Thoughts on Student Handbooks and Discipline

Tomorrow I start my immersion experience for EDTEC 670. I will be participating in a rewrite of the local high school student handbook. As I've been reading it I have wondered why we treat teens as potential criminals with the multitude of thou shalt nots and severe consequences. It is impossible for even the best student to avoid a "run in with the school law" completely. When did we become so dictatorial in our approach to schools? Why does a few bad apples make it a rotten environment for everyone? Is it any wonder that the general attitude is that school is a place you have to survive, and the concept of enjoying learning is lost? I don't think teachers like it any better than the students.
So, my next blog will report on my first meeting with the group. I don't hold out much hope for a more charitable viewpoint, but at least I will know I made the effort.