Behaving naughty in school
Lil’ kids worse than big
Elementary public school kids committed more sexual mischief and violence than older students last academic year, a Post analysis of Department of Education data found.
Elementary-age kids — usually between 5 and 10 — had more low-level sexual offenses, assaults, assaults with injuries, and assaults with injuries using a weapon than middle-school, junior-high and high-school students combined, according to the DOE numbers.
Staffers must report all misconduct to central DOE personnel, who categorize the incidents and relay them to the state.
Out of 503,770 public elementaryschool students, there were 1,337 lowlevel sex offenses, 354 assaults, 3,849 assaults with injuries and 523 assaults with injuries with the use of a weapon, according to the data.
Out of 465,264 middle-school through high-school kids, there were 890 low-level sex offenses, 259 assaults, 2,552 assaults with injuries and 415 assaults with injuries involving a weapon.
The analysis omitted a handful of public K-12 schools where incidents weren’t separated by grade level.
The low-level sex-related category — known officially as “other sex offenses” — does not include “forcible” attacks.
According to the state’s Violent and Disruptive Incident Reporting guidelines, it involves “touching another student on a part of the body that is generally regarded as private,” as well as other forms of inappropriate sexual horseplay.
A DOE spokeswoman said the incidents are usually minor and handled at the school level. Younger kids, she said, are less versed in appropriate interactions, and older students engage in different types of behaviors.
As for more serious forcible-sex offenses, seven took place at elementary schools and 10 at higher grade levels last year, according to the data.
DOE officials have blasted the VADIR process as a flawed representation of campus climate, arguing that small incidents are grouped into serious categories due to vague guidance from the state.
Officials voted to modify the system in December, consolidating offense categories and tightening up classifications.
Guess it's no 'Mets Gala'