Fri Feb 22, 2008 at 9:36 AMBy: Children Deserve Respect Too! Parent Concerns About Lawrence Elementary To be honest with you, I feel that some adults don't feel they have to apply the principles of "customer service" when it involves dealing with children. The problem in many schools across America is the lack of respect for children as human beings. When we deal with adults, we automatically think about respect because an adult can retaliate by physical force, writing a letter, or calling in on you. Children, on the other hand, are often abused in this respect because they are perceived as defenseless, and unworthy of respect. We want our children to "respect their elders," yet we do not respect our children. In this case, a child is being talk down to and denied telephone privileges for various reasons. This demonstrates egotism in the worst way, and a total disrespect to humanity. When we begin to view our children as a nuisance or bothersome, then we need to step back and re-evaluate ourselves. I see children being put down and talked about in the classroom by teachers, and when the child lashes out, he or she is suspended or expelled. Some people automatically believe the teacher or administrator with no regard for the child's perspective. I'm not sure what's going on at Lawrence, but somebody needs to look into this major problem. I agree that both teachers and principals need to have professional development in regards to treating others with respect, especially children. Just remember that children are human beings with feeling, not some animal in the street. Even animals deserve respect.

Fri Feb 22, 2008 at 3:32 PMBy: teachers deserve respect too Parent Concerns About Lawrence Elementary Did it ever occur to the previous posters that the child might have not gone directly to the office and asked to call home right after being dismissed? I agree that a cancelled after school program is a valid reason to call home, but I have frequently witnessed children going to the office and DEMANDING to call home for any reason. The office is for school business and most schools have a public phone or two for student use. I taught in an inner city school and we had a public phone on every floor. The students frequently have money for candy or cookies. They should have enough money to call home in an emergency.

Sat Feb 23, 2008 at 3:54 AMBy: George N. Schmidt Parent Concerns About Lawrence Elementary I hope this one comes back next Wednesday to the monthly Chicago Board of Education meeting. Last year, parents warned in December that Lawrence was out of control because of the principal's mismanagement. One parent even reported -- with documentation -- that her child had been injured defending a teacher against an out of bullying student.

Arne Duncan dispatched Jacqueline Anderson out there, among others, in an expensive cover up. The problems have gotten worse, because CPS leadership is currently organized to perpetuate these kinds of problems based on its dysfunctional "executive rule" model. Hopefully, some of the parents and students who were trying to clean up the mess despite the machinations of Arne Duncan and Rufus Williams more than a year ago will return, at least to document their "We told you so" comments.

If these guys weren't destroying so many lives of so many families and dedicated staff (this year's school closings and this new Orwellian propaganda about turnarounding everything -- all of them -- are the most dramatic examples, but far from the only ones) they'd be enough to keep Second City and The Daily Show in business for months.

But as long they have executive power and are under orders to ride roughshod over everyone else, this is no joke, as the teachers, principals, students, parents and others at the 19 schools facing closing next week -- and the families from Lawrence and dozens of other schools -- have learned the hard way.

Dictatorships are always like this. It's time to end the Daley dictatorship over Chicago's public schools.