ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1997, Roanoke Times
DATE: Monday, March 31, 1997 TAG: 9703310003
SECTION: VIRGINIA PAGE: A-5 EDITION: METRO
SERIES: Disorder in the Schools - A Special Report
SOURCE: JOEL TURNER THE ROANOKE TIMES
Students say that most of the problems are caused by a handful, but concern exists that troublemakers might simply drop out.
When Joe Greene attended Woodrow Wilson Middle School, he said, teachers kept tight control over the students.
There were few disruptions in class, and students were orderly when they changed classes at the 480-student school in Roanoke.
Now Greene is a freshman at Patrick Henry High, which has nearly 1,800 students. It's a different environment. Patrick Henry is a campus-style school with a half-dozen classroom buildings. Students have a 10-minute break between one-hour-and-40-minute classes.
"You've got a lot more freedom here and more time between classes," Greene said. "There's no way for teachers and school officials to watch everybody when they go outside to change classes. It's louder here, and there's more vulgarity. Some people have lit matches and smoke bombs in halls and classes."
Some students are disrespectful to teachers, sophomore Katie Stockburger said. "There are fights from time to time and students are sent out of class."
Daniel Daum, a Patrick Henry senior, said, "It usually ends up being the same group every time. Some students don't want to be in school, and they raise a ruckus." He said unruly students should enroll in a vocational education program.
Senior Latisha Sinkford said, "You have to have discipline. I think troublemakers should be moved out. Some people talk loudly and block the halls."
Patrick Henry doesn't have enough administrators and security officers to keep an eye on the entire campus when students are changing classes, Sinkford said.
Principal Elizabeth Lee said school officials have a "lot more space to supervise" than at a traditional high school. But, she added, the majority of students are well behaved.
Lee said those who do cause trouble are disciplined. "We try to make sure that they understand there will be consequences if they violate the rules."
A national poll disclosed that high school students agree with teachers and other adults on the importance of discipline.
Seventy-one percent of students nationwide say disruptive classmates are a problem, according to the survey by Public Agenda, a national research and education organization.
The results were contained in a recent report, "Getting By: What American Teen-agers Really Think About Their Schools."
Eighty-three percent nationally said they could learn more if troublemakers were kicked out of classes. The view is consistent across racial lines. This puts them in line with the views of teachers and other adults in earlier reports.
Some Patrick Henry students are more sympathetic to disruptive schoolmates, however.
Suspending these students would improve the academic environment, but it won't solve the problem on a long-term basis, said Max Masinter, president of the student government.
"Some of them would rather be out making money, but they need the educational experience. If they're suspended several times, they're likely to drop out, and that's why school officials are reluctant to suspend them."
Masinter said administrators should try to curb unruly behavior but keep the students in school. Still, he worries that disruptive behavior rubs off on others.
Last year, some Patrick Henry students complained to Superintendent Wayne Harris about disruptive classmates, but they said they didn't fear for their safety.
Students at several schools have complained about schoolmates tearing up restrooms.
When students are caught smoking in restrooms or vandalizing them, they are treated too lightly, said Nicholas Drinkwine, a Northside High senior.
Students who smoke in school should be prosecuted because it's illegal for youngsters under 18 to possess tobacco, he said.
Michael Ward, another Northside senior, said students have written obscenities on desks and damaged lockers.
At William Fleming High in Roanoke, some students complain about disruptive classmates, fights and the condition of restrooms. Others say news reports often give an unfair portrayal of the school as a place where fights are frequent.
LENGTH: Medium: 89 lines ILLUSTRATION: PHOTO: WAYNE DEEL THE ROANOKE TIMES. Max Masinter (from left),by CNBNadirah Hamidullah, Katie Stockburger, Daniel Daum and Joe Greene
attend Patrick Henry High, just one of the Roanoke Valley schools at
which students say troublemakers often make learning difficult.