School Law PITP
he case study used for this role play contained several important issues pertaining to school law. First, the Tinker analysis needed to be used in order to justify the school's concern with the texts from Arielle. The texts did meet the criteria of causing a substantial disruption to the function of the school, so the school could proceed. Second, there were FERPA issues at play as the student wanted to know what was going to happen to the other student involved. This case is a realistic example of the issues that school leaders, especially at our school and other charter schools (I would assume) have to deal with frequently, and understanding, and being able to explain to parents, why the school is getting involved is critical to creating and maintaining an ongoing and productive relationship with that family.
Here is a recap of specific moments in the video
:10-1:23
Rather than me explaining what is going on, I had asked Arielle to explain what had brought us all together here. This is something I commonly do, as I believe that it allows the student to take ownership over their actions. Towards the end of this section, there is an interesting moment where Arielle tells about half the story, gets a reaction from Dad, and then I have to ask her to tell what happened next. Rather than being irritated when this happens, I'm actually relieved as it's a great indicator that the student knew, or is at least considering, that what they did was inappropriate to some level.
2:20ish and 3:20-3:45
After Arielle has explained what the texts she sent were, Dad is audibly irritated that he has been called down to deal with something that is, in his mind, really just petty squabbling between his daughter and another girl. I redirect it by saying that while I am concerned about the content of the texts, I'm much more concerned about the effect that the texts and other behaviors have had on our school community. This is in fact the reason I have called him down to talk today.
2:45
Rather than coming down super heavy on Arielle, I tell her how I know her to be beyond these text messages. She is creative, thoughtful, and wonderful, so I was surprised to find out that she was the person responsible for the hateful texts as well as the threatening behavior. This is something I do frequently when I am having difficult conversations. I believe that it helps establish a rapport between the student and I, and it lets the parents know that while I am not okay with the behavior, I value the student. Granted, I would not be inauthentic with the student, and if I don't know them beyond the immediate situation, I would try to say something like "I know that your teachers think of you as..." and go from there. Knowing that it's something that I do also helps me to get to know students, spend time in the classroom, etc.
4:34
Arielle tries to deflect after Dad asks a hard question. Her deflection is all about what happens to the other girl because, after all, she is the one who goes to third base. I explain to Arielle that just like I wouldn't talk about our meeting with other students, I won't be talking about other students in our meeting.
4:45-6:20
A couple of interesting things happen in this section. First, Dad and Arielle start bickering. Second, Arielle starts telling lies about what initiated the harassing texts. To counter the bickering, I use body language to impose on their dynamic, effectively disrupting their line of communication. In this seating arrangement, I was able to lean in close and focus primarily on Arielle. In my office I do something similar but I usually arrange the seating so that I am sitting in between the parent and the student. To deal with Arielle's loose relationship with the truth, I talk about how I know her to be honest, and what that means. Then, with no equivocation, I tell her that what she is saying isn't true. I think that it's in times like the one here that the soft skills that were built in the beginning of the talk (or video) really come into play.
7:30
In the previous minute, things have gotten a little off-track as Arielle and Dad had started unpacking their own issues in the middle of my office. While this can be great for them to do, I'm not sure that in my office is the appropriate place for that to happen. So, after redirecting the two of them I lay out in very clear terms what I need to do: "I need to keep the school safe."
7:40-8:19
I think this is where I really nail it. Arielle says that it wasn't like she was punching anybody or anything like that, so what's the big deal. Rather than letting her skate on that though, I bring it back to how she felt when the other student simply walked by projecting a message, so now imagine how the other student felt when a much more explicit message was written out right in front of her. The next step would have been talking about a short suspension.
Wrap Up
After watching the video, I don't think that I did anything substantially different than I what I usually do in these situations. Obviously, I wouldn't laugh in the middle of it. If I were to do it again, I think I would do most of it the same; I rather like how I worked this one out. The thing that I would change would be that I would try to involve dad a bit more. Perhaps I could do that by giving Dad a forum to talk about what frustrations he has been having with Arielle at home as it relates to phone use, texting, etc. One of the things that I am a bit self-conscious about is the amount of time it takes me to unravel these sorts of things. On one hand, I want to be really thorough and help the student understand what they did and how it effected the people and world around them. On the other hand, I'm afraid it might seem like playing with kid gloves to a parent. I am certainly open to feedback and suggestions as well, if there is something that is glaringly omitted.
Here is a recap of specific moments in the video
:10-1:23
Rather than me explaining what is going on, I had asked Arielle to explain what had brought us all together here. This is something I commonly do, as I believe that it allows the student to take ownership over their actions. Towards the end of this section, there is an interesting moment where Arielle tells about half the story, gets a reaction from Dad, and then I have to ask her to tell what happened next. Rather than being irritated when this happens, I'm actually relieved as it's a great indicator that the student knew, or is at least considering, that what they did was inappropriate to some level.
2:20ish and 3:20-3:45
After Arielle has explained what the texts she sent were, Dad is audibly irritated that he has been called down to deal with something that is, in his mind, really just petty squabbling between his daughter and another girl. I redirect it by saying that while I am concerned about the content of the texts, I'm much more concerned about the effect that the texts and other behaviors have had on our school community. This is in fact the reason I have called him down to talk today.
2:45
Rather than coming down super heavy on Arielle, I tell her how I know her to be beyond these text messages. She is creative, thoughtful, and wonderful, so I was surprised to find out that she was the person responsible for the hateful texts as well as the threatening behavior. This is something I do frequently when I am having difficult conversations. I believe that it helps establish a rapport between the student and I, and it lets the parents know that while I am not okay with the behavior, I value the student. Granted, I would not be inauthentic with the student, and if I don't know them beyond the immediate situation, I would try to say something like "I know that your teachers think of you as..." and go from there. Knowing that it's something that I do also helps me to get to know students, spend time in the classroom, etc.
4:34
Arielle tries to deflect after Dad asks a hard question. Her deflection is all about what happens to the other girl because, after all, she is the one who goes to third base. I explain to Arielle that just like I wouldn't talk about our meeting with other students, I won't be talking about other students in our meeting.
4:45-6:20
A couple of interesting things happen in this section. First, Dad and Arielle start bickering. Second, Arielle starts telling lies about what initiated the harassing texts. To counter the bickering, I use body language to impose on their dynamic, effectively disrupting their line of communication. In this seating arrangement, I was able to lean in close and focus primarily on Arielle. In my office I do something similar but I usually arrange the seating so that I am sitting in between the parent and the student. To deal with Arielle's loose relationship with the truth, I talk about how I know her to be honest, and what that means. Then, with no equivocation, I tell her that what she is saying isn't true. I think that it's in times like the one here that the soft skills that were built in the beginning of the talk (or video) really come into play.
7:30
In the previous minute, things have gotten a little off-track as Arielle and Dad had started unpacking their own issues in the middle of my office. While this can be great for them to do, I'm not sure that in my office is the appropriate place for that to happen. So, after redirecting the two of them I lay out in very clear terms what I need to do: "I need to keep the school safe."
7:40-8:19
I think this is where I really nail it. Arielle says that it wasn't like she was punching anybody or anything like that, so what's the big deal. Rather than letting her skate on that though, I bring it back to how she felt when the other student simply walked by projecting a message, so now imagine how the other student felt when a much more explicit message was written out right in front of her. The next step would have been talking about a short suspension.
Wrap Up
After watching the video, I don't think that I did anything substantially different than I what I usually do in these situations. Obviously, I wouldn't laugh in the middle of it. If I were to do it again, I think I would do most of it the same; I rather like how I worked this one out. The thing that I would change would be that I would try to involve dad a bit more. Perhaps I could do that by giving Dad a forum to talk about what frustrations he has been having with Arielle at home as it relates to phone use, texting, etc. One of the things that I am a bit self-conscious about is the amount of time it takes me to unravel these sorts of things. On one hand, I want to be really thorough and help the student understand what they did and how it effected the people and world around them. On the other hand, I'm afraid it might seem like playing with kid gloves to a parent. I am certainly open to feedback and suggestions as well, if there is something that is glaringly omitted.