And generations of school employees have retired without knowing the last names of students.
Would you ever hear students addressing school custodian Oliver Spudd by Oliver, Ollie or just plain Spudd?
Of course not. It would be Mr. Spudd, or else.
Public school directories even list staff members only by last names preceded by assortments of Mr., Miss, Mrs. and an occasional honorary or earned Dr.
But have you ever seen bulletinized student work samples in classrooms and hallways with labels or tags saying anything but Jeff, Nancy, Buffie, Donald, etc.?
Walk up to the school-office counter sometime and ask to talk to "Elizabeth."
"Who?," the school secretary would ask.
"The principal," you would say.
"Oh," the school secretary would huff, "you mean Mrs. Phulgrod."
Nonsense. If Mr., Miss, Mrs. and the occasional honorary or earned Dr. are symbols of respect for adults, then the exclusive use of student first names is a symbol of disrespect for children.
Everyone in school--students and staff members alike--should be known by their full names and addressed by their last names preceded by Mr., Miss, Mrs. or the occasional honorary or earned Dr. (30 MAY 1999)
