Should Wendy Portillo Still Be Teaching?

Yesterday, Florida elementary school teacher Wendy Portillo appealed her one-year-suspension and termination of her tenure for having her kindergarten students vote out their classmate, Alex Barton, according to CBS 12 news. 18 teachers from Morningside Elementary School have signed a petition supporting Portillo's return to the classroom; some 2000 have emailed, calling for Portillo to be fired.

As a teacher, I simply find the whole situation unfathomable. I teach college students, but there are ground rules for, yes, the behavior of students, and also for teachers. It goes without saying that students must be taught at all times with respect and dignity and if there's problems, there are ways to address these, but never by turning the rest of the class into a kind of impromptu jury to pass judgment on their classmate. As a parent, I would not wish for Portillo to be my son's teacher.

Portillo is, it seems, a well-regarded teacher by her peers, from the CBS 12 report. One hopes that she can do the right thing now to show that she truly has the best interests of students in mind and, most of all, of Alex Barton.

Update 6.45pm EST, from cbs12.com:

Portillo retold the events of the day in May that stirred up controversy in the autism community and worldwide.

"I don't think we are ready for you to come back at this time." Portillo told Alex, "So I said let's take a poll. One of the students said what is a poll? I said, it is like a vote..it was just yes or no."

Portillo said she put slash marks on the board in sets of 5, and had the students count their vote.

"Ok, 5-10, and they counted 11,12, and it turned out it was 14 to 2. And I said Alex we are sorry we are not ready for you at this time."

Alex was voted out, sent back to the Principal's office.

But Alex's behavior is common among children like him with Asberger's, a form of Autism.

"I thought it was an opportunity to show my students there are consequences for actions and to show empathy and understand that what they do affects others." Portillo said.

The district suspended Portillo for her actions for one year, banning her from ever working with elementary students ever again. The district said Portillo brought worldwide scrutiny to the district and she embarrassed a student with special needs.

This hearing is to appeal her punishment.

"Absolutely not. I would not do it again. I did not think at that time I was hurting anyone at that time." Portillo said, "If I could even take that morning back I would. I, I apologized to Alex's mom that day."

Portillo testified twice she apologized to Alex's family..

"Why did you apologize?" the district's attorney Elizabeth Coke asked in cross-examination.

"Because she said to me that I embarrassed her son." Portillo testified.

Not true says Alex's mother, keeping a close watchon the hearing form outside the door..

"She lied under oath." said mother Melissa Barton, "I asked him how he felt and he said I felt bad mommy, and she slammed her hand down on the table and pointed at him and said no you didn't."

"She did not apologize to me. She never apologized to me. Never."

Photo by Thomas Roche.