Troublemaking students have the option to pay a $20 fine to get out of detention at an elite Catholic school in Sydney. The Bede Polding College rule that allows students caught with chewing gum or permanent markers to either spend two hours in after-school detention or pay up has been slammed as 'stupid' by parenting experts. Principal Kevin Jones said the fine covered clean-up costs for the mess those items caused. University of Western Sydney education lecturer Dr Katrina Barker said it was a way of allowing students to buy their way out of a punishment. She told the Daily Telegraph it would be better if they made students clean up the mess themselves.

Source: Daily Mail September 08, 2018 08:15 UTC