S ometimes, “procedure” can get in the way of teachable moments, even for educators, but not in the following example. One day, Anthony Moore, a student at Stonybrook Intermediate and Middle School, wore a hat to his classes, which was a violation of the school’s dress code. When Principal Jason Smith found out, however, he brought Moore to his office and probed a little further and asked Moore why had decided to wear the hat to school. It turned out that Moore had received a particularly bad haircut and wanted to hide it from his peers, who he was afraid would tease him. After seeing the student’s haircut, Smith empathized with the student. So, instead of sending him home or writing him up for violating the school’s dress policy, he offered to give Moore a new haircut. Understandably, after his last experience with a barber, Moore was a little hesitant to accept the offer. But as it turned out, Smith had been cutting hair since he was in his teens. So, after showing Moore some photographic evidence of his work and getting the all-clear from Moore’s mother, he agreed to get a new cut. Smith drove all the way back to his house to get his barber kit, then fixed Moore’s shoddy haircut right there in his office. Once Moore was comfortable with how everything was realigned, he returned to his classes in good spirits. Many praised the principal’s solution to the problem. It certainly would have been easier for Smith to simply penalize Moore for wearing his hat, but he instead set an example for how teachers and educators can be a cut above the rest, turning a minor violation into a teachable moment. Hopefully, more and more educators will look to Principal Smith’s “shear” genius as an example for how to address the roots of student misbehavior, rather than simply shaving a little off the top.
Fix Minor Transgressions at their Roots
DON’T JUST TAKE A LITTLE OFF THE TOP
Have a Laugh!
Easy way out on Pg. 4
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