Should this teacher's 'Wheel of Misfortune' punishments have gotten her fired?
Posted: October 17, 2014 - 2:09pm
STEVENSON, Wash. -- A high school science teacher used a "Wheel of Misfortune" to discipline students, in some cases lining teens up to throw rubber balls at a misbehaving classmate, firing-squad style.
But the school says that's not enough for teacher Kemberly Patteson to lose her job.
Caught in acts of "low-level misconduct," Patteson's students were told to spin the wheel to see what their punishment would be, according to the Stevenson-Carson School District.
Some of the choices included: failing an upcoming exam, buying Patteson a bottle of water, passing the punishment on to a classmate, and lining up for a firing squad of rubber "Koosh" balls. In that punishment, students took turns throwing the balls at their classmates.
Afterward, Patteson would get the last throw, said Wendy Zapfe, a parent who filed a formal complaint as student smartphone videos surfaced on the Internet, showing two students shielding their faces behind textbooks as their classmates lined up to get their throws in.
In one clip, Patteson can be heard instructing students that they get only one throw apiece. Later, you can hear what sounds like a student asking "How's this legal?," and another answering "I don't know." Student voices in the videos were disguised in editing.Watch the student-shot video here, courtesy of The Columbian:After the student videos surfaced last week, the district put Patteson on administrative leave.
The district concluded Thursday that Patterson used poor judgment and that the actions violated the district's anti-bullying policy. But they said she never intended to hurt or embarrass students with the spinning wheel.
The wheel has been removed, the district said.