chool districts have tightened their zero tolerance policies to a much greater extent, creating what some critics call a national intolerance for childish behavior. (Shanker, 1997 pg.57) In some cases, carrying cough drops, wearing black lipstick, dying your hair blue or carrying nail clippers to school are expellable offenses. Even writing a paper about murder or suicide can land a student in trouble. School administrators are increasingly tougher on children for certain things that should not be
             accounted for and are penalizing them for questionable material. "The absolute punishment applies whether you're carrying a nail
             clipper or a bazooka, Tylenol or illegal drugs," says Nadine Strossen, president of the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU). (Koch 2000, pg. 3) In one district for example, school officials in Kansas suspended a senior honors student Sarah Boman who was 17, for displaying artwork at school that included a poem written from a madman's perspective. School officials considered it a threat and said Boman can return to school only if she had psychological testing. (Koch 2000, pg. 2) This example is a typical circumstance where children are getting in trouble for innocent things where they should not be penalized in any which way.
             Some students are also being penalized in school beca
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