged.

"The children were in that room in the dark, begging for their lives, because they thought there was someone with a gun after them," said Brandy Cole, whose son went on the trip.

Some parents said they were upset by the staff's poor judgment in light of the April 16 shootings at Virginia Tech that left 33 students and professors dead, including the gunman.

During the last night of the trip, staff members convinced the 69 students that there was a gunman on the loose. They were told to lie on the floor or hide underneath tables and stay quiet. A teacher, disguised in a hooded sweat shirt, even pulled on a locked door.

After the lights went out, about 20 kids started to cry, 11-year-old Shay Naylor said.

"I was like, 'Oh My God,' " she said. "At first I thought I was going to die. We flipped out."

Principal Catherine Stephens declined to say whether the staff members involved would face disciplinary action, but said the situation "involved poor judgment."

Yes, you read that right -- an assistant principal was a full participant in this "learning experience". And administrator was involved in putting children in fear for their lives.

I hope Tennessee has some process for revoking the certification of educators who abuse children in this manner -- and I hope it is immediately used. And at a minimum, I hope the district involved uses every available legal remedy to fire each and every teacher involved in this disgusting abuse of authority -- which is, in the end, nothing less than the psychological abuse of each and every one of the children in their care.

UPDATE: Looks like there may be real penalties after all. One teacher and one AP have been suspended -- and I hope that this is done with a view towards termination. What will happen to the rest of those involved? And will there actually be serious sanctions?

Posted by: Greg at 10:42 PM | No Comments | Add Comment
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