Tired of sending students who fought, cursed and threatened him to the principal, only to have them sent back, Philadelphia teacher David Pitone, 40, a former computer engineer with a law degree, sought a court order last month to be allowed to send misbehaving students out of his classroom. The court rejected the request and now Pitone, who left the South Philadelphia high school on October 15th, is in the midst of proceedings that could lead to his firing--after a teaching career that lasted two and a half days.

In a letter to Pitone, school principal Bessie Young wrote, "You are not ready to teach young people or commit to the overall process required to transition from the private sector into an urban classroom setting. Had you accepted your responsibility as an urban educator with tolerance and commitment, you would have been better able to make the necessary adjustments to experience some degree of success, as many others have before you." While we're not privy to the particulars of Mr. Pitones' classroom management problems, it could well be that Philadelphia urban schools might benefit from a few more intolerant teachers.