We all want our children to know the dangers of some of the choices they might make. We tell them not to run out in the street, so that they will not get run over by a car. We tell them not to play with guns, because they might accidentally discharge the weapon, and be hurt or killed. We tell them not to do drugs or drink alcohol, because it is harmful to their bodies and it could kill them. We tell them not to get behind the wheel of a car, if they have consumed a substance that would impair their abilities, so that they will not hurt themselves or someone else.
These are all important lessons that need to be taught, no argument there whatsoever. But children need to be approached in an honest and open way. They need to have these issues brought to their attention in a well-thought out and organized manner. The way to teach is not via scare tactics and careless lies that dismantle a child’s trust in you.
A school in California decided, that terrorizing students with blatant lies that some of their classmates/friends had been killed in car wrecks, was the way to go in teaching avoidance of DUI (driving under the influence) incidents. Another great example as to why it is best to keep your children at home to educate them, instead of handing them off to whatever unknown joker with a personal agenda or bizarre plan that happens to be waiting for them.
Continue reading below and you will see the nightmare that they put these teenagers through. I, for one, am glad that my children will not be subjected to deception and trickery under the guise of the “educational process”.
This news story can be found here:
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/25123570/
Here is the article:
Calif. school defends DWI shock tactics
Students were told classmates had died in car wrecks — they hadn’t
OCEANSIDE, Calif. – On a Monday morning last month, highway patrol officers visited 20 classrooms at El Camino High School to announce some horrible news: Several students had been killed in car wrecks over the weekend.
Classmates wept. Some became hysterical.
A few hours and many tears later, though, the pain turned to fury when the teenagers learned that it was all a hoax — a scared-straight exercise designed by school officials to dramatize the consequences of drinking and driving.
As seniors prepare for graduation parties Friday, school officials in the largely prosperous San Diego suburb are defending themselves against allegations they went too far.
At school assemblies, some students held up posters that read: “Death is real. Don’t play with our emotions.”
‘They got the shock they wanted’
Michelle de Gracia, 16, was in physics class when an officer announced that her missing classmate David, a popular basketball player, had died instantly after being rear-ended by a drunken driver. She said she felt nauseated but was too stunned to cry.
“They got the shock they wanted,” she said.
Some of her classmates became extremely upset, prompting the teacher to tell them immediately it was all staged.
“People started yelling at the teacher,” she said. “It was pretty hectic.”
Others, including many who heard the news of the 26 deaths between classes, were left in the dark until the missing students reappeared hours later.
“You feel betrayed by your teachers and administrators, these people you trust,” said 15-year-old Carolyn Magos. “But then I felt selfish for feeling that way, because, I mean, if it saves one life, it’s worth it.”
‘We wanted them to be traumatized’
Officials at the 3,100-student school officials defended the program.
“They were traumatized, but we wanted them to be traumatized,” said guidance counselor Lori Tauber, who helped organize the shocking exercise and got dozens of students to participate. “That’s how they get the message.”
The plan was to tell the truth to the students at an assembly later in the day. But word that it was all a hoax began to spread before the gathering. Tauber said some counselors and administrators revealed the truth to calm some students who had become upset.
Oceanside Schools Superintendent Larry Perondi said he fielded only a few calls from parents, while the PTA chapter said it had not heard any complaints. Perondi said the program would be revised, but he would not say how. And he said he was glad that students seemed to have gotten the message.
“We did this in earnest,” he said. “This was not done to be a prankster.”
That article made me react in a couple of rather passionate ways. First I was nauseated from the sheer…blech of it and then I was angry that adults — worse, adults in positions of authority would be so cavalier with people’s emotions and then I was again relieved that our decision to homeschool has never wavered in the past decade and then I was saddened by how far our nation has come.
I guess that if the officials were looking for strong responses, they got them. I just wonder if they really got the kind of responses they expected?
Thanks for sharing.
I had heard something about this, but had no idea it had happened in my old stomping grounds, Oceanside, CA.
How are students supposed to believe anything they are taught by the schools if they are decieved so cruelly in this way? There is enough truth to get this message across without having to resort to a lie. The end does not justify the means… not that they acheived the end they were hoping for.
Good for the students to protest being misled and mistreated! How is it they knew right from wrong better than those who have been put in authority over them? Scary.
I have really enjoyed perusing your very informative blog this morning- thank you!
Suzanne
These people that lied about this incident should be dismissed immediately. There is no place in the school system for lying. I would recommend firing everybody involved.