Since early in the year, eighth graders have been permitted to be in several places during lunch break. This includes the library, outside, or meeting with a teacher. However, many students were found abusing this privilege by watching YouTube in the library or hiding in hallways.
After several warnings, the eighth grade teachers deemed the situation too out of control to maintain. Thus, the teachers removed the lunch privileges, and escorted eighth grade students down to the playground each day. This solution was disliked by students and teachers, who thought that it wasted their valuable lunch time. Since March 3, eighth graders have to fill out online forms each morning stating where they will be that lunch break. Even though many firmly disagree, the teachers should have taken privileges away.
Indeed, it was unfair that everybody paid for the actions of few, but it was a simply uncontrollable situation. An axiom with rules is that they will always be broken. In some instances, the consequences of such may be worse.
People were shouting and watching YouTube on full volume in hallways, while high school classes were going on. In the library, several people did not do work as they were supposed to, but instead watched videos, went on blogs, websites, apps, and disrupted normal functions of the area. While this wasn’t being done by all the eighth graders, the ones who did act this way had to be asked to leave from the library.
Even after lunch, when eighth graders were permitted to dismiss themselves as early as they liked, they still made huge messes by dropping popcorn on the upper levels, and did not clean up after themselves before leaving the Commons. Moreover, the eighth graders were given several warnings before the privileges were taken away, and the problem actually worsened after the warnings. This problem got so out of control that the teachers had no choice but to remove all privileges from the students.
However, it was also a bit of an extreme decision. Eighth grader Max Gallo said he “felt like it was unnecessary.” After all, many people were following the rules and had deserved those privileges. He thinks that they should have “brought people individually in,” instead. This result would likely allow teachers to continue allowing people to keep their privileges, while taking them away from people who did not deserve it. However, many complaints came from other teachers whose classes were being disturbed, and they didn’t know the names of the offenders. Thus, the teachers had no choice but to remove the privileges completely.
While a harsh and extreme decision, the teachers temporarily removing the eighth graders’ lunch privileges was a necessary solution to a serious problem.
