Juvenile Delinquency 3/15

• because children go to school longer, people are economically dependent longer on family to
• help attend college
• - because children are not working earlier, the period of immaturity lingers instead of being self-
• sufficient
• - delinquency continues instead of maturing
• - supply and demand is always at work
• - the more education you have, the less valuable it is
• - more people go on to high education - now we need plumbers, carpenters, tradesmen

• first time to relate to peers other than family
• - people are your own age
• - critical influence on behavior
• - you emulate peers, conform to peer standards (clothing, drugs)
• - peers can lead to rebellion, can facilitate bad behavior
• - things we learn about our history, right and wrong, relate to authority figures that are not our
• parents
• - we learn how to relate

- we spend less of our gross national product than Japan, Austria and Sweden on education

• standards have gotten lower in modern times.
• - we expect more of our students
• - system issues lead to reduced standards.
• - teachers want to look good
• - high pass rates that are not deserved

• increase self-esteem by increasing likelihood of success while lowering standards
• - students appear like they are doing better which increases self-esteem

The standards we hold frequently manifest what we think a person can achieve. It may actually hurt self-esteem

• Statistics show a correlation between school failure and delinquency. High criminal predictor
• - 9% of chronic offenders graduated high school
• - 90% did not graduate high school

• What leads to school failure?
• - Without family values, it is hard for the teachers to teach
• - school tries to compensation by trying to have those kids succeed

• lower class kids (socioeconomically) do not have skills necessary to succeed when judged by
• middle class measuring rods (standards)
• - impossible for them to succeed
• - when they fail, it impacts self esteem and criminal behavior
• - Cohen recommends implicitly lowering standards to achieve self esteem
• - make standards reachable

• What happens when standards change?
• - if you change the standard away from the middle-class measuring rod, children are not
• prepared for work life because…
• - middle class measuring rod standards are the prevailing standards in good US jobs
• -Jackson Toby

• academic tracking can lead to school failure
• - grouping of students academically according to achievement and ability level
• - when you track a child, a few things happen:
• 1. stigma associated with lower academic track
• 2. when we expect less, we get less and student provides less by way of achievement
• 3. administrative reality – kids who achieve less or more than others, what do you do?
• - did tracking cause failure or other underlying issues that causes the failure?
• Tracking might exacerbate /worsen cycle of failure

• it can lead or contribute to school failure
• - tracking leads to alienation
• - students are not given enough attention
• - chance of success is reduced
• - large, impersonal classrooms have negative effect
• - isolation, no participation, teacher may not even know a student is in need of help (isolate and intervene)
• - passive role (teacher teaches, student learns)

• When students sense that the curriculum is irrelevant, they won’t want to learn
• Students are not always able to see or know the relevance until they learn
• - learning is gradual as is its relevance

Alienation emanates from social class according to Toby and Cohen. Middle-class bias alienates lower socioeconomic kids

• 1. Compulsory Education
• 2. Freedom of Speech
• 3. School Discipline
• 4. Confessions

Pearce v Society of Sisters (1925)

Wisconsin v Yoder

must attend school between a certain age - you must attend PUBLIC school. If you do not attend our public school, it was a crime. Did not take into account private or parochial schools. It put them out of business. Parents wanted to send kids to a parochial school. The constitutionality of this law went to the Supreme Court. They balanced the interest – to ensure that children are properly and fully educated against children and parents’ right to follow the tenants of their religion by going to parochial school. Supreme Court said freedom of religion trumped the educational interests. Attendance in public school wasn’t necessary to fulfill the state’s obligation to properly and fully educate.

• The State’s compulsory education law violated the First Amendment freedom of relation. The state’s compulsory education law may not constitutionally mandate that students only attend public school, but must allow attendance in parochial and private schools as well.
• State does not have an interest in precluding parochial or private school.

Amish population – state required students to finish 10th grade to fulfill compulsory education requirement. Amish tradition is that you only finish the 8th grade. Part of their simplicity, humility, tradition, living a simple life. Amish claimed law interfered with freedom of religion. Supreme Court – state’s interest is legitimate but not necessarily satisfied by only adding two extra years of school. They held that the statute as applied to Amish is not permitted.Compulsory education laws cannot violate First Amendment religious rights

Tinker v Demoines Independent School District (1969)

• First cases that recognized that children do have a right to freedom of speech. Vietnam war was going on and many students protested against the war. Students wore black armbands. School decided that black armbands were not allowed to be worn in school. Students were suspended and disciplined. That was appealed to the Supreme Court which concluded that students have freedom of speech which was violated by not being allowed to wear the armbands. Freedom of speech is qualified – not absolute.
• What kind of speech is protected? Political statement against the war. Political speech is the MOST protected and important form of speech. There are gradings. Porn is a form of speech, but not nearly as protected as political speech. There must be a compelling reason.

• Political Speech – the only legitimate function of school is to educate
• - foster environment conducive to learning
• - the school was concerned that armbands would disrupt school
• - arguments, debates, controversy
• - Supreme Court concluded that the armbands were a form of passive political speech
• - the armband does not disrupt education
• - school cannot interfere with free expression unless nature of speech interferes with the
• education process
• - students have a right to free speech
• - If speech interferes with state’s education process, the school can restrain the speech
• - there are no absolute rights – they are qualified
• - cannot threaten, yell “fire” in a crowded classroom, cannot slander someone
• - it’s all qualified and balanced.
• - society versus our freedom of speech

Goss v. Lopez (suspension)

• Court weighed whether if a child is subject to suspension, is there a right to due process? Due process is a process that due to you – the procedure that applies to a certain thing. Derived from the 14th Amendment – Due Process clause. No state shall deprive any person of life, liberty or property without due process.
• When does a state need to provide due process? They need to provide due process if there is a chance of losing life, liberty and property. Is due process applicable to suspension procedures? The Supreme Court said that loss of education implicates both a liberty and property interest. A temporary loss of education implicate a social shame, future employment concerns, etc. Education is linked with ability to learn and earn. Before a school can suspend, you have a right to due process.
• What actual process though? The due process we give to “criminals” is the highest due process procedure afforded anyone. For criminals, freedom is the basic liberty interest, fines are waged, life for murder, but what about students?
• The school’s interest is to have the educational process continue without interruption. The suspension should be affordable, quick, and done in an expeditious way.

• - have right to have notice of charges
• - have right to receive explanation of evidence
• - have opportunity to tell their side

Ingram v Wright

Is corporal punishment precluded by the 8th Amendment which prohibits cruel and unusual punishment? Corporal punishment is humiliating, negative, it hurts self-esteem. Supreme Court said NO, The 8th Amendment does not apply to students. It applies only to criminal cases. Corporal punishment does not impede the 8th Amendment.

Miranda v Arizona

• 5th Amendment
• - privilege against self-incrimination. Cannot be forced. Right to remain silent…

• certain kinds of interrogation – when an officer interrogates someone, there is an inherent coerciveness. Created Miranda warnings to balance and advise against incrimination. It only applies if in police custodial interrogation.
• When school suspects child of crime, does school have to give Miranda warnings? NO. Miranda deals with POLICE CUSTODIAL INTERROGATION. The School CAN interrogate. No Miranda is necessary by general school administrators. if you are not in custody and not interrogated, you don’t need to be Mirandized by police. Interrogations are questions that induce a statement.