Jenna DSouza

EDUC 2000

Oct 17/14

EDUC 2000 Collaborative Inquiry

Question: Is the Fresh Start program necessarily the best way to rehabilitate our
students?
A Fresh Start is generally defined as a non-voluntary or unusual movement of a student to a new school
within the school year or at the end of a semester. Fresh Starts can be considered as a response to TCDSB
Victims Rights Policy (VP13), court conditions imposed by the Criminal Justice System for an incident for
which the student was not expelled, or other special circumstances as approved by the superintendent of the
students school.(http://www.tcdsb.org/Board/Policies/Pages/SS12.aspx)

On Monday, October 6th, 2014, two students were shot and murdered in a senseless act of
violence off school property. Both students were members of the Toronto Catholic District
School Board community, and were unintended targets. At a staff meeting on Thursday, October
9th, the principal of Father Henry Carr, Mr. Ugo Rossi, informed us that two students had been
arrested in relation to the shooting at Don Bosco Catholic Secondary School. A teacher at FHC
spoke up and informed us that he, as well as another teacher, had been threatened by two
separate students who had later on been associated with gun violence. He made the very specific
point that both students had been members of the Fresh Start program, and that the program
was not efficient in dealing with troubled students in our community. He posed the issue that
questioned when the TCDSB would realize that this program was not working and only led to
violence in our school communities. His sheer honesty and anger made me realize that this
program was a real issue in our school community, especially we when have shootings that affect
our students. My critical question addresses the benefits and drawbacks of such a program.
The Fresh Start program is an initiative with good intentions, especially in the Catholic
school board where second chances are considered a Catholic value. It also gives victims the
opportunity to attend a safe school environment. The benefits of this program, in my opinion,
end here. The drawbacks are quite literally overthrowing the benefits, as there have been many
negative outcomes from this program. First of all, the program rewards troubled students with
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Jenna DSouza

EDUC 2000

Oct 17/14

the ability to leave their problems unaddressed; they do not get the life skills necessary to
problem solve and learn the skill of running away. They are also removed from a school and
relocated to another school nearby, creating a serious problem. The troubled student brings all
their prior problems with them to the new school, resulting in old troubled issues in a new,
innocent environment. The student who was involved in the Don Bosco shooting was a transfer
student after being expelled from Monsignor Percy Johnson. We are shifting students from
school to school in such a close proximity that the transfer more often than doesnt make a
difference. We are merely moving them to a new school, as a new student, forcing them to
always be a new person in an intimidating environment. As Catholic educators, we are more
focused on removing the problem, rather than solving it. These students are not getting the
rehabilitation required to exist and remain in the same environment consistently. We need to
make the focus shift to instilling Catholic values and always reminding students that they are
getting a clean slate and a fresh start. Moving them from school to school is not the solution;
maintaining them in the same environment and making them repent for their actions betters them
as an overall person.
The TCDSB upholds the notion that removal of the problem is key; I personally feel that
education is the number one answer to resolving all problems. Having something to strive
towards, being motivated to achieve success can keep students off the street, out of fights, and in
the classroom. We need to remind students of what it means to value education and why it is so
important to our lives. Two students were killed because they were bystanders in a fight; they
thought it was more important to witness a fight than to be in the classroom. We need to create a
stimulating environment for students who are already disinterested in the classroom because of
all the exchanges between schools. We are creating a constantly shifting environment, rather than
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Jenna DSouza

EDUC 2000

Oct 17/14

a routine upbringing in the classroom. By providing the troubled students the opportunity to
become a better person and providing them with the same education that every other students
deserve, rather than dusting our hands clean of the problem, we create a society that supports
second chances and a chance at recreating the self. These students are involving themselves in
such dangerous situations because they do not know any better; they dont have teachers who
inspire them to stay out of trouble, the system has failed to be a leader to them, their friends are
always changing because of the constant moving. If we educate our students and inform them
about the dangers of having weapons, of why fights arent progressive answers, and of why
being in the classroom is truly the best reaction to any problem, then we can create a new
generation of students who care about each other. We need to take a personal interest in our
students, and especially for the students in the Fresh Start program. We need to ask them how
their day is going, if everything is okay in their school/work/personal life, if they feel alone, if
they need anyone to talk to. Many teachers wash their hands clean of this responsibility due to
the liabilities and problems that can come with the territory. My issue with this is, if Catholic
teachers plug their ears and sing loudly, how can we be allowed to call ourselves Catholic
Educators? If we cant be empathetic to our students, how can we convince them to follow the
Catholic Graduate expectations? It is a known fact that neglect is a contributing factor to
problematic behaviour. If our students face neglect at home, and then by the educational system,
followed by their teachers, what kind of example are we creating? We are supposed to create a
nurturing environment, no matter the grade, no matter the student, no matter period. We are the
interactions that students have as much as they have with figures at home; we need to be as
upbeat and positive as possible in order to create an environment conducive to learning. Our
students need us as much as we need them. Through being their mentors, role models, and

Jenna DSouza

EDUC 2000

Oct 17/14

ultimately supportive figures in their lives, we can show our students that education is most
definitely the most powerful weapon we have as students and educators.