Post by gabrielleboyer on Sept 14, 2008 19:52:33 GMT -5
Topic number 3
“If somebody strikes someone else, does it matter if they were provoked?” If someone being provoked and taunted ends up in a fistfight with someone else, should they have the same punishment as someone who just walks up to another student and starts a fight with them for no other reason other then they are more popular or they wanted the attention? It matters whether the person was provoked or not because it shows whose fault it was for the fight in the first place and should help the school decide on punishment. Schools should not handle each fight exactly the same because in some situations, the person who threw the first punch could be completely at fault while other times, that person, while still at fault for throwing the punch, could have had reason to defend himself or someone else.
If a bully is constantly calling a student names and teasing him or her on a regular basis and that student decides to strike the bully, he or she is still at fault for throwing a punch, but should they be in as much trouble as someone who hits someone for no reason at all? I think that if someone has a reason, they should still be punished for bringing violence into school, but not be in as much trouble as someone who did it for entertainment. In the first situation, the person who was doing the provoking should get punished as well, whereas in the second situation, the person getting stricken has done nothing wrong, should receive no punishment, and was only defending him or herself.
If schools handled all fights exactly the same then in both fights, both the students would be at blame and would both get punished, and most likely suspended. It would not be fair for the student defending himself to get punished, or at least punished to the same degree as the student who punched him. If a student was being provoked, then they can be blamed for teasing and taunting a student, while the other student can be blamed for throwing the first punch. In that case, both students should get punished and get the blame for bringing some sort of abuse into school, whether it be physical or verbal.
It is nearly impossible for teachers to tell students not to fight back because if someone if standing there throwing punches at you, then you have to do something to defend yourself. In high school, you will rarely see someone back down from a fight. They either do not want to seem weak, or even if they are strictly defending themselves. Either way, it is hard to tell someone to back down from a fight, especially when they were the ones who got stricken first. They cannot be at blame, or as much blame if they were only defending themselves, rather then the person who threw the punch at them and started the whole fight.
I believe that it is every student’s responsibility to intervene when they see another student being hurt emotionally. It does not matter if you are friends with that person or not because I am sure that if you were in their shoes, you would want them to do the same for you. Students probably do not do anything most of the time because they do not want to get involved and almost anything in high school can lead to some sort of drama, which everyone wants to steer clear from. Although if you stood up for someone and had other people were willing to back you up, there is less of a chance that anyone would try to personally attack you. If more people stood up to those who make personal attacks on people and let them know that it was not entertaining, they would be more likely to stop it because then it stops being a show to everyone and the bullies are now the ones being put in their place.
“If somebody strikes someone else, does it matter if they were provoked?” If someone being provoked and taunted ends up in a fistfight with someone else, should they have the same punishment as someone who just walks up to another student and starts a fight with them for no other reason other then they are more popular or they wanted the attention? It matters whether the person was provoked or not because it shows whose fault it was for the fight in the first place and should help the school decide on punishment. Schools should not handle each fight exactly the same because in some situations, the person who threw the first punch could be completely at fault while other times, that person, while still at fault for throwing the punch, could have had reason to defend himself or someone else.
If a bully is constantly calling a student names and teasing him or her on a regular basis and that student decides to strike the bully, he or she is still at fault for throwing a punch, but should they be in as much trouble as someone who hits someone for no reason at all? I think that if someone has a reason, they should still be punished for bringing violence into school, but not be in as much trouble as someone who did it for entertainment. In the first situation, the person who was doing the provoking should get punished as well, whereas in the second situation, the person getting stricken has done nothing wrong, should receive no punishment, and was only defending him or herself.
If schools handled all fights exactly the same then in both fights, both the students would be at blame and would both get punished, and most likely suspended. It would not be fair for the student defending himself to get punished, or at least punished to the same degree as the student who punched him. If a student was being provoked, then they can be blamed for teasing and taunting a student, while the other student can be blamed for throwing the first punch. In that case, both students should get punished and get the blame for bringing some sort of abuse into school, whether it be physical or verbal.
It is nearly impossible for teachers to tell students not to fight back because if someone if standing there throwing punches at you, then you have to do something to defend yourself. In high school, you will rarely see someone back down from a fight. They either do not want to seem weak, or even if they are strictly defending themselves. Either way, it is hard to tell someone to back down from a fight, especially when they were the ones who got stricken first. They cannot be at blame, or as much blame if they were only defending themselves, rather then the person who threw the punch at them and started the whole fight.
I believe that it is every student’s responsibility to intervene when they see another student being hurt emotionally. It does not matter if you are friends with that person or not because I am sure that if you were in their shoes, you would want them to do the same for you. Students probably do not do anything most of the time because they do not want to get involved and almost anything in high school can lead to some sort of drama, which everyone wants to steer clear from. Although if you stood up for someone and had other people were willing to back you up, there is less of a chance that anyone would try to personally attack you. If more people stood up to those who make personal attacks on people and let them know that it was not entertaining, they would be more likely to stop it because then it stops being a show to everyone and the bullies are now the ones being put in their place.
