You know, kids can be really mean to each other, really cruel. Breanna sees a problem in schools that too many adults ignore. It is that their schools are uncaring places where lack of respect is the norm. In the past, parents, extended family, dedicated teachers, and other adult mentors have often ameliorated damage done by indifferent teachers and mean-spirited students. Much less so today.
Most adults are too preoccupied with their own frenetic lives to notice.
Or worse, they assume that it is normal for adolescents to be cruel to one another and may even join in the derision. Two important studies document the problem of adolescent isolation and adult indifference and disrespect. The study went on to report the small amount of time adolescents spent with adults. Time spent exclusively with parents was less than 5 percent, and rarely did teenagers report talking personally with a teacher. In my own experience, high school teachers often use sarcasm and ridicule to show how clever they are and to punish students whom they view as disobedient.