The examples and perspective in this article deal primarily with the United States and do not represent a worldwide view of the subject. (June 2023) |
Youth rights |
---|
A zero-tolerance policy in schools is a policy of strict enforcement of school rules against behaviors or the possession of items deemed undesirable. In schools, common zero-tolerance policies concern physical altercations, as well as the possession or use of illicit drugs or weapons. Students, and sometimes staff, parents, and other visitors, who possess a banned item for any reason are always (if the policy is followed) punished. Public criticism against such policies has arisen because of the punishments the schools mete out when students break the rules in ignorance, by accident, or under extenuating circumstances. The policies have also been criticized for their connection to educational inequality in the United States.
In the United States and Canada, zero-tolerance policies have been adopted in various schools and other educational platforms. Zero-tolerance policies in the United States became widespread in 1994, after federal legislation would withhold all federal funding from states that did not expel students for one year if they bring a firearm to school.[1]