June 08, 2005

Substitute Teacher Choking Student is Learning Opportunity?

I don't need to make any comments on this story, as it speaks for itself:

BOSTON (AP) - The Department of Social Services is investigating a claim that a substitute teacher choked a 12-year-old boy until he lost consciousness.

The alleged incident took place last Thursday at the John Marshall Elementary School in the city's Dorchester neighborhood, where Anthony Jackson is in the fifth grade.

According to a report in Wednesday's Boston Herald, the teacher allegedly asked the class how long it would take for a student to black out. When students didn't know, she began to choke the boy.

Anthony told his grandmother that the teacher held him so tightly around the neck for so long that he lost consciousness, the Herald said, and no one called for medical help after he fell to the floor. He quickly regained consciousness and was not injured, other than a slight headache.

School officials apologized to Jackson's mother, the Herald reported. DSS received a complaint on Tuesday, prompting the investigation, agency spokeswoman Denise Monteiro said.

"We have a lot of interviewing to do," she said.

A preliminary report is due within 10 days.

School officials declined to release the substitute's name. She has been given an administrative assignment until the investigation is complete and was told to stay away from the Marshall School and its students, school officials said.

"We take very seriously all claims of incidents involving students in schools," Boston Public Schools spokesman Jonathan Palumbo said.

Okay, so I was wrong and do need to comment on this.  How horrific, first of all, that an ADULT would think this is okay.  Secondly, in any other instance, the police would be called...this is an assault on a child.  This teacher could have KILLED him.  Okay, so someone called the DSS, but if *I* were the parent, I'd have called the cops.