Vault: A Teacher Allowed Students To Vote A Kid Out Of The Classroom?!

Summary

The Bert Show – “Vault: A Teacher Allowed Students To Vote A Kid Out Of The Classroom?!”

Original Air Date: February 9, 2026
Episode Duration: ~12 minutes of content
Host(s): Bert, Kristin, Abby, Cassie, Tommy & Cast
Podcast by: Pionaire Podcasting

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Episode Overview

In this episode, The Bert Show team dives into shocking, controversial, and jaw-dropping stories about teachers’ inappropriate disciplinary actions in classrooms. The central theme is educators who cross the line—sometimes in bewildering or even abusive ways—with the episode grounded in a headline about a teacher who allowed a kindergarten class to vote a student out. As calls pour in, listeners and hosts share personal experiences and strong reactions, exploring the complexity of discipline, responsibility, and boundaries in schools.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. The Headline: Voting a Kid Out of Class

[00:17 – 02:11]

• The main story centers on a kindergarten teacher in Port St. Lucie, Florida, who let her class vote on whether a 5-year-old student, Alex (recently diagnosed with Asperger’s), should remain. Each student was prompted to voice what they disliked about Alex before voting (14-2 against him).

• The hosts express disbelief and dismay at the public humiliation, discussing the harm it caused and the teacher's apparent pride in her method.

  “Each kid was able to say out loud what they did not like about Alex. And then after they said that, they did a vote… it was like 14 to 2 that Alex should be kicked out of class.”
  — Host (C), [01:20]

  “She was able to humiliate him. And he even said to his mother… ‘I’m not special because he…was made to feel like nobody likes me.’”
  — Host (C), [01:52]

2. Other Outlandish Teacher Behavior

[02:11 – 03:28]

• Hosts share another real incident: A teacher allowed end-of-year wrestling matches and personally joined in, body-slamming students as the class cheered.

  “There’s actual video of this teacher… taking down a student and pinning him on the floor… In hindsight, I would at least hope that now he’s going, throwing a kid, body slamming a kid on the floor. Probably not. Smart move.”
  — Host (A), [02:51]

3. Listener Call-ins: Shocking Stories from the Classroom

a. Humiliating Special Ed Students

[03:33 – 04:26]

• Caller “Susan” (voice disguised) recounted a special ed teacher who forced a student to lick a chalkboard before being allowed to use the restroom, and another occasion when the teacher spat on students for amusement.

  “He had to lick the chalkboard from the bottom to the top before he could go.”
  — Susan, [03:55]

  “He would actually let [the spit] hit them every time.”
  — Susan, [04:20]

b. Physical Discipline & Unequal Accountability

[04:48 – 07:37]

• A male elementary teacher describes witnessing African American female teachers using physical discipline (hand slapping, grabbing, even choking)—behaviors he claims would lead to lawsuits if committed by white teachers. Hosts challenge his assertions and his refusal to report such acts, suggesting his claims might be more about bitterness or racism rather than fact.

  “If we did it, then there would be a big lawsuit.”
  — Male Caller, [05:53]

  “You’re just as at fault, right?”
  — Host (B), [06:15]

  “To be perfectly honest, you’re just being a racist.”
  — Host (A), [07:02]

  “Well, do something about it then.”
  — Host (B), [07:26]

4. More Listener Stories: Extreme and Absurd Discipline

a. Closet Confinement

[08:48 – 10:25]

• Caller recounts her kindergarten-aged son being placed in a supply closet (with a desk) for two hours for misbehavior by a substitute. He was forgotten and ended up cutting his jeans to pass the time. The mother, who was a “room mother,” was shocked by the incident.

  “They shoved him in her supply closet—like, they stuck a desk in there and stuck him in the supply closet and forgot about him.”
  — Caller (E), [08:56]

  “He had slashed and cut holes and designs in his jeans from top to bottom… Was in that supply closet two hours.”
  — Caller (E), [09:41]

b. Taped to the Desk

[10:30 – 11:43]

• Caller “Jack” shares an incident in second grade where a teacher taped him to his desk as punishment for getting up to sharpen a pencil during a test.

  “I had a crappy pencil… I had to sharpen it… And I guess she thought I was being unruly and taped me to the desk.”
  — Jack, [11:07]

  “That’s old school discipline right there. I’m cool with that.”
  — Host (A), [10:57]

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Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• “I want to put you on the voice disguiser… if you have teachers at your school… that you’re thinking, how does this even make sense to me?”
  — Host (B), [00:36]
  (The invitation for stories sets the tone for the episode)

• “I hope this doesn’t get sad quick.”
  — Host (B), [04:26]
  (After disturbing stories are shared, reflecting the roller coaster of emotions as the episode unfolds)

• “If you see something like that going on at school, you can call a radio station and say, this is what’s going on, or you can do something about it and change it.”
  — Host (B), [07:26]
  (Direct challenge to passive bystanders)

• “That’s what we’re looking for—kids in closets playing with scissors, forgotten for two hours.”
  — Host (A), [10:26]
  (Dark humor used to process the absurdity of the stories)

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Timestamps for Key Segments

• [00:17 – 02:11]: Core story—the class votes a 5-year-old out, public shaming.
• [02:11 – 03:28]: Wrestling teacher incident.
• [03:33 – 04:26]: Special ed student forced to lick chalkboard/spat on.
• [04:48 – 07:37]: Caller on race and physical discipline—hosts confront and redirect.
• [08:48 – 10:25]: Boy locked in closet for hours—mother’s perspective.
• [10:30 – 11:43]: Child taped to desk for sharpening pencil; hosts debate “old school discipline.”

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Tone and Style

The episode balances humor, disbelief, and candor, with the hosts switching between light-hearted jabs and serious critiques. Moments of dark humor serve to highlight the absurdity and inappropriateness of the shared stories, while open confrontation of problematic perspectives underscores the show’s commitment to authenticity and real talk.

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Summary for New Listeners

If you haven’t listened, this episode offers a wild, sometimes uncomfortable ride through the kinds of disciplinary practices that should not be happening in schools. With listeners contributing jaw-dropping stories and hosts holding both perpetrators and bystanders accountable—all with a signature blend of humor and frankness—this episode is as much a critique of bad teaching as it is a call for empathy, sanity, and common sense in classrooms.

Transcript

[A]

The Birch Show.

[B]

All right, teachers, I got. I got one for you here. Because this story in the news yesterday was. It just didn't even make any common sense. Like, if you're a teacher right now, I imagine when you are checking out other teachers or you're all sitting in that break room and they're telling you some of the.

[A]

You mean the infamous teacher's lounge?

[B]

Teacher's lounge, right. And you guys are sharing stories on success stories and how you got one student straight today. You know, like they were all out of hand and you tried something different. And there has got to be some teachers in your school that you're like, I can't believe they did that. It just doesn't. It defies logic. It defies common sense. Yet the teachers were so proud of what they did. And I'd like to know about those teachers. I mean, I want to put you on the voice disguiser, and we'll change your name also. But if you have teachers at your school that you're working side by side and they've done some things to the student or some of their methods are so far out there that. That you're thinking, how does this even.

[C]

Make sense to me?

[A]

So you're thinking about a teacher who told one kid to go stand in the closet for one hour, Something like that. Go stand in the closet for one hour and then come back out and tell me if you want to be a part of this class. And you're like, what the hell? You locked a kid in the closet?

[B]

Well, we'll give you two real life examples here. Kindergarten kid.

[A]

Yeah.

[C]

In Florida, in Port St. Lucie, there was a kindergarten, again, kindergarten teacher who had a five year old in her class named Alex who was kind of unruly, maybe had a little. Few disciplinary problems. So the way that she handled it was she had the class come to a vote on whether he should stay in the class or not. And it wasn't just a private voter. I mean, because the vote itself sounds crazy, but each kid was able to say out loud what they did not like about Alex. And then after they said that, then they did a vote, and the vote was like 14 to 2 that Alex should be kicked out of class. And so Alex's mother is trying to figure out whether she's going to take legal action because he is now apparently being diagnosed with Asperger's, which is a form of autism, which could explain his disciplinary actions in class. Instead of them being able to recognize he had autism, it was more of, well, let's vote and see if we want Alex in class or not. And was able to humiliate him. And he even said to his mother the other day, she reported him saying, I'm not special because he didn't, you know, he was made to feel like nobody likes me.

[B]

So in a case like this, I'm assuming this teacher thought what she did was right. Right. So she goes. And it spreads like wildfire around the school, and it just didn't make sense to any of the teachers. So in this case, you would be one of the teachers to call us and go, you're never going to believe what the teacher right next door to me did yesterday. There was also the wrestling story yesterday.

[A]

Yeah. I forgot to Google this to get the exact story or where it happened, but you can find it on YouTube. There's a video of a teacher, and he's a male teacher and probably younger teacher in his 20s. And it's toward the end of the school year. And from what I remember reading, he just thought that the kids had done good and done their projects. And it was the end of the school year, so the boys in the class would be allowed to have little wrestling matches, and. And the teacher at one point thought he would participate. So there's actual video of this teacher, who used to be a wrestler in high school himself, taking down a student and pinning him on the floor. And then everybody cheers, and the teacher gets up and they high five each other, and they just keep going on, you know? But, you know, the idea at the time, I'm sure, was the teacher going, yeah, they did good in school. They can burn off some steam. In hindsight, I would at least hold hope that now he's going, throwing a kid, body slamming a kid on the floor. Probably not. Smart move.

[B]

Appropriate. Now, we could open this up to students also going, I can't believe my teacher did this to me.

[C]

Right.

[B]

Susan, we'll call you Susan. You are on the voice disguiser.

[D]

Good morning.

[E]

How are y' all this morning doing?

[B]

Okay. All right. What's the most inappropriate thing that you have ever seen another teacher do to a student?

[D]

This was actually in a special ed classroom, and one of the students needed to go to the restroom, and the lead teacher would not allow him to go to the restroom before he licked.

[E]

And this was back in the day.

[D]

When they had, like, real chalkboards, not whiteboards. He had to lick the chalkboard from the bottom to the top before he could go.

[A]

Why?

[B]

Why?

[D]

I don't know. I guess for that teacher's amusement. I mean, it was Just sick some of the things. Another time he held a student down and you know when you're a little kid and you get held down and they'll like, spit a loogie and hold it before it touches your face?

[B]

Yeah.

[D]

Except he would actually let it hit them every time.

[F]

Disgusting. This is a teacher.

[B]

These are the teachers here. I hope this doesn't get sad quick. Good morning, Jane.

[A]

You're on Q100 or not.

[C]

Oh, he's like. Well, I had a sad story.

[B]

Teacher helps student cheat on CRCT tests.

[A]

Oh, I'd like to hear that one.

[B]

Was what Jane was gonna say. Good morning, Q100.

[G]

Good morning.

[B]

Good morning.

[G]

How you doing?

[B]

I'm okay.

[G]

Good, good. I had a comment about some teachers and situations.

[B]

Okay, please don't tell me we're gonna get all serious, serious here.

[G]

Well, I don't know. I guess it's the way different people see it. But I teach on the north side and I'm a male teacher in elementary school situation. And I noticed a lot of African American female teachers get away with a lot more than most white male or female teachers.

[B]

Oh, boy. This is going to take us in a totally different direction. What are you talking about? Here we go. What's up?

[G]

Well, you know, me being in a primarily African American elementary school, I've noticed that a lot of the parents accept more of the physical discipline from the African American female teachers. As opposed to the.

[F]

What kind of physical discipline?

[G]

Well, anywhere from, you know, slapping on the hand to grabbing on the arm to. I've seen some accounts of literally choking the neck.

[B]

You have seen this?

[G]

Yes, sir.

[B]

And you're saying white teachers don't do this, it's just the black teachers?

[G]

That's correct. Because if we did it, then there would be a big lawsuit.

[F]

They have put their hands around a student's neck.

[G]

Yes, ma'. Am.

[F]

And literally threatened to choke them.

[G]

Not just threaten. They have done that.

[A]

Have you seen this with your own eyes?

[G]

Yes, sir.

[C]

And you reported it to the principal?

[G]

No.

[C]

Then how could they get in trouble?

[B]

Right? I mean, you're just as. I mean, if you really did see that, you're just as at fault, right?

[G]

Well, for that situation, that's. That's the case. But I'm. I'm not gonna report that situation. But I've seen other things that I'm not gonna report at all. I'm not gonna get involved with this.

[B]

Well, then you're just as fault.

[G]

Well, you can definitely say that.

[B]

And have you seen this with. With more than one teacher? Are you talking about one teacher and now you're drawing big old conclusions about an entire race.

[G]

Well, I'm not. I'm saying in my school I've seen some. Now, you know, it's obviously not been as bad as just that one particular situation, but it's definitely more physical. Like grabbing by the hand, grabbing by the arm. Get in here. It just seems like it's obvious that they get more. I think they get away with more. Maybe just.

[A]

But if nobody's, if what you're saying is baseless because you're saying they get away with more, yet you've never turned them in. And unless you've seen a white teacher do the same thing and you turn them both in and one gets in trouble and one doesn't, to be perfectly honest, you're just being a racist.

[G]

Okay, okay. Well, I'm sorry to waste your time then.

[B]

Well, do something about it then. I mean, if you see something like that going on at school, you can call a radio station and say, this is what's going on, or you can do something about it and change it.

[G]

Okay.

[B]

I feel like I'm the teacher.

[F]

His job would be threatened.

[A]

I don't even think it's that. I think he.

[B]

What do you mean his job would be threatened?

[F]

Like if he went and, and knocked on somebody and everything else. And then like I feel, you know, I think he probably thinks he does. Doesn't want to deal with all that mess with that.

[A]

He's, he, he is. I just think that he is. There's, you know, there are some people who. Everybody's got it better than they do. So you can apply. In this case, he was applying it to race. Oh, the black teachers get away with everything. I can't do anything. Black teachers get away with everything. That's his justification for his situation at school.

[F]

Their subject matter be. Women get away with everything.

[A]

Oh, women get away with everything. Oh, yeah, people. People who live outside the perimeter, they get, they have. Oh, so he's just one of those people. So that was a buzzkill.

[B]

Get us some more total buzz.

[A]

Get us some more fun chalkboard looking stories.

[B]

That's what we're looking for.

[A]

Yeah, you gotta got anybody who had to clean a toilet with his bare hands.

[B]

Hey, Chris, you're on Q100.

[A]

That's what we're looking for.

[B]

Yellow.

[E]

Hello?

[B]

Hey, yeah, go ahead, Chris.

[E]

Yes, go ahead.

[B]

You're on the voice disguiser.

[E]

Hi, Bert. I am calling because my son, when he was 5 and in kindergarten, it was Christmas party day or holiday party day. To be politically correct. And he had a substitute teacher who couldn't handle him. He wasn't sitting still, and this, that, and the other. And so she sent him to another kindergarten teacher's classroom, and that kindergarten teacher couldn't handle him, so they shoved him in her supply closet. Like, they stuck a desk in there and stuck him in the supply closet and forgot about him.

[A]

That's awesome.

[B]

No. For how long?

[E]

Cause I'm the room mother. And they had to go find my kid. He's sitting in a supply closet. And he had gotten the teacher's scissors. Like, not the safety kindergarten scissors, but the teacher scissors, and had slashed and cut holes and designs in his jeans from top to bottom.

[B]

How long was he in that supply closet?

[E]

Two hours.

[B]

Two hours.

[E]

I mean, this kid. It's not easy for a kid to use real scissors to cut jeans. These are, like, the heavy winter jeans. My kid has slapped his legs up and down. I was like, oh, no, this is not gonna happen. This is not gonna work. I'm gonna need to talk to the vice principal.

[F]

Did they lock him in there?

[E]

No, no, they had the. They had a door open, but the. But the closet's, like, around the corner. So they just, like, shoved the desk in there and stuck the kid and my kid in there and then completely forgot about the fact that he was in there because it was Christmas, holiday party day, and, you know, there's crafts to be made and.

[C]

Well, he made his.

[A]

Yeah, he did them.

[F]

Yeah.

[C]

I don't. Yeah. I don't understand why you're upset.

[B]

All right, Jack, you'll be the last.

[A]

Guy with the fun stuff. We're looking for Burke. Kids and kids in closets playing with.

[B]

Scissors, forgotten for two hours. Go ahead, Jack. You're on Q100.

[G]

Yeah. When I was in second grade, I had a teacher take me to the desk that's.

[B]

That's literally taped you to the desk?

[G]

Yeah.

[B]

Like, with duct tape?

[G]

No, it was, like, white masking tape.

[F]

And how old were you?

[G]

I was about 7 or 8.

[A]

I think that's awesome.

[F]

I think that's kind of.

[A]

That's old school discipline right there. I'm cool with that.

[B]

Hey, Melissa, you usually like this old.

[C]

School discipline kind of stuff.

[B]

You're way old school.

[C]

Yeah. Well, there you go.

[B]

Were you the hyper kid that they just. Were you the hyper kid they just couldn't settle down?

[G]

No, not really. It was just, you know, we were in the middle of taking a test, and I had a crappy pencil, so I had to sharpen it to take the test because it was one of those that you fill in the little dots. And I guess she thought I was being unruly and take me to the death.

[C]

Well, I mean, come on. Did you do it again? Ask the question.

[B]

Did you ever do it again?

[C]

Did you ever do it again? But it's not.

[B]

I don't know if people are having.

[C]

Trouble hearing us on the phone today. If he never did it again, then the discipline worked and he wasn't hurt.

[F]

And did you hear him say, I just had to sharpen a pencil? Like the teacher was pushed to the point of taping him to the chair, Only because one time he got out of his seat to sharpen his pencil.

[B]

There was so much buildup before that happened.

[A]

I'm so sure the Birch Show.