|
Original URL: http://www.azcentral.com/news/articles/0117teacher17.html
Hispanics upset by teacher's discipline
The Arizona Republic
Jan. 17, 2004 12:00 AM
Anne Ryman and Ofelia Madrid
Parents expressed outrage Friday over the possibility that an
Ingleside Middle School teacher hit their children for speaking Spanish in class
instead of English.
The teacher told school district investigators that she was enforcing the
district's English immersion program and did not intend to injure the children.
Eight children told police that teacher Kim Youngblood, 52, hit or slapped them.
Some of the children told police their arms or hands were sore afterward.
"Her job is to teach the students, not to hit them," said Antonio Montes, 42,
whose 13-year-old daughter, Maria, told investigators she was slapped on the
shoulder. "It doesn't matter what the teacher's motive was," said the girl's
father.
Maria Montes said that Youngblood slapped her when she asked a classmate a
question during class.
Maria said on Friday that she stayed quiet until class was over, then showed her
friends the red mark on her shoulder.
On Thursday, the Scottsdale School Board moved to fire Youngblood, who teaches
students who are learning English at the east Phoenix school. She has 30 days to
appeal the decision or she loses her job. She has been on leave from her job
since a parent reported the incident in April 2003.
Youngblood did not return calls seeking comment Friday.
"I assure you she did not hit any child, ever, in her life," said the teacher's
mother, Viola Youngblood, who answered the phone at her daughter's Paradise
Valley house.
She said her daughter is a strong disciplinarian, but the furthest she will go
is to tap a child on the shoulder who is running late for class. "That's the
extent of it," she said.
Meanwhile, the Arizona State Board of Education is investigating Kim Youngblood
for possible violations of state law. The board, which oversees teacher
licenses, can take disciplinary actions ranging from a letter of reprimand to
revoking teaching credentials in Arizona.
Arizona Superintendent of Schools Tom Horne said it is correct for a teacher to
insist that students speak only English in class but it is wrong to hit them.
"If a teacher hits students for speaking Spanish, the teacher should be fired,"
Horne said. "However, I have no way of knowing whether the teacher is innocent
or guilty."
The controversy ignited debate on talk radio Friday, including stations such as
Newsradio 620 KTAR, where callers argued how far teachers can go in disciplining
students.
The League of United Latin American Citizens condemned the teacher's actions.
"This is like back in the '50s where they used to hit the students for speaking
Spanish," said Silverio Garcia, LULAC's education chairman. "It sounds like
we've gone around the block, but we really haven't gone anywhere really."
In interviews with district officials, Youngblood described the physical contact
as "a gentle touch on the shoulders or a tap on the wrist." She is suing the
school district for malicious prosecution, conspiracy and libel. The Maricopa
County Attorney's Office declined to file charges against her last year when the
issue surfaced.
State law allows teachers to use physical force only to the extent that it is
appropriate to maintain order or defend themselves or others.
One 12-year-old boy, who was speaking Spanish to his friend in class, said
Youngblood hit him on the shoulder and yelled: "You can't speak Spanish or you
won't learn to speak English."
Samara Mosqueda, 13, told investigators that Youngblood slapped her on the
shoulder.
She and her friends discussed telling the principal but they were afraid, she
said Friday. "We didn't want to get in trouble," Samara said. "What if she
denied it, and it's our word against a teacher's?"
Samara's mother, Sarai Jaimes, 33, said the school notified her shortly
afterward of the problems.
"They go to school to learn," Sarai Jaimes said. "The teacher doesn't have a
right to hit them."
Staff reporter Judi Villa contributed to this article. Reach the reporter at
anne.ryman@arizonarepublic.com or (602) 444-6881
|