Podcast
Bellow you will find a podcast I recorded on my opinion on Student's Rights. Please follow along as you listen to the audio:
When you think of the United States, the first thing that comes to mind is freedom. The United States is founded on the idea of protecting the rights of its citizens. To be able to ensure these rights, the founders of our nation went so far as to create a Bill of Rights for that purpose. These rights, such as freedom of speech, freedom of expression, the right to protest, and many more are guaranteed to all American citizens.
If this is the case, then why is it our students are not offered the same protection of their constitutional rights as all other citizens? In most schools throughout the nation, these individual freedoms are often purposely restricted by faculty and administration. If these limits are for the protection of the students, how are we protecting them by not preparing them for the realities of life off campus? Where do you draw the line between individual rights and protection of students?
It is reasonable for a school to take stronger measures to protect it’s students then what we would see outside of a school setting. Naturally school students are minors and they must be afforded an extra level of protection from the adults around them. The problem arises when schools limit free speech, expression, or other constitutional rights in cases were there is not a clear threat of violence or real danger to the students. Throughout our history, the court have upheld students rights to free expression accept in cases where there is a clear threat upon two other students. This is something our school administrators need to more aware of.
Another blurred area of student safety verses constitutional rights arises with the issue of search and seizer. The same guidelines that govern the ability to search a private citizens belongings needs to apply to students in our school system. No student should be able to be searched without a clearly defined reason that involves the safety of their peers.
The biggest question of all is what can we do to stop this kind of infringement on student rights? Several schools, including the Monument Mountain Regional High School, think the answer is to let the students govern themselves. When students are given the freedom to administer their own school environment, the success rate is overwhelming. At Monument Mountain High School the program is completely student run with no adult involvement. No teachers, no administrators, no parents, the students are responsible for their learning and keeping their school running smoothly making sure that all student rights are met. Surprisingly, student performance such as these has proven to be far higher than any other type of school so far.
Knowing this, what is the solution for most schools? Obviously I am not suggesting that all schools eliminate teachers and administrators, in fact I think the answer is bringing in one more school official. This person will serve as a mediator between students and administration. Their job is to work insure that the students are afforded their constitutional rights while helping the administration insure the safety of the school. The key is giving students a voice of representation that will definitely be heard.
America is known for fighting for freedom and individual rights for everyone. Our students and minors should be included in that. It is important to remember that children who are raised to understand their rights and responsibilities become adults who are the type of citizens who our founding fathers wanted us to be.
If this is the case, then why is it our students are not offered the same protection of their constitutional rights as all other citizens? In most schools throughout the nation, these individual freedoms are often purposely restricted by faculty and administration. If these limits are for the protection of the students, how are we protecting them by not preparing them for the realities of life off campus? Where do you draw the line between individual rights and protection of students?
It is reasonable for a school to take stronger measures to protect it’s students then what we would see outside of a school setting. Naturally school students are minors and they must be afforded an extra level of protection from the adults around them. The problem arises when schools limit free speech, expression, or other constitutional rights in cases were there is not a clear threat of violence or real danger to the students. Throughout our history, the court have upheld students rights to free expression accept in cases where there is a clear threat upon two other students. This is something our school administrators need to more aware of.
Another blurred area of student safety verses constitutional rights arises with the issue of search and seizer. The same guidelines that govern the ability to search a private citizens belongings needs to apply to students in our school system. No student should be able to be searched without a clearly defined reason that involves the safety of their peers.
The biggest question of all is what can we do to stop this kind of infringement on student rights? Several schools, including the Monument Mountain Regional High School, think the answer is to let the students govern themselves. When students are given the freedom to administer their own school environment, the success rate is overwhelming. At Monument Mountain High School the program is completely student run with no adult involvement. No teachers, no administrators, no parents, the students are responsible for their learning and keeping their school running smoothly making sure that all student rights are met. Surprisingly, student performance such as these has proven to be far higher than any other type of school so far.
Knowing this, what is the solution for most schools? Obviously I am not suggesting that all schools eliminate teachers and administrators, in fact I think the answer is bringing in one more school official. This person will serve as a mediator between students and administration. Their job is to work insure that the students are afforded their constitutional rights while helping the administration insure the safety of the school. The key is giving students a voice of representation that will definitely be heard.
America is known for fighting for freedom and individual rights for everyone. Our students and minors should be included in that. It is important to remember that children who are raised to understand their rights and responsibilities become adults who are the type of citizens who our founding fathers wanted us to be.
final_.m4a | |
File Size: | 1919 kb |
File Type: | m4a |