Sunday, September 05, 1999

Educators, parents speak out

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        "Sometimes, assertive is not going face to face with somebody. ... Being assertive is thinking things through and making the choice that's going to be best for you.'

        — Julia Corbin, Anderson Township, former kindergarten teacher

        "My biggest question about Columbine High School is, “Where were the teachers?” We've interviewed these poor parents. We've taken a profile on these kids. ... Not once has anyone said there was a teacher in that building that cared two hoots about those kids.'

        — Darcy Hanley, Kenwood, principal, Kings Mills Elementary, Mason.

        "When young people are cruel to other children, that needs to be met with adult disapproval in a timely and an appropriate fashion. When students display appropriate behavior, that needs to be reinforced and valued.'

        — Jane Knudson, Hyde Park, principal, Indian Hill Middle School

        "The worst kid has good in him. You've got to find it.'

        — Brenda Parrish Miller, Winton Place, eighth-grade teacher, Bloom Middle School, West End

        "If that kid is being bullied how do you make that kid have enough confidence to go and tell you? You have to establish some kind of rapport. ... “You are not a snitch. We're going to do this in confidence. I'm not going to let Johnny know you came and told me.”'

        — David Payne, Forest Park, social studies teacher, Porter Middle School, West End

        "You put (bullies) in the situation. "If you do that to this kid and he feels that way, how do you think you would feel if someone would do that with you.”'

        — Earnestine Payne, Forest Park, former itinerant specialist, Hamilton County Head Start

        "You set boundaries and guidelines. When you do that for most kids, they grab it like it's a lifeline because now they're know how they're expected to behave.'

        — Elizabeth Sabo, Blue Ash, owner, Designing Success

        "The first thing kids want to do is lash out physically. We tell them, “Use your words. How did that feel when he called you a cry baby?” “I felt sad.” And so the bully hears it and the child who was picked on hears it. ... When the bully realizes somebody was made to feel bad by what the child did, sometimes that makes an impression on him and helps him to change.'

        — Debby Welsh, Indian Hill, former preschool director

        "As a teacher you have to go to that ugly duckling, and that's where you bring them up. A kid with a great self-esteem doesn't quite need you as much.'

        — Ken Welsh, Indian Hill, music teacher, Walnut Hills High School

        "When people don't feel they have a stake in their society or in their community, when they don't value their own lives or their own futures very much, then it's a lot easier for them not to value the lives and futures and respect the property of other people. ... It's easier to teach a kid to respect others when you teach him to respect himself, as well.”

        — Dan Zadra, Poulsbo, Wash., CEO, Compendium Publishing Co., Edmonds, Wash.

Bullies feed school violence
Parents teach ways to deflect tormentors
Tips for parents, students
Educators, parents speak out

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