Unlocking Word Meanings
Read the following words/expressions found in today’s article.
- rowdy / ˈraʊ di / (adj) – loud and noisy
Example:The teacher cannot control her rowdy students.
- premises / ˈprem ɪ sɪz / (n) – a land or building that belongs to a business or an organization
Example:Pets are not allowed inside school premises.
- minority / mɪˈnɔr ɪ ti / (n) – a group of people in a population that has a different race, culture, or belief from that of the majority of the population
Example:The government released a new regulation that aims to stop discrimination against minorities.
- keep (something) in check / kip ɪn tʃɛk / (idiom) – to keep something under control
Example:Most teachers are trained to keep the behavior of their students in check.
- big picture / bɪg ˈpɪk tʃər / (idiom) – the general and long-term plan
Example:I trust my manager’s decisions because he’s the one who sees the project’s big picture.
Article
Read the text below.
New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio announced a policy limiting the role of police in the city’s schools.
For over 20 years, the New York Police Department (NYPD) has been in charge of the safety of schools in New York. This changes under de Blasio’s new policy that restricts the NYPD from arresting students for minor violations, including being rowdy, arriving late to class, and wearing an improper uniform. The policy also discourages school staff to alert the police about students who commit the aforementioned offenses. However, the NYPD can still arrest students who commit certain crimes outside school premises.
The policy is expected to have a big impact on students. Several studies discovered that having police officers in schools affects students’ attendance, test scores, and college enrollment rate. They also revealed that students are three times more likely to be arrested at schools that have safety officers and that most of these arrests are issued to minorities.
The director of New York City’s Education Policy Center said that the presence of police in schools makes students feel like criminals. With the new policy, the director hopes that students will learn how to keep their emotions and behavior in check and learn from their mistakes independently.
The policy is part of de Blasio’s initiatives to push social and emotional learning among the city’s students. This initiative, which includes teaching how to have positive relationships and how to resolve conflicts, aims to prepare students for life outside school. It also serves the big picture in the new K-12 education scheme, which involves developing soft skills or non-academic skills.
Viewpoint Discussion
Enjoy a discussion with your tutor.
Discussion A
• Do you think this policy can achieve its goal of helping students learn from their mistakes independently? Why or why not?
• Aside from learning how to have positive relationships and how to resolve conflicts, what else should be included in the social and emotional learning program? Discuss.
Discussion B
• What do you think pushes some students to commit offenses? Discuss.
• Whose responsibility is it to discipline students who commit offenses? Explain.