(no subject)

[x-beast.livejournal.com]

I have been trying to come up with an eloquent, well-reasoned post which makes my points in an articulate and inarguable fashion.

It's now very late and I haven't managed, so here goes.

I am, to put it mildly, very concerned about the near-total lack of response to Manuel's threats against the student body as a group, and those currently in distress in particular. One of our students threatened the others, openly and, so far as I could tell, seriously. We, the staff, did not intervene, nor did we inform him that his behaviour was unacceptable. Scott's offer to take him into the city was certainly a good idea, but I'm concerned that he may have construed it as a form of tacit approval for his insistence that others resolve his problems for him, absolving him of responsibility for his own difficulties.

On a larger scale, I have for some time been noticing a distinct trend among the students towards... not independence, which is in itself a good thing, but towards overconfidence. A lack of discipline, and of respect for the staff. While I am glad that they feel able to assert themselves, this particular means of doing so will not help them in the outside world, save to speedy disciplinary action by an assortment of unforgiving authority figures.

In short... I think we should tighten the reins a little. Remind them that while the school is a haven, it is not a refuge from the necessity to behave like civilized beings, human or otherwise. Thoughts, anyone?

It may be better coming from someone else, but someone must address the issue of Manuel's behaviour, and I will do so if no-one else is so inclined.