Table of Contents
Is School to prison pipeline recommendable for delinquent students?
In the recent past, education system focused on rehabilitative concern and measures addressing school violence thus escalating the punitive measures. The school to prison pipeline can be rooted from growth in harsh penalties that the systems relied on. This has become a global phenomenon that is applied to criminalizing students’ ill characters and punitive consequences that jailing them follows. In essence, the punitive measures for students who misbehave outlined in the Zero tolerance policies deny the students a fair chance of self-defence based on the unique circumstance that occurred. This only exposes the students to school to prison pipeline McMahand, 2016).
The Zero tolerant policies are ruthless to students as in a way they are not effective. The objective of a punitive measure applied to students should be to transform their character. There are other friendly and amicable ways such as collaborated efforts between legislative reforms, restorative justice practices and key stakeholders. The highlighted measures can be applied effectively in lieu of zero tolerance policies to secure safe learning environments and prevent students from misbehaving in future.
Should children of immigrants’ punitive measures in school are based on prejudice?
Segmentation assimilation theory examines whether disproportionate disciplinary actions are imposed against the children of immigrants in schools. In the study, various multilevel techniques were applied to analyze the relationship between generational status, age, ethnicity, race, and misconduct and school discipline. The results indicated that Blacks, American second and third plus generations have increased odds of punitive measures compared to their white peers even though they have similar levels of misconducts with their white American peers (Peguero, Shekarkhar, Popp & Koo, 2015).
It is evil to discriminate the immigrant’s children on punitive measures in school. This is because the educational system should be objected towards equality to all and transformation irrespective of race.
Should schools work on restoring order or restorative justice should be applied?
Students of color are suspended at a higher rate compared with their white counterpart students. Notably, the schools that have restorative practices have the same tendency. In the quest for elucidating why the disproportionality prevails even to the schools that apply restorative practices, a conclusion was drawn. The results indicated that the restorative coordinators were young non -white who were neighbors with their students. Additionally, the whites relied on them too with them to contain, bond and compel obedience from students of color (Lustick, 2017).
- However, restorative justice is the way to go because it offers the immigrants an opportunity to be represented and justice prevails unlike restoring order in schools where the platforms are coordinated by the whites (Lustick, 2017).
- Peguero, A., Shekarkhar, Z., Popp, A., & Koo, D. (2015). Punishing the Children of Immigrants: Race, Ethnicity, Generational Status, Student Misbehavior, and School Discipline. Journal Of Immigrant & Refugee Studies, 13(2), 200-220. doi: 10.1080/15562948.2014.951136
- Lustick, H. (2017). “Restorative Justice” or Restoring Order? Restorative School Discipline Practices in Urban Public Schools. Urban Education, 004208591774172. doi: 10.1177/0042085917741725
- McMahand, D. (2016). Does the School to Prison Pipeline Exist in America for Minorities?. Aletheia, 1(1). doi: 10.21081/ax0013