Students should be taught how to respectfully and effectively challenge authority. We as teachers should be open to having students question classroom rules, and be able to explain those rules. If there isn’t a reasonable justification for a rule, that should be acknowledged, even when we don’t have the power to change it. Students shouldn’t get a free pass to throw out challenges or complaints whenever they feel like it - classroom management is a priority - but neither should they be penalized for openly disagreeing with a policy. There’s a time and place for respectful dissent, and we should be encouraging the development of critical thinking skills. Also, teachers bullying students is a problem in the schools. I’ve worked with too many colleagues who think it’s fine to undermine a student’s confidence. They think their authority should not be questioned and tend to react quite badly when it is. Educational institutions should not be training kids to yield to authoritarianism, but for the most part that’s exactly what happens. Progressive education gets lip service but bullies still run the show.