Political teacher?Follow

I'm not sure if this has brought up before, but I'm not gonna dig through all the threads to find it either, so hear it goes.

I heard on the news a few days ago about a teacher who had bulliten board with all of the Presidents pictures on it, including Pres. Bush and the First Lady. Some parents confronted her and asked her to either put John Kerry's picture up there or at least take Pres. Bush's down. When she refused the Vice Principle of the school told her that her political views did not belong in the classroom and she was told to leave.
Now, I don't want any cantidate bashing here, I just want your honest opinion on this subject.

Since Kerry is not now and has never been President of the US, his picture does not belong on that board. Of course, unless the teacher has all the other first ladies on it then Laura Bush's picture doesn't belong on it either.

The parent was out of line.

Here's a link.

The story doesn't mention that it was posted along with other President's pictures, just that it was posted next to the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution, but it doesn't specify that it was labeled "Our President" or anything like that, and since the students asked questions as about why it was hung, it leads me to believe that there was no caption.
The teacher admits to being a member of the Republican party and a Bush Campaign volunteer who regarded them as pictures of the first couple, not an endorsement, and does not want to discuss them with students because she does not "discuss politics in her classroom." The article does specify that she has had the picture up since the beginning of this school year (an election year) but doesn't say whether it was up in previous years. When the students asked questions and her VP told her to answer them, she refused.

I think at worst, she's an idiot and at best, supremely naive. How can an educator not think that prominently displaying photographs of a controversial figure (and Bush is that, even if he is President, as was Clinton in his time) won't cause a debate? I think a caption that said "Our 43rd President and First Lady" would have transmitted the message that this was, in fact, just a pair of photographs of our current leaders that should be regarded as benignly as the flag. She should at the very least be prepared to answer questions about it and guide her students in a political exercise. If she's not willing to discuss it, then take it down. Your class is not a totalitarian state.

Ugh full of popups, that link

You spelled fox wrong...




This would bring me storming into the classroom as a parent. It sounds to me there was more to the story than just the picture.

Edited, Thu Oct 14 10:34:22 2004 by xythex

Being a middle school English teacher I don't know why she would have such politically charged debates in her classroom anyway but I'll leave you to draw your own conclusions

Political DISCUSSION should be welcomed in the classroom and with equal time to all sides it's a integral part of learning.

That being said...partisan politics is not welcome.

(Notice it wasn't a bleeding heart liberal teacher.)