The following news article outlines a situation not far from where I live where a young boy has been seriously abused by "bullies".
Quote:
Oakland: When school bullies get out of hand
Anthony Cataldo of Oakland first raised concerns about aggressive bullying at his son's elementary school last year after Zachary lost four teeth on the playground - but he said he received only a verbal assurance that things would change.
Cataldo said he complained again when some boys at school kicked 7-year-old Zachary in the stomach three months ago but got no response.
Now - two days after an older student slammed Zachary against a tree, fracturing his skull and sending the first-grader to intensive care - Cataldo is hiring a lawyer, and school officials are paying attention.
"This is the only way they'll listen," Cataldo said. "I'm scared for my son."
State records show that Piedmont Avenue Elementary is Oakland's second-most-violent elementary school, recording 97 suspensions last year for violence - including nine involving a weapon.
That level of danger is higher than at most middle and high schools in the district as well.
"It's a major concern," said Denise Saddler, an Oakland Unified School District administrator in charge of elementary schools in North and West Oakland.
Saddler said she will address Monday's violence at Piedmont Avenue, but she called it a personnel matter and declined to discuss details.
She said that an investigation of the incident that sent Zachary to Children's Hospital is under way and that no student will be punished until the facts have been gathered.
Principal Angela Haick declined to comment on Cataldo's assertions that his complaints fell on deaf ears or to discuss Monday's incident.
It happened after school as Zachary waited for a ride. As he tells it, "a fifth-grader picked me up, and he body-slammed me into a tree."
Moments later, Zachary's after-school caregiver, Arhonda Morris, drove up and saw him. She also saw an older boy running for a bus, said Cataldo, a single father who works as a receiver for Safeway in Oakland.
A girl who witnessed the attack said it was unprovoked, Cataldo said.
Unaware of how badly Zachary was hurt, Morris drove him to her home and called the school to report what had happened, Cataldo said.
"While she was doing that, she noticed that Zachary was sitting on the floor passing out - that's when she called me," he said.
Zachary was clammy and lethargic. Morris put him in her truck and picked up Cataldo. At the hospital, Zachary began vomiting. A CT scan revealed a skull fracture, so doctors whisked him into intensive care, hoping to avoid surgery.
It wasn't the first time the boy had been hurt at Piedmont Elementary.
His father said that in kindergarten last year, Zachary was on the playground when some fifth-graders who had been sent out of class for disciplinary reasons approached him and lifted him up.
"One was spinning Zachary around," Cataldo said. Then he let go.
Zachary lost four teeth.
"I got reassurance from his principal that nothing like this would happen again," Cataldo said. But three months ago, "he was kicked in the stomach by an older kid.
"That raised my concerns again," Cataldo said. "This has been an ongoing problem. Once school lets out, there is absolutely no supervision while the kids are waiting to be picked up. This is when these (older) kids are preying on them."
He said he has also seen unsupervised youngsters running around wildly in the morning before school when he has dropped off Zachary a few minutes early.
Saddler confirmed that elementary students across the district are often unsupervised unless they are enrolled in before- or after-school programs.
"We don't have the finances to cover parents before the hours that school starts," Saddler said. "And after school, we do not have supervision for students who are not enrolled in after-school programs. We are very, very clear with parents that they need to make arrangements for their children."
She acknowledged that for many parents, such arrangements are not always possible to make.
Cataldo, meanwhile, said he was stunned to learn that Piedmont Avenue's suspensions for violence last year were among the highest of the district's 59 elementary schools. Only Preparatory Literary Academy in West Oakland, with 106, had more.
"I just find that astounding, because we're talking about elementary kids up to the age of 11," he said. "It's scary, is what it is."
Doctors released Zachary on Wednesday, his headache gone and his appetite restored.
His aunt, Janine Cataldo, said she has tried to get Zachary enrolled in the school where her children go but was told there was no room. That school, Chabot Elementary, reported no violent suspensions last year.
Under the circumstances, Saddler said, moving Zachary out of Piedmont Avenue is a conversation she's ready to have.
|
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/articl...MNPC10AK04.DTL
Way back when I was in elementary school (in the 90s), I remember bullying as being somewhat different than this. I remember a few shoving matches and even some fist fights, but the worst injury was usually a fat lip or a bloody nose. I can't remember any time when a child had broken any bones in a fight, let alone a fracture of the skull. Had I been victimized like this, my grandfather would have physically attacked the bullies' parents.
Tilted Parents and possible future parents: how would you deal with an out-of-control situation like that described above?
I, myself, would take a three pronged approach:
1) I would contact the school and an attorney immediately.
2) I would immediately remove my child or children from the school. I cannot imagine leaving my child or children in a dangerous environment while we await some arbitrary and political judgment from the school. Considering what happened in the article, it's clear that some schools lack the ability to protect the children.
3) I would teach my daughter or son self-defense. While it's my responsibility to defend my children, part of living in reality is admitting to myself that (though I may want to) I can't be around my child or children 100% of the time. There will be times, especially school, where I simply can't be there. This means that it will be necessary for my child or children to know how to defend him/her/themselves should they find themselves in a physical altercation. They'll know that violence doesn't solve anything and that using their words is always the best place to start, but also that sometimes people are incapable of reason and their ignorance will put you in direct danger. I would think that most basic martial arts classes that feature real sparing would probably help a great deal.