Dunce Hat Award Recipient...Marlon Dorsey

And the Dunce Hat Award goes to...

I am on a roll today...

*sigh*

Lately, when bad teachers make the headlines, the typical reasons are

• Having intimate yet inappropriate relationship with students,
• Child pornography,
• Stealing money,
• Cheating on high-stakes tests,
• Questionable Facebook postings, and
• Hitting/fighting with a student.

While this story surely can fit into the last category on the list, what differentiate it from other stories of the past was the teacher's rationale and mixed reactions from others. In case you haven't heard, according to The Clarion-Ledger, Mississippi high school basketball coach, Mr. Marlon Dorsey, was caught beating one of his players during practice in Murrah High School gym, in front of other players and other spectators; one of the spectators recorded the incident via cell phone. Now Mr. Dorsey is suspended; The Grio article states suspension with out pay, while the ESPN article states suspension with pay. In addition, parents of three players are suing Mr. Dorsey and the school. This incident has sparked outrage among other parents, while a few supporters of Mr. Dorsey will be content with a formal apology. Nevertheless, what's more interesting about this case is that Mr. Dorsey believed he was doing his players a favor. He released this statement:  

I took it upon myself to save these young men from the destruction of self and what society has accepted and become silent to the issues our students are facing on a daily basis. I am deeply remorseful of my actions to help our students.  

Furthermore, he claimed he beat his players "for a variety of reasons, including disrespecting teachers, stealing cell phones, leaving campus without permission, being late for class and not following the dress code."

As a Black woman who was raised "by the belt", I do understand where Mr. Dorsey is coming from; he was enforcing his brand of "discipline" to keep his players in line. Nevertheless, he broke the law as corporal punishment is illegal in the state. Also, he probably felt, since he is a man and his players looked up to him, he could get away with this. Despite the wrongs they may have done, he publicly humiliated those kids. That's never a good luck for a teacher!

Mr. Dorsey, 

While your intentions were good, you took the law in your own hands by violating children via harsh beatings and public humiliation. You got caught red handed and now it is your turn to experience the painful backlash for your actions. Hence, you made it harder for the rest of us to earn the public trust. Therefore, on behalf of every good, hard-working, and law-abiding teacher and public servant, I present to you the Dunce Hat Award...

HIT THE ROAD, JACK!!!!!!!!!!

Dunce Hat Award Recipient -- Frank Melchiorre

And the Dunce Hat Award goes to...

Courtesy of Gothamist

In light of the current education reform movement, where we teachers are vilified and blamed for everything wrong with public schools, the last thing I need to do is to put a teacher "on blast". However, I will make an exception for this case. According to this Gothamist article, Mr. Frank Melchiorre, a NJ science teacher, was arrested for providing his students marijuana and alcohol at HIS HOME during "tutorial sessions". The students loved him so much, they even made a Facebook fan page to express their appreciation; they thought he was such a "kool" teacher.

First of all, WTF was he thinking?

Second of all, what made him think he WOULD NOT get caught?

Third of all, why are some commentators (in the article) actually condoning this foolishness? When I posted this article on my Facebook page, some of my friends insisted that he wouldn't have never got caught if this has happened when they were in school. I just SMH...

One of the biggest mistakes young teachers make is trying to befriend your students by giving into their whelms. I know...been there, done that! (Yet, not to this extreme). Now his young career is all but finished. While it is possible the students may get into trouble as well, the law will be more lenient to them and less on the teacher. Why? Whether we like it or not, part of our job is to be positive role models for our students.

Mr. Melchiorre,

Due to your lack of common sense and your disregard for the law, as well as your influential role as a teacher and public servant, you just made our fight for professionalism and respect  much harder to overcome. Therefore, on behalf of every good, hard-working, and law-abiding teacher, I would like to present to you the Dunce Hat Award...

HAVE A NICE LIFE, LOSER!!!!!!!!!