BALTIMORE'S STUDENTS go back to school today, but for far too many of them and their counterparts throughout Maryland, their return will be brief.
Schools have adopted school disciplinary policies that are deeply flawed. These "zero tolerance" policies are a reflection of our nation's zeal to "get tough on crime," and are a misguided reaction to violent tragedies such as the shooting at Columbine High School. These policies have increased schools' use of their harshest tools for controlling student behavior - barring students from school, either temporarily or permanently.
Instead of being reserved for the most serious offenses, suspension and expulsion are now commonplace reactions to offenses that once were dealt with in school. For example, in Baltimore's neighborhood high schools last year, the most common reason for suspension was cutting class. More than half of all suspensions and expulsions were imposed for truancy, class-cutting and nonviolent opposition to authority, such as showing disrespect for a teacher.
Expulsions and suspensions have reached epidemic proportions in Maryland. Statewide, 3,275 students were expelled in the 2002-2003 school year, up nearly 13 percent from the previous school year, according to data from Maryland State Department of Education.
During that same period, Baltimore schools suspended 14,356 students, 15.8 percent of the entire student body. A decade ago, the number of city students suspended was 9.4 percent of the student enrollment. Baltimore County also doubled its suspension rates over that time - from 5.8 percent to 11.6 percent.
Alarmingly, suspension is being used more often for younger students. In Baltimore, more than 2,000 children in pre-kindergarten through third grade were suspended in the 2002-2003 school year. These policies are also more likely to affect learning-disabled, poor and minority students.
Proponents of harsh school discipline policies argue that student behavior has deteriorated and that the rise in suspensions and expulsions simply reflects that trend. Many also hold that students who misbehave prevent others from learning and should be excluded from the classroom. Still others maintain that without severe disciplinary consequences, student behavior will deteriorate further.
