That's silly. An aspergian would have the sense not to take drugs. (Though sniffing the scent of vanilla extract is fun, not that it's a drug ot anything)
As long as your son doesn't have anything to be ashamed of in his body, the search should be fine. You know how suspicious schools can get.
Yes, it's not as if chewing gum is so bad. The only trouble is when kids dispose of wads of gum on the ground or by sticking them to the underside of chairs or desks. It also looks as if they are chewing their cud but I would say chewing gum could be calming for some people.
hi Meiloyn,
Yes, I forgot to say, Absolutely no way would my son do drugs or carry weapons. My son doesn't like others touching him but I assume he just had to empty his pockets and they frisk him, I do think its a bit demeaning for a chewing gum incident though.
ditzy.
Yeah, It does sound a bit demeaning. Maybe they think he's chewing tobacco or something? Schools can get oversuspicious. I learned that showing my evil GOFFIK drawings to teachers was a bad idea.
I hate people touching me too, especially with the kind of touch that creates shivers. The hands have to be WARM before they touch me. (Now that sounds distrubing) If I were a physician, I'd warm my hands over the radiator every time I have to touch someone, possibly make hand-warming a standard in the future unless the child you're touching doesn't like warm touches.
Hello,
My 13yr old is in a special school for ebd. He has Asperger's.
The school have body searches, which although I had no experience of when he first started, at least I thought my son would be safe in school. To my knowledge this was to check for drugs/weapons making sure they didn't come into school premises.
Would you consider a body search appropriate to check for chewing gum? The teacher told me he was chewing in class and denied he was chewing gum and was still chewing an hour later. So they did a body search on him.
Your opinions would be appreciated.
ditzy.
OMG I do the same thing! LOL, even better yet the teacher would tell me to throw i away and i'd put it in my palm and kinda pretend to throw it away then i'd put it back in my mouth and continue chewing.
A body check on chewing gum is stupid, in fact a rule agaisnt chewing gum is stupid.
wait, did the teacher deny he was chewing gum or did your son deny he was chewing gum?
I also think there are far worse problems to worry about in schools than if a student is chewing gum or not.
I also think there are far worse problems to worry about in schools than if a student is chewing gum or not.
There's actually occasional BACKSTABBING going on at the high school here in New Britain. All they appear to do is apply metal detectors, which could backfire on harmless metal objects such as notebook bindings. This is all according to my sophomore friend, and her older sister who wrote a newspaper article about it.
I don't think a body search is warranted for a child who's suspected to be chewing gum. Such a search is very invasive, and if there's anything a special school should be teaching, it's that your self-respect, privacy, and personal space are important. Kids with special needs are vulnerable to abuse... Confusing it with random body searches for very little reason isn't a good idea.
If the teacher is that worried about gum, why not ask the child to empty his pockets? That's probably where he's keeping the gum anyway.
Oh, additionally: Does your son stim in a way that might make it look like he's chewing? Or is chewing gum itself a stim for him? If it is, doing so might actually be beneficial, not just a neutral matter of rules.
Searching anybody in school, is just out and out unnacceptable, in my opinion, if not illegal, although I don't claim to be any sort of legal expert, it certainly should be, unless there is a specific, reason to think they are actually packing a weapon ON THE PARTICULAR OCCASION the search is to be performed, neither IMO, should it apply to drugs.
Its demeaning, and unpleasant, they search criminals in prison, and suspects on arrest, and unless the kid in question, is a chav, then searching, either a pat down, metal detectors, internal searches, just isn't on.
All they appear to do is apply metal detectors, which could backfire on harmless metal objects such as notebook bindings.
Ah metal detectors. I could walk through one in just my underpants and set it off.. depending on the metal detector..
You see it on tv sometimes... Those hand wand ones being set off by people's body piercings. I just have an ear ring and an eyebrow piercing by the way - but I had re constructive surgery on a knee (with screws and all) and recently just had an implant fixed into my jaw to support a crown to replace a major molar.
As to body searches on kids... I wouldn't do it myself. I used to work in child care and we had strict rules about 'appropriate' contact.
Nothing surprises me anymore. Your story reminded me of this one a while back:
Rancho Bernardo High Schoolin San Diego. Rita Wilson, the school’s vice principal became overly obsessed that female students might attend a school dance wearing thongs or not wearing bras.
Consequently, Ms. Wilson set up a checkpoint outside the dance where she and school counselor Natalie Johnson actually lifted students’ skirts–in full view of male students and faculty–in Wilson’s search for "inappropriate" underwear.
Female students suspected of not wearing bras were forced to partially disrobe or had their tops groped. Some male students were also forced, again publicly, to demonstrate that they were wearing underwear. Suspects not apprehended at the checkpoint were subjected to roving patrols throughout the dance.
Maybe this vice principal was a bit of a perve???
In any case, this kind of thing is quite unacceptable and somebody should have sued.
At least in the US, unless there is probable cause that the student is carrying drugs or a weapon or something illegal of this nature, a search is absolutely unwarranted and ILLEGAL. I know if I had been searched at my school (or anywhere), I would have been so uncomfortable, I would've had a VERY hard time withstanding it, and would only have done so if I felt like there was justification for it, like at an airport.
Nothing surprises me anymore. Your story reminded me of this one a while back:
Rancho Bernardo High Schoolin San Diego. Rita Wilson, the school’s vice principal became overly obsessed that female students might attend a school dance wearing thongs or not wearing bras. Consequently, Ms. Wilson set up a checkpoint outside the dance where she and school counselor Natalie Johnson actually lifted students’ skirts–in full view of male students and faculty–in Wilson’s search for "inappropriate" underwear. Female students suspected of not wearing bras were forced to partially disrobe or had their tops groped. Some male students were also forced, again publicly, to demonstrate that they were wearing underwear. Suspects not apprehended at the checkpoint were subjected to roving patrols throughout the dance.
Isn't that illegal or something? That's child harassment and should not be tolerated.
Have there ever been kids with weapons or drugs? if so, how many times? What does EBD stand for? I personally think kids should be allowed to chew gum, just as long as they don't stick it in weird places, like under desks and such. Whoever does should be forced to scrape it off during lunch or after school. But it's nice to have a little gum in your mouth while listening to a lecture. I think it's really stupid to not allow kids to eat in class. What if somebody is really hungry, with a stomach literally making noises, and is having trouble concentrating? Not everyone has time to eat breakfast in the morning. i myself usually have a bannana, a yogurt, or even just a glass of milk before school. That's not enough to keep me going in the morning. Fortunately, most of my teachers permit foods and beverages in class.