One has to wonder what the world is coming to when a student faces suspension because she recorded a teacher’s inappropriate behavior.
That’s exactly what happened to 11-year-old Brianna Cooper, when she used her cell phone to take video of her teacher. The girl, who thought she was helping a friend, was quickly suspended for making the video.
Trying to capture evidence of the teacher’s bullying of another student, Brianna did the only thing she could think of — she used her cell phone to record the incident, not realizing that standing up for another student would backfire on her.
The incident, which occurred inside a fifth grade classroom in Fort Pierce, Florida, caught the teacher being mean to another student. In the video captured by Brianna, the teacher’s remarks to another student are clearly heard.
“Don’t let size fool you. I will drop you … You Don’t know me, that’s all I’m saying. So, don’t give me no look.”
The teacher went on to further belittle the student in front of the class.
“You’re the biggest kid in the 5th grade and you’re acting like the smallest one … I wonder what your mom looks like.”
St. Lucie County School District released the following statement:
“The staff at Sam Gaines Academy investigated the incident involving unprofessional behavior by the teacher and took swift, appropriate action. The teacher was dismissed and no longer works for the school system.”
Even though the teacher was terminated, Brianna’s bravery came at a cost, when she was also punished. Reportedly, she was suspended for five days for making what the school deemed an illegal recording, citing Florida law, which states it is illegal to make a video recording of someone without their consent. However, law enforcement explained that recording someone can be legal if their is not an expectation of privacy. I would say that a public classroom does not give the teacher a reasonable expectation of privacy, wouldn’t you? Unfortunately, the school disagreed.
Sticking out one’s neck often gets one’s head cut off.
Standing up for truth and justice isn’t easy …
or everyone would do it,
That’s close to where my sister teaches. Thought it might be her. She don’t take crap from no one.
@Jill, not “taking crap” is not the same as physically threatening kids.
The girl’s suspension has been lifted, which is only right.
But nowhere could I find the identity of the teacher.
Supprazz! Supprazz!
Someone needs to tell that kid about posting things to YouTube anonymously or under someone else’s name.
Gutless and idiotic Administrators, with only a limited ability to reason, is a reason Teacher’s Unions exist.
Teachers are going to be hard to come by soon. No one wants to be caught on tape saying something to a student that someone deems unnecessary. The teacher is going to live like that guy who belittled the Chik-a-fil girl. He’ll be hard pressed to find another teaching job. Either way the taxpayer will be paying for him to sit at home and berate his own children (if he has any).
Goldenfoxx, teachers being hard to come by is a good thing. They need to weed out any and every incompetent, narcissistic student from entering teaching programs. Plus tell them up front that the pay is poor, but the rewards are great.
Quality over quantity.
We get these surveys at work we have to participate in. Third party administered and assurances they cannot be traced to the individual. Yeah, that’s why you have an individual login password sent by company email.
They ask if I believe that if I expose ethical violations or corruption in the company that I will not be retaliated against.
I check the box that says, NO.
This brings up a comment text box. Which I fill to the brim with strangely coincidental dismissals of employees who did. I also add my full name and work location as the submitter of those curious coincidences.
They always thank me for my feedback.
I’d like to hear the teacher’s side of the story.
anyone have the contact info for those that made this decision?
it was fun to have it last week for the Lexington MA HS
“So, don’t give me no look.” ESL teacher, perhaps?
St Lucie County Florida is infested with assholes from New York City and North Joizy (NY City’s rejects). It’s why I moved away from there 7 years ago. This kind of fascist behavior on the part of the county school system doesnt surprise me one damn bit.
BFH, dude I warned you about PSL and St Lucie County when you moved there. GTFO while you still can!
It is the protruding nail that gets the hammer.
I’d be inclined to cut the teacher some slack if she’s dealing with “the biggest [black] kid in the fifth grade.”
That remark doesn’t make him eleven years old. If he failed a couple of grades, which sounds likely, he’d be thirteen.
I don’t think any teacher would talk like that to a white kid. The teacher is obviously black talking to a black kid and it sounded abusive to the little white girl who doesn’t know what it takes to control black boys.
Something’s not right here, the “abusive teacher” bit is a red herring and, if the teacher got fired, there’s a LOT of history going into that union-approved decision.
There will be no teacher shortage if you pay for actual performance and slim down the administration and pare down the curriculum to only the essentials. Like every other gubmint program, they try to do everything other than the core element of what they should be doing.