At least one incident was recorded on video showing teacher encouraging students to continue beating the child
Child is now being homeschooled due to traumatic experience
Former Indianapolis teacher accused of encouraging student fights
Incident involved a vulnerable 7-year-old child with sensory sensitivities, executive function disorder, and probable learning disabilities
Lawsuit filed against IPS, staff members including teacher, and other school officials for failing to protect student from harm despite reports of abuse
Teacher held down student and allowed other students to hit and kick him
An alarming incident has come to light involving a former teacher in Indianapolis who is accused of encouraging and recording fights between students, including a vulnerable 7-year-old child with sensory sensitivities, an executive function disorder, and probable learning disabilities. The alleged attacks occurred at George Washington Carver Montessori IPS School 87 over approximately three months.
According to multiple sources, the teacher held down the student on multiple occasions and allowed other students to hit and kick him. One incident was recorded on video, showing the teacher encouraging students to continue beating the child. The video was later shown to parents during a conference in November 2023.
The lawsuit filed against IPS, staff members, including the teacher (whose name has not been disclosed), and other school officials alleges that they failed to protect the student from harm despite numerous reports of abuse. The child is now being homeschooled due to the traumatic experience.
IPS released a statement regarding the lawsuit, stating that they do not tolerate such behavior and take reports of potential abuse seriously. The teacher was removed from the classroom and suspended upon learning of the incident, but no further information was provided as the matter is still under investigation.
The case highlights the importance of addressing bullying and abuse in schools promptly to ensure a safe learning environment for all students. It also underscores the need for open communication between parents, teachers, and school administrators to prevent such incidents from occurring.
A former teacher in Indiana, Julius Johnican, is accused of orchestrating a so-called ‘Fight Club’ in which he allegedly encouraged classmates to assault a 7-year-old student with disabilities and recorded at least one attack.
The boy’s mother filed a lawsuit against Johnson, the superintendent of Indiana Public Schools, Aleesia; Kapcoe, Mary, the principal of George Washington Carver Montessori IPS School 87; Johnican; the district; its Board of School Commissioners; the school’s assistant principal; a substitute teacher and a behavioral consultant.
The lawsuit claims that Johnican encouraged, instigated and on at least one occasion recorded physical abuse of the child by other students.
The alleged abuse took place over three months, with the child being subjected to at least three beatings and various forms of physical harm and bullying.
Johnican was initially suspended from his teaching position before resigning on November 2nd, prior to the district initiating termination proceedings.
Accuracy
Johnican encouraged, instigated and on at least one occasion recorded physical abuse of the child by other students.
Deception
(35%)
The article does not disclose sources and only provides one direct quote from the lawsuit which alleges that the teacher orchestrated a 'fight club' where students were encouraged to physically abuse a 7-year-old student with disabilities. There is no peer-reviewed study or preprint linking this incident to any broader pattern of behavior. The rest of the article discusses actions taken by the school district after they were made aware of the allegations, and quotes an attorney representing the student's family and a spokesperson for the district.
The teacher was initially suspended and then resigned on Nov. 2, before the district could begin termination proceedings.
Fallacies
(100%)
None Found At Time Of
Publication
Bias
(80%)
The article reports on a former teacher who is accused of encouraging students to physically abuse a 7-year-old student with disabilities and recording at least one assault. The author does not express any bias towards the teacher or the students involved in the incident. However, there are some phrases that could be perceived as biased: 'reprehensible
A 7-year-old Indianapolis Public Schools student claimed his teacher allowed other students to physically abuse him multiple times in class.
The boy, who has special needs and a section 504 plan, reported being punched, slapped, and slammed to the floor.
One incident was recorded on the teacher’s phone showing another student beating the child with the teacher’s encouragement.
The teacher orchestrated a ‘fight club-style discipline’ in which he encouraged and instigated the boy’s physical abuse over a span of three months.
The boy said the teacher had held him down on two occasions, allowing other students to hit him.
Johnican named several administrators and the district itself in the lawsuit for failing to keep the boy safe and dismissing his claims of abuse.
The incident came to light during a parent-teacher conference when Johnican accidentally showed the parents a video of their son being attacked instead of the intended classroom environment video.
Johnican had suggested the boy was lying or mentally ill about being physically assaulted in class before the video evidence surfaced.
A substitute teacher was also accused of making derogatory comments about special needs students and supporting the fight between students.
Accuracy
The boy reported being punched, slapped, and slammed to the floor.
The teacher orchestrated a ‘fight club-style discipline’ in which he encouraged and instigated the boy’s physical abuse over a span of three months.
The boy said the teacher had held him down on two occasions, allowing other students to hit him.
Deception
(30%)
The article contains selective reporting as it only reports details that support the author's position of the teacher allowing physical abuse in the classroom. The article does not provide any context or information about possible mitigating factors or actions taken by the school after becoming aware of the allegations. Additionally, there is emotional manipulation through descriptions of the boy's fears and trauma, as well as quotes from students and teachers that are presented in a way to elicit an emotional response from readers.
However, during the Nov. 1 meeting, Johnican instead showed the wrong video—one in which another student was attacking their son.
He had arranged a parent-teacher conference and intended to show the boy’s parents a video of the classroom environment to assuage their concerns about his treatment and safety.
The boy has special needs... These disabilities qualified him for a section 504 plan recognizing the need for a 'higher level of supervision and safety.'
, he said he was punched, slapped and slammed to the floor, all at the encouragement of his instructor.
The boy said staff told him he 'was bad and needed to be baptized' and that 'holy water needed to be poured on him' to cure him of his evil.
Just weeks into the school year, a 7-year-old Indianapolis Public Schools student told his mother his teacher allowed other students to physically abuse him in class.
Fallacies
(85%)
The article contains several instances of inflammatory rhetoric and appeals to authority. The authors use phrases such as 'reprehensible fight club-style discipline,' 'allowed him to be beaten in class on multiple occasions,' and 'orchestrated a reprehensible fight club type of discipline.' These phrases are used to elicit an emotional response from the reader without providing any evidence or context. Additionally, the authors quote statements made by the boy's mother and administrators, but do not provide any context or analysis of these statements. This can be considered an appeal to authority as the readers are expected to trust the validity of these statements without any supporting evidence.
The lawsuit alleged that a teacher allowed him to be beaten in class on multiple occasions, with one of those incidents being recorded on the teacher’s phone.
IPS teacher Julius Johnican encouraged students to physically abuse a 7-year-old second grader with disabilities in his classroom.
The incident was recorded on video, showing the teacher encouraging students to continue beating the child.
Johnican showed the boy’s parents a video of their son being beaten by another student in his classroom.
Accuracy
No Contradictions at Time
Of
Publication
Deception
(30%)
The article contains selective reporting as it only reports details that support the author's position of the teacher encouraging students to beat up a 7-year-old with disabilities. The article does not mention any contradictory evidence or statements from the teacher or school administrators. Additionally, there is emotional manipulation through describing the child's sobs and repeated brain injuries.
There are conflicting accounts of who first contacted DCS and when about the video around the end of October. The boy’s attorneys and a statement from the IPS spokesperson offer differing events.
The lawsuit says the boy suffered at least three beatings, including one assault in which the child was thrown to the ground, struck, slapped and hit in the head repeatedly by other students.
Fallacies
(100%)
None Found At Time Of
Publication
Bias
(95%)
The author, Lee V. Gaines, demonstrates a clear bias towards reporting the alleged actions of the teacher Julius Johnican in a negative light. The article repeatedly describes Johnican's actions as 'encouraging abuse', 'orchestrating a fight club style of discipline', and 'neglecting students'. The author also quotes the attorney for the boy's family stating that 'students are being harmed in classrooms throughout the state due to a lack of supervision and training by school personnel'. This statement implies that there is a systemic problem with teacher training and supervision, which could be interpreted as a bias against the education system. However, it is important to note that the allegations against Johnican are serious and warrant investigation.
An Indianapolis Public Schools teacher allowed and encouraged the abuse of a 7-year-old second grader with disabilities in his classroom, according to a lawsuit filed against the district this week and a report from the Indiana Department of Child Services.
In an email to families on Wednesday, IPS Superintendent Aleesia Johnson wrote that she was outraged by the video and that the district is committed to ‘keeping our students safe.’ She wrote that IPS staff ‘responded immediately and appropriately’ to the incident.
Johnican did not immediately respond to WFYI messages requesting comment.
The boy’s parents said they repeatedly contacted Johnican to discuss their son’s reports of abuse in his classroom. According to the complaint, they were told their son was disruptive, lying to get out of attending school or possibly mentally ill.
The lawsuit accuses Johnican of orchestrating a ‘fight club’ style of discipline in his classroom, in which he ‘encouraged, instigated, and on at least one occasion recorded on his phone physical abuse’ of the child by other students.
The lawsuit says the boy suffered ‘at least three beatings’, including one assault in which the child was thrown to the ground, struck, slapped and hit in the head repeatedly by other students. The lawsuit also alleges that on two occasions the child was held by Johnican while other students were allowed to punch, hit and kick him.
The lawsuit seeks both compensatory and punitive damages.
A former IPS teacher is named as a defendant in a lawsuit for allegedly encouraging and recording fights between students, including a 7-year-old student with sensory sensitivities, an executive function disorder and probable learning disabilities.
The attacks occurred over approximately three months at George Washington Carver Montessori IPS School 87 located at 2411 Indianapolis Ave. in Indianapolis.
The teacher held down the student on multiple occasions and allowed other students to hit and kick him.
Accuracy
IPS Superintendent Aleesia Johnson, the school’s principal and vice principal, and a substitute teacher are also named as defendants in the lawsuit.
Deception
(100%)
None Found At Time Of
Publication
Fallacies
(85%)
The article contains inflammatory rhetoric and appeals to authority. It also presents a dichotomous depiction of the situation by only reporting on the negative actions of the teacher without providing any context or statements from the teacher themselves or IPS's side of the story. The author, James Howell Jr., uses strong language such as 'fight club-type discipline' and 'held down on multiple occasions', which is inflammatory. Additionally, they appeal to authority by quoting a statement from IPS regarding their stance on the issue and actions taken after learning about the teacher's conduct. However, no formal or informal fallacies were found in direct quotes from the author.
]An Indianapolis child and their mother have filed a lawsuit against IPS, staff members, after they were allegedly attacked by other students.
A teacher in Indianapolis is accused of encouraging and taking video of students attacking a special needs boy at school over a three month period during the fall semester of 2023.
The teacher orchestrated a ‘fight club’ type of discipline within his classroom, encouraging, instigating, and recording physical abuse on at least one occasion.
The boy tried to tell his mother about the attacks but was hysterical and difficult to understand. She brought her concerns to the vice-principal but no action was taken.
During a parent-teacher conference on Nov. 1, a video showing the boy being assaulted was accidentally shown to his parents and led to an investigation by the state Department of Child Services.
The family is suing the school and the teacher for damages in the form of personal injury, pain and suffering, and emotional distress.
Accuracy
No Contradictions at Time
Of
Publication
Deception
(0%)
The author uses emotional manipulation by describing the special needs boy being attacked and bullied in graphic detail. The author also uses selective reporting by only mentioning details that support the deceptive narrative of the teacher encouraging a 'fight club' for discipline. There is no disclosure of sources in the article.
Watching while a student beats up the boy, the teacher is heard saying ‘That’s right. You get him.’
During those three months, the lawsuit accuses the teacher of orchestrating a reprehensible ‘fight club’ type of discipline within his classroom ... in which he encouraged, instigated, and on at least one occasion recorded on his phone physical abuse.
The classroom attacks happened over a three month span during the fall semester of 2023 at George Washington Carver Montessori,
The mother instantly knew something was wrong but could not make out what was happening.
The teacher tried to show a video of the classroom environment to the boy’s parents, but inadvertently began showing the wrong video, and it showed their son being assaulted.
Unable to calm down her child enough to communicate with him, she immediately left her place of work and drove to the school.
Fallacies
(100%)
None Found At Time Of
Publication
Bias
(0%)
The author uses language that depicts the teacher as having no empathy for the child being beaten and encourages the reader to view this behavior as acceptable for 'bad kids'. This demonstrates a bias towards accepting violence as an acceptable form of discipline.
had no empathy for the boy being beaten as a means of discipline.
This was explained to a substitute teacher, saying ‘(they’re) bad kids, that’s what you do!'
