A school in Dallas ISD locked its students out of class last week as punishment for coming late to school.
According to a report by FOX 4 News, Skyline High School forced students who came late to school to spend a period in the auditorium. The school said it took the step to curb the problem of students’ lateness.
Dallas ISD revealed that the school has had to deal with students coming late to school regularly. As a means of curbing the issue, school authorities escorted any student who came late to school to the auditorium, where they remained for most of the day.
The district added that lateness at Skyline has been constant amongst students throughout the year. They believe that it’s not fair to those students in a class who arrive early to be distracted by those who came late.
The unconventional method employed by the high school to punish the students has drawn criticism from some parents.
Lakaisha Wallace, a parent, said she is to blame for the lateness of her 11th-grade son. Wallace said she drives her son to school every day, and they have been hitting traffic on their way.
“I’m his parent, and I should make sure he’s here on time,” Wallace said in an interview with FOX 4 News. “But if something happens and we’re not, please don’t punish my child for that.”
Wallace said she reached out to the principal and pleaded with her.
Grandparent Ola Allen also told FOX 4 that she thinks parents need to be “informed exactly what’s going on.”
However, Dallas ISD said that they notified parents before the action that the issue of lateness was out of control and punishments were coming.
The district said Skyline would end the punishment this week.