ZERO TOLERANCE

Catchy Notion Loses Much Of Its Punch

Eight years after public schools got caught up in the notion of zero
tolerance for various behaviors, the symbol for tough discipline has faded
some.

Columbian education reporter Tom Vogt found that half of the local school
districts do not use the catchy phrase as part of their disciplinary
policies. Of those still tied to the idea, it now means something softer.
In the years since the fad got a foothold, there have simply been too many
ludicrous examples of its excessive application:

Aspirin in the lining of the purse? Get out! Don't come back without your
parents, their lawyer and a court order!

Brandishing nail clippers on the playground? Beat it! Forget about third
grade, much less graduation from high school or forfend matriculation at
any useful institution of higher learning!

Few serious advocates of zero tolerance had any such goofiness in mind.
When the Vancouver school board adopted zero tolerance in November 1994,
several board members said they meant the hard line to be applied with
flexibility. They wanted dangerous behavior to be deterred. They wanted
offenders to feel the heat of discipline. They did not mean to expel any
student who happened to be found in possession of anything deemed
dangerous. They did not mean to punish a Midol borrower and a crack pusher
with anything like the same severity.

They understood that the schools would not be fulfilling civic
responsibility by putting children on the streets to misbehave.

How well has zero tolerance worked? That's tough to figure, mostly because
the schools hereabouts didn't have all that much seriously to fret about.
When zero tolerance rode in, there was modest indication of gang activity
at a couple of high schools. Students told pollsters here and elsewhere
that drugs were raging through the generations, but those surveys weren't
reflected in rising numbers of arrests for drug activity.

Advocates of the zero-tolerance model can insist it worked. Those who stuck
with firm, flexible disciplinary standards can as readily insist they were
right all along.

However the policy is described, students evidently behave better when they
know teachers, parents and other custodians of their education care. As
ever recorded, the young generations will probe for limits persistently --
and feel secure when the limits are found and tested.