Suspension

[Sjc79]

Please could I have some advice.
My friends son has today been suspended from school. He is 15.
Heres what happened:
He witnessed a fight between 2 lads. Not in his circle of friends. He stupidly got his phone out and recorded it.
It was NOT shared with anyone or uploaded anywhere.
Phone was taken as police were called to the school. Police checked his phone and handed it back once they recorded the video for themselves. They deleted the content after ensuring it hadn’t been shared. Police found the content helpful it identifying what happened.
Now I am of the opinion he made a stupid mistake which given society/media these days I’d argue a lot of children his age with a mobile phone may do the same.
He had no involvement in the incident in any other way.
Hes been suspended from school for 10 days!! I think this is disproportionate. I think it’s unreasonable. Any advice please. Requesting a meeting with the disciplinary committee and she will speak to local council tomorrow. But 10 days!! Anyone else think this is a lot!!

What happened to the boys who were fighting? This does seem overkill for a first offence!

10 days is insane! My son's friend got 2 days for filming similar and same circumstances quite a distance from school.

It says online that if your child is suspended for more than five days they have to be given education at another location such as a pupil referral unit which just seems ludicrous !

I suppose it depends on his previous record and the school's policy on phones and filming.

He obviously had the phone confiscated before he had a chance to share it or show anyone, but it will be with that intent that he filmed it. It was luck rather than judgement that it wasn't shown/shared.

If I was your friend I'd be more concerned about raising a boy who, on seeing what must have been a serious fight, took a phone out to film it. That's disgusting behaviour. He should be thoroughly ashamed and your friend should be asking some questions of herself. If her usual approach to this kind of behaviour is immediately thinking the punishment is too harsh and wondering how can she get him out of it rather than sitting with the gravity of what he's done it might explain why he's so unpleasant to start with.

That's the problem with everyone these days. They literally film all sorts of crap. How about he helped or how about he sought help. Oh no . He gladly took joy upon those fighting for shits and giggles.
He deserves the suspension
But boot on the other foot , if it were your child being beaten up and others filming , I bet you'd call for their suspension because they didnt intervene somehow

We have heard the other 2 boys have been perm ex. My friends so doesn’t know them though.

Hes made a very silly mistake. I get that. I get a suspension. But 10 days seems extreme when you have a boy who has never been in trouble. It’s highly academic and a hard worker. Y10 and only ever had 3 detentions for forgetting homework.

Well that’s not correct - the suspension can only be turned into a PX later. Your ‘friend’s’ DS behaved appallingly - he didn’t just film the fight, he stood back and did nothing to stop it. So yes, 10 days seems fair to me.
a student who never gets into any trouble would not do what he did. They would get a teacher asap

He said he thought it was scary and loads of children were about. He’s a really good well behaved boy. I’d be livid if my kids had been doing it. The police told him he’d made a very silly mistake filming it however they believe the video helps them. He’s been an idiot no doubt. She absolutely believes he should be punished as well. I question if 10 days is extreme if you have not been the perpetrator or instigator and filmed from a distance. Maybe it’s just me but I think that’s 10 days of missed education.

It's not a silly mistake. It's a deliberately horrible act. Saved from being worse by the police turning up and the phone being taken before he had a chance to share. You and your friend are not doing him any favours by downplaying how awful what he did was.

Moments like this tell us a lot about who we are as people. His instinct was to get his phone out and film. Not intervene. Not go and get help. Not even to look away because it was horrible to watch. This speaks to his character. Your friend would be advised to think about that.

It's ten days of missed academic learning, but it could teach him a few lessons far more important than what he'd learn at school i.e. don't be a dick, you will be judged on this kind of behaviour, one error in judgement can lead to serious consequences, have some empathy...

Are you sure it is 10 days not 10 sessions (so 5 days)?

It's ten days of missed academic learning

Ten days of missed teaching. Needn't be ten days of missed learning if he gets down to it with his books and notes and finds some revision sites and past papers online.

What are the school's rules about phones? Should he have had it on him, or been using it on school premises, at all?

The school should be providing work during the suspension.

I think he was stupid and irresponsible and deserves consequences for it, but maybe five days would have been appropriate. His mother had better make sure he’s doing some school work whilst he’s not at school and not stuck on a screen.

I think the phone needs to be replaced with something very basic for school and I’d hope the school has a robust policy on phones, although I doubt it.

10 days does seem overkill, however it depends on school phone policy. The school where I work is phone-free, so any misuse of phones on campus has very strict consequences. My school would probably do 5 days, rather than 10, but it also depends on many other details of the incident.

Im glad to hear that the fighting students got perm ex. I’m sick of fighting in schools, and I can’t believe what schools are expected to put up with, when people would be immediately arrested for doing the same thing in public.

I was once suspended from school and to be honest, it taught me a great life lesson (self reflection) Ten days is not a lot, he can do some revision in a public library or at home. On the one hand yes, they could use this time to visit museums and other public places, but on the other you would not want to 'reward' him.