We should feel better about our academic achievements. In fact, we are often too hard with ourselves. When I read this guest post by Jeffrey Norman , I was not entirely sure how to react. This is not something I teach, but very very basic. Discipline. As long as you have discipline, there is nothing you cannot achieve. And if you miss discipline, prepare to be frustrated…
Government statistics in the UK revealed that students were permanently expelled on 7,900 occasions in the year of 2017-18. These numbers suggest that around forty-two students a day are expelled each day in the United Kingdom.
The reasons for these expulsions are not entirely the fault of the students. Rather, educational institutions play a significant role in facilitating the behaviors that lead to this adverse consequence. The uncongenial environment offered by the educational establishment, combined with the student’s unhealthy coping mechanism, poverty, and deteriorating mental health, can result in expulsion.
Racism in educational institutions
One of the leading causes of expulsions is the racism experienced within the educational institution. Students residing in the campus end up facing racist remarks, statements of abuse and prejudiced behaviors from their peers.
However, peers are not the only source of bigotry. In fact, most of the racial harassment is perpetrated by the professors and staff members hired in educational institutions. These individuals go above and beyond to discriminate the students of color. Their discrimination is observed in the following areas:
- Assigning lower grades to non-English speaking students. Whereas, if the students hire a do my essay service, they are accused of cheating.
- Demonstrating rude behavior towards the students of color.
- Excluding the students of color from classroom participation.
- Restricting the students of color from opportunities that can potentially influence their success.
As a result of this predisposed racism, the educators at the institutions are more likely to target the international students for engaging in fraudulent activity. Even if the students are innocent, the administration refuses to hear their plea and expels them instantly.
Academic expulsion
Another factor that leads to expulsion is the failure to perform well in academics. Students are burdened with assignments, essays, projects, presentations, thesis, and internships, all while holding a full-time job to pay their financial debts at an educational institution.
As a result of juggling multitudes of responsibilities placed on them, the students of higher education are unable to perform well in their academics. So, academic probation is given to students who are unable to meet the required criteria of a cumulative GPA that the university requires. It may also be given to students on scholarships, who are not able to meet the Grade point average made mandatory by the organization funding their university venture.
However, students can get out of academic probation if they improve their grades over a probationary period. For most universities in the UK, the probationary period lasts around the duration of one semester. If students are unable to meet the criteria of the university, they are expelled.
As a result of this, most students end up hiring a write my essay service for the majority of their projects. These facilities provide them with custom written papers that are tailored exclusively for them. Hence, these individuals are able to uplift their grades to maintain a GPA required for continuing the university.
Substance abuse
Higher educational institutions have a zero-tolerance policy for smoking, drinking or consuming drugs on campus. However, the tough environment created by these institutions, along with the ‘party’ image of university life portrayed on media, ends up leading a large percentage of students to drugs and alcohol abuse.
Instead of dealing with the core of the issue, the educational institutions set examples by expelling students caught with these substances. Most institutions with a zero-tolerance policy refuse to give a warning and expel the students directly.
The abuse of drugs on and off-campus can also cause students to engage in reckless behavior. In such a state, students end up damaging the campus property, which ultimately results in expulsion.
Selling of drugs
In addition to just using drugs, the selling of drugs and other narcotic substances can lead to a direct expulsion. Most students end up in this profession when they are struggling financially. However, while joining the drug business may be simple, leaving it becomes relatively difficult for the students who have made it their only source of income. Hence, these individuals get deeply rooted in the profession, which eventually gets them expelled.
Additionally, most students expelled for selling drugs are the students of color. Caucasian students are usually pardoned by the universities, whereas students of color are immediately expelled or even arrested by the authorities.
Carrying a weapon on campus
Carrying a weapon on campus is a direct means of expulsion. These weapons may include a knife, a gun, a lighter or any other object intended to cause harm. The possession of a weapon on a university campus is a direct road to expulsion, even if it is not intended to cause harm.
This rule is essential for universities, particularly in the UK, where the mental state of students deteriorates day by day. However, most students argue against this law, as they believe that having a weapon is crucial in the current political environment, where students, particularly females, get stalked, raped and harassed by both fellow students and faculty members.
The solution to the issue mentioned above does not lie in making weapons accessible for students. Instead, the educational institutions are required to take the responsibility of creating a safer atmosphere for students paying a large sum of money at these establishments.
Submitting plagiarized papers
One of the key factors that lead to expulsion at the stage of higher education is submitting plagiarized papers. Some students often submit papers that are written by other writers without giving any them any credit.
Projects that are copied or plagiarised are considered to be stolen. Thus they can directly lead to expulsion. Additionally, most schools take an extensive measure and blacklist certain students who publish someone else’s work as their own, without their consent.
However, plagiarised content in only restricted to the work that is stolen. If a student hires a ghost-writer or an academic writing service to receive a personalized paper that is properly referenced, they cannot be charged with plagiarism.
Relationship with teachers
Having a sexual or romantic relationship with the teachers or faculty members within the institutions can lead to expulsion. However, this is mainly the fault of the educational institutions for hiring individuals who take advantage of students.
In most cases of student-teacher relationships, the educators compel students to give them sexual favors in return for receiving a passing grade. Most students are unable to voice out this abuse as the testimony of a well-renowned professor is always favored over that of a young student. However, when the abuse is publicized, the professor’s reputation is tarnished, but it is the student who gets expelled.
As most of the teachers have tenure, they are still kept on the payroll, while the student is expelled permanently from the school.
Disruptive behavior in the classroom
Disruptive behavior in the classroom can also lead to expulsion from educational institutions. At the university level, expulsion typically requires a significant level of disruption, such as damaging classroom property, being rude to professors, harming other students, or using personal insults against peers.
In addition to in-class disruptions, students can face expulsion for misbehavior on campus. This includes damaging campus property, creating disturbances, harming other students, or harassing peers. Many institutions also consider online activities; students involved in cyberbullying or any form of online harassment are likely to face serious consequences for their behavior.
Cheating in exams
Most higher education institutions hold a zero-tolerance policy when it comes to cheating. Students who are caught with cheating materials during the examination may be instantly expelled. A student may get expelled if they helped another student cheat, or if they brought an unauthorized material in the exam room with them.
Criminal offense
For higher educational institutions, students who are charged criminally-on and off-campus may be charged with expulsion. These criminal offenses may include breaking into a place, indecent exposure, harassment, stalking, sexual assault, driving while intoxicated and other minor or major crimes.
Universities usually reserve the right to expel students who no longer meet the criteria of that particular institution. Thus, any offense that the university considers offensive can be used against the student.
In case the criminal charge is filed by the university itself, then the student has to appear in front of the institution’s board of directors. These individuals hold a trial and a hefty investigation that would ultimately decide the student’s fate at the school. Depending on the intensity of the offense, the criminal charges can lead up to arrest, probation and a large fine.
Expelling students does more harm than good. It breeds an army of individuals who are deprived of education and ultimately end up harming society. Thus, higher education establishments must include counselors and programs that can guide the youth on the right path instead of expelling them directly.
Author Bio:
Jeffrey Norman is a freelance writer, blogger, and educational psychologist. After graduating from the University of Nottingham, he spent his life working with the educational institutions all over the country. He aims to perfect the educational establishments until they hold an environment that is conducive to learning.
