Teachers Should Never Date Students

DR. WALLACE: You advised a high-school girl to inform the school principal that a male teacher asked her for a date. I think this was a stupid answer. If the girl is 17 or 18, she is no longer considered a girl. She is a young woman. Teachers have the right to date anyone they choose.

What if the guy had been a 22-year-old mechanic and the girl was an 18-year-old senior? Would you have told the girl to report the date offer to the owner of the repair shop? Of course not! Wake up, Dr. Wallace, this is 2012, not 1912! — Pete, Dallas, Texas

PETE: I don't care if it's 1912 or today, high-school teachers have no business soliciting dates from their students. It's unethical, as well as unprofessional.

Remember, high school teachers have a captive audience. By law, most students must attend school. They don't have a choice. Students also compete for grades. Could a teacher give a student an honest grade if that teacher was dating the student? What if a teacher bribed a student with an A if she would go out with him? Teachers who date students should be ex-teachers!

If I was made aware that one of our male teachers had asked a girl student for a date, when I had the honor of being a high-school principal, I would have asked the superintendent to remove him from the school and to terminate his teaching contract immediately.

FEMALE ATHLETES SHOULD COMPETE AGAINST FEMALES

DR. WALLACE: Why do they have athletic teams for boys and separate teams for girls? Why don't they just have "teams" and let the best players play on them? - Cindy, Kerrville, Texas

CINDY: If male athletes competed against female athletes for positions on school athletic teams, not many female athletes would be able to make a team. Things are fine just the way they are. More female athletes are participating in interscholastic athletes than any time in our history. That's great!

STAY AT ONTARIO HIGH SCHOOL

DR. WALLACE: I'm a 15-year-old girl and live near Ontario High School, and I'm in the tenth grade. All of my friends go to OHS and so far, I like it here.

My boyfriend attends Montclair High School, which is only two minutes away from my dad's work. My boyfriend wants me to transfer to MHS so we can spend more time together.

If given that choice, should I stay at OHS or transfer to MHS? - Sara, Ontario, Calif.

SARA: Stay at Ontario High School, and somehow I think your parents would agree. Unless there are unusual situations, I always recommend that students attend the school near their home and in their local school district.

Dr. Robert Wallace welcomes questions from readers. Although he is unable to reply to all of them individually, he will answer as many as possible in this column. Email him at rwallace@galesburg.net. To find out more about Dr. Robert Wallace and read features by other Creators Syndicate writers and cartoonists, visit the Creators Syndicate website at www.creators.com.

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