'You mentally cannot take it anymore': Central Alabama AFT president talks student discipline

PIECE TOGETHER HOW IT HAPPENED. WELL, IT’S NO SECRET TEACHER SHORTAGES ARE AN ISSUE WE’VE SEEN THROUGHOUT THE ENTIRE COUNTRY. AND AS WE’VE SPOKEN ABOUT IT SO MANY TIMES, SCHOOL DISTRICTS IN OUR AREA HAVE STRUGGLED IN RECENT YEARS TO HANG ON TO THEIR EDUCATORS. TONIGHT, SOME SAY THEY’VE LEFT THE PROFESSION FOR A NUMBER OF REASONS, INCLUDING STUDENT DISCIPLINE. IN WVTM 13, CHIP SCARBOROUGH IS LIVE IN BIRMINGHAM TONIGHT TO EXPLAIN. CHIP. WELL, GLADYS, THE PRESIDENT OF THE CENTRAL ALABAMA AMERICAN FEDERATION OF TEACHERS HERE TELLS ME SHE RECENTLY SURVEYED ALL OF HER MEMBERS ABOUT WHAT SORTS OF THINGS THEY NEED IN THE CLASSROOM TO MAKE THEIR JOB EASIER. SHE SAYS ONE OF THE MAIN THINGS THAT CAME BACK IS THE NEED FOR BEHAVIOR. AIDES IN THE CLASSROOM SAYS MANY TEACHERS IN CENTRAL ALABAMA WILL BE WELCOMING THEIR STUDENTS BACK FROM SUMMER BREAK OVER THE NEXT FEW DAYS AND DISCIPLINARY PROBLEMS WILL BE ONE MAJOR ISSUE FACING EDUCATORS WHEN STUDENTS RETURN. A RECENT STUDY FOUND STUDENT ROWDINESS IN THE CLASSROOM IS AT AN ALL TIME HIGH. YOU KNOW, THAT’S THE NUMBER ONE REASON THAT TEACHERS AND EDUCATORS AND SUPPORT STAFF ARE WALKING OUT. A SURVEY OF MORE THAN 1000 TEACHERS BY MIDWEEK RESEARCH CENTER SHOWED 70% OF TEACHERS SURVEYED BELIEVE STUDENT BEHAVIOR IS MORE OF A PROBLEM. NOW THAN IT WAS BEFORE THE PANDEMIC. EXPERTS SAY PANDEMIC IMPACTS ARE TO BLAME FOR SOME OF THE MISBEHAVING, BUT I ALSO THINK SOME OF IT IS LACK OF SUPPORT FOR EDUCATORS AND SUPPORT STAFF IN THE SCHOOLS. YOU KNOW, YOU CAN SEND SOMEONE TO THE OFFICE AND WITHIN A FEW MINUTES THEY’RE GOING TO COME BACK. AND NOT ONLY ARE THEY GOING TO COME BACK, THEY’RE GOING TO COME BACK WITH A POSITIVE REWARD. THEY’RE GOING TO COME BACK WITH A SNACK OR A PIECE OF CANDY OR GYM TIME, SOMETHING OTHER STUDENTS ARE WITNESSING, CAUSING WHAT THE LOCAL TEACHERS UNION PRESIDENT CALLS A CHAIN REACTION. SHE SAYS ADMINISTRATORS MUST MAKE SURE TEACHERS ARE SUPPORTED AND DISCIPLINARY SITUATIONS. YOU KNOW, TEACHING IS A CALLING AND THAT’S SOMETHING THAT YOU HAVE TO BE CALLED TO DO BECAUSE WE ALL KNOW THAT IT’S NOT SOMETHING THAT YOU GO INTO FOR THE MONEY. AND IF YOUR HEART ISN’T THERE, THEN YOU DO NOT STAY. BUT NOW, IF YOUR HEART IS IN IT, YOU CAN’T STAY BECAUSE YOU’RE BEING FORCED OUT OF THE CLASSROOM BECAUSE YOU MENTALLY CANNOT TAKE IT ANYMORE. AND ERICA HUGHES, PRESIDENT OF THE CENTRAL ALABAMA AMERICAN FEDERATION OF TEACHERS, SAYS UNTIL THERE ARE MORE FEET IN THE CLASSROOM, SHE SAYS NOTHING WILL CHANGE AND TEACHERS WILL KEEP LEAVING THE PROFESSION. LI