One New York teacher’s unusual method of dealing with bullying led to her termination, and now she is fighting to maintain her security clearance so she can continue teaching at another school.
Madeline Luciano has been fired for having her eighth-grade student’s state why they disliked a particular classmate, in front of the bullied student.
While Luciano admits to the June 2014 incident that led to her October 2014 firing, she is claiming in a petition filed last week that the punishment is too harsh.
The incident came about after the bullied student told Luciano that her school bag was missing. The bag was found in disarray. The teacher claims that when she asked the class what had happened, the students said they didn’t like the girl, and that she was annoying and stupid.
While Luciano admits that she asked students to write a letter explaining their feelings toward their classmate, students say they were encouraged to write their feelings on the classroom blackboard in front of the bullied student.
Luciano did not end the assignment until the bullied student began to cry.
According to DNAinfo, at the time of her firing, Luciano was making $72,000 annually.
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