Education Issues - Actions / Reactions

[GURPS]

The Gendergeddon Cult Has Arrived in Louisiana!​

Today’s wretched example of spoiled narcissists who think they and their “experience” are the only people who matter is this music teacher from Caddo Parish, La., who seems as if she needs a psychiatric exam more than a teaching job. The young lady says to her audience, “So, I’m not allowed to be out as trans and non-binary at school.”

“Do not come up in my comments and sayin’ that I am allowed because I’m not, I live in Louisiana and it sucks here,” she continued.

“So my response to this is to be as obnoxiously queer as possible.” She then points out all the obnoxious things she wears to broadcast her political and sexual views to children in her class. Watch this:



Another photo of this teacher was posted on social media showing her wearing a giant name tag at work with her made-up pronoun “Mx” and a large badge proclaiming her pronouns as they/them. My first problem with this is that children are supposed to be learning proper grammar. Teaching them that “they” and “them” is anything but a plural pronoun is batsh*t insane. My second problem is the unsettling passionate need people like this teacher feel in expressing their every kink to every single person they meet. Yes, it’s kink.

Besides being a sexual fetish that makes the proponents of this garbage excited to push it on other people and force those around them to deny the reality that we can plainly see—i.e. that swimmer with the penis bulge is a man destroying women’s sports, privacy, and other horrors—this adherence to the mystical belief that a female human can be non-female has reached religious cult status.

 

[GURPS]

Students Who Blew Whistle On BYU ‘Revealing Whiteness’ Assignment Threatened With Discipline


And with good reason. After the post appeared, a different professor, Eric Ruiz Bybee — not involved in the original lesson — sent private messages threatening disciplinary action, including publication of the identities of those involved, to the BYU Conservatives Instagram account. Again, from Campus Reform:

The assignment was allegedly publicized in a now-deleted social media post by the student-led organization BYU Conservatives. According to the group, they began facing backlash from university staff after the post was originally made.
A screenshot obtained by Campus Reform shows BYU Professor Eric Bybee claiming that the group had broken the university’s Intellectual Property Policy and Honor Code. Bybee then asked for the post to be removed.
Additionally, the group says it received private messages from Bybee that accuses the students of “invit[ing] targeted harassment” of faculty members.
“Your beliefs do not give you the right to violate university/faculty member intellectual property and invite targeted harassment of one of my colleagues,” he stated.
The students say Bybee also threatened to contact the “Honor Code office” and the “BYU Faculty Center” to investigate the social media account if the post was not removed.
Though the student account is anonymous, Bybee assured he would request that all “BYU students associated with the account and website” be investigated.
He then listed specific names of individuals who have been associated with the organization.

 

[GURPS]

Vassar College Student Newspaper Apologizes Because “The Majority of Our Quotations Came From White Students”​

The claim of “factual inaccuracies” leading to taking down the article was made in an email exchange between me and Janet Song, the Editor-in-Chief of The Miscellany News:

Sun, Feb 27, 5:12 PM
Hi Janet,
I’m writing about the withdrawal of Jeh Johnson as commencement speaker. I see that one of your articles no longer is on the website and the original url redirects to the home page, not an error page, which to me indicates a redirect was added. It’s still in the Wayback Machine, but I’m wondering why it was taken down and a redirect instituted. It’s possible I may write about this as soon as tonight (not certain, but possible), so if you could get back to me quickly that would be appreciated.
Thanks,
William A. Jacobson
Legal Insurrection website
* * *
Feb 27, 2022, 7:19 PM
Hi William,
Thanks for reaching out. We found some factual inaccuracies in the article due to quick reporting, and we want to take time to address them thoroughly. Best of luck with your work.
Best,
Janet
* * *
[from me]
Feb 27, 2022, 7:23 PM
Can you tell me what the factual inaccuracies were, and why you didn’t just issue a correction?

I never received a response to that last question asking for identification of the alleged factual inaccuracies.

The claim of “factual inaccuracies” for the article being taken down appears not to have been true. Today The Miscellany News published an apology for the article with an explanation that points to no inaccuracies.

Rather, according to the editors the article was taken down because too many white students were quoted which the student newspaper deemed harmful to the community, Apology from the editors [archived] (emphasis added):

Dear readers,
On Feb. 17, 2022, The Miscellany News released an article titled “Jeh Charles Johnson withdraws as 2022 commencement speaker” on both its website and the fourth print issue of its 157th volume. This article intended to report on student feelings about Johnson’s nomination and subsequent withdrawal. Since then, the online version of the article has been pulled from The Miscellany News website—a decision made by the Executive Board in concert with the News Editors. We would like to take this space to discuss the reasoning behind our decision and recognize the feelings of disappointment and hurt surrounding the article’s publication.

We would like to use this statement to both emphasize our values of diversity and inclusion, and delve deeply into our editorial process and the resulting article in question, especially since we understand that many people in the Vassar community are unaware of the article’s removal. We had originally planned to publish an article focused primarily on student responses to Johnson’s nomination, particularly the backlash that his selection received. However, on Feb. 14, the day we began editing and laying out our fourth issue, we received Johnson’s withdrawal statement from the College. In order to keep our reporting up to date, we drastically changed the article from focusing solely on student responses to the announcement of him as speaker into an article describing his withdrawal and the reaction from the student body. In this article, we attempted to include a variety of quotes from students describing why there was protest to the announcement of him as speaker in the first place, and the students’ reaction to his withdrawal.
In prioritizing urgency over thoroughness, we made misguided and insensitive oversights with whom we were representing in the article and failed to provide in-depth reporting of the issue at large. The majority of our quotations came from white students and therefore we reduced the positions of students of color to a singular, tokenized perspective. After this was brought to our attention, the paper decided to remove the article online in an attempt to prevent further harm among the communities we misrepresented.

However, misrepresentation is not the only issue in the article—to state so would be a grievous oversimplification. Our article exemplifies many of the institutional flaws and structural problems within our paper. Journalism, including college journalism, has historically been a white-centric, often elitist field, and The Miscellany News is not immune to the consequences of these structures. The publication of the article and its subsequent removal reminds us of the systemic issues our members are implicated in, as well as the privilege and lack of diversity that we have allowed to persist for generations across our boards. None of our explanations for the failures of an individual article can mitigate the problem of past coverage on issues related to people of color, nor address in full depth the issue of representation within our board.

This does not mean that change is improbable, but rather that consistent action must be taken in order to address the systemic problems within The Miscellany News. The changes we aim to make cannot immediately fix the issues that have dominated college journalism, but we will work to take both immediate and gradual steps. One of these steps includes our current process of making a review board that aims to examine quotes and sources to ensure both their veracity and the integrity of their representation within the article. The review board will be separate from the editorial board, and its members will view articles on a rotational basis.

Finally, we would like to acknowledge the delay in releasing this editorial; we wanted to address the issue with the diligence that it demands, rather than release a swift but reactionary apology that does not cover the gravity or complexity of the situation. As a college newspaper, we want to emphasize that though we are committed to covering news of the Vassar community and campus, our main priority will always be to report all student voices to the best of our ability. We encourage students, including The Miscellany News Editorial Board, to partake in the dialogue regarding the issues at hand, as well as any future articles, topics or disputes on campus. We continue to push towards our goal of providing all of the most important news on campus while uplifting a diverse array of voices.
Thank you,
The Miscellany News

 

[GURPS]

College accused of racial segregation, banning CRT criticism, using COVID to punish conservatives​

In a Sept. 23 meeting with TPUSA leaders including President Alex Russo, Dean of Students Nichole Gonzalez objected that Basrawi was not a "Critical Race Theorist" and would be "intentionally disruptive" to the community, according to Russo's email memorializing the meeting.

Because black students are "extremely marginalized" at Etown, the college can't allow an "alternative or negative view of CRT," Russo characterized Gonzalez as saying. She allegedly suggested an event balanced with critical race theorists. TPUSA ended up holding the event off-campus. FIRE said the college has never disputed Russo's account of the meeting.

Etown violated its "morally and legally binding commitments" on freedom of expression, made in the student handbook and "Blue Jay Pledge of Integrity," by regulating the viewpoints TPUSA can express at its events, FIRE warned the college Oct. 5. It allegedly misstated its own club handbook by faulting TPUSA for publicizing the event before it was formally approved.

The college is also in violation of its accreditation standards, which require a demonstrated "commitment to academic freedom, intellectual freedom, [and] freedom of expression," the letter said. Officials "cannot preferentially shape the debate" by restricting student speech.

Etown brought down the hammer on TPUSA in February for allegedly violating COVID rules, placing the club on probation through December and subjecting its postings, "club-related business," fundraisers and travel to prior review by campus officials.

 

[GURPS]

A Professor Publicly Noted She Would Call On White Males Last. Students, Professors Support Her.​

The New York Post added that Candela wrote that “if you are white, male, or someone privileged by the racial and gender structures of our society to have your voice easily voiced and heard, we will often ask you to hold off on your questions or comments to give others priority and will come back to you a bit later or at another time.”

“Our experience with this practice is that within little time, those who feel most privileged to speak begin to take the initiative to hold space for others who feel less comfortable speaking first, while those who tend to be more silenced in our society grow more comfortable speaking. As you can imagine, it has tremendous benefits for our society as a whole when we learn to hold space and listen to others whose voices are typically disregarded and silenced,” the syllabus said.

Candela was told to remove the policy, Fox News reported, and a spokesperson for the school said it violated school policy.

[clip]

As the Fix noted, not everyone supports Candela. One student in her class, Sean Harrigan, filed an anti-gender discrimination complaint against the professor for the policy.

“How am I supposed to get a full participation grade if I’m not called on because of the way I was born?” Harrigan told the Post.

 

[GURPS]

Fourth-grade teacher says 20 of her 32 students have come out to her as LGBTQIA+​

We’re reminded of that tweet we see pop up every now and then that says if you have a vegan cat, it’s pretty clear who’s calling the shots in that relationship. But Target thought it had best pull Abigail Shrier’s book about “the transgender craze seducing our daughters.” Back in the ’90s even the most activist gay groups only claimed that 10 percent of the population was gay (based on a bogus study). It sounds like this teacher is leaning hard into that “Questioning” category.

 

[GURPS]

 

[GURPS]

MIT Admissions Reinstates Testing Requirement to Increase Low-Income Enrollment​

“After careful consideration, we have decided to reinstate our SAT/ACT requirement for future admissions cycles,” dean of admissions and student financial services Stu Schmill said in a statement. “Our research shows standardized tests help us better assess the academic preparedness of all applicants, and also help us identify socioeconomically disadvantaged students who lack access to advanced coursework or other enrichment opportunities that would otherwise demonstrate their readiness for MIT.”

Schmill said the school believes a testing requirement is “more equitable and transparent than a test-optional policy,” breaking with many other elite universities who have dropped testing requirements amid criticism that wealthier students who can afford expensive preparation classes have an advantage in standardized testing.

The testing requirement will apply to first-year students or transfer students who want to enroll at MIT in 2023.

Schmill said his office has a research and analysis team that “continuously studies our processes, outcomes, and criteria to make sure we remain mission-driven and student-centered.”

 

[GURPS]

University Puts Freshmen Through Its 'Equity' Orientation, Schools Them on 'Whitesplaining'​

Case in point: a recently-launched program at the University of Minnesota, Twin Cities.

As described online, the social justice-seeking Gopher Equity Project serves as a “diversity, equity and inclusion online educational module for new students as they begin their UMN career.”

Its purpose: to “improve campus climate for all students.”

“Take the Training,” the school advises undergraduates.

Students are told to “take part in creating an inclusive campus and learn skills to navigate a diverse campus and society.”

Freshmen “will have follow-up conversations in their first-year college courses.”

They’ll be educated on oppression:

The online training guides you through concepts about equity, power, privilege, oppression, and identity and is important to creating a foundation of equity and inclusion on our campus.

 

[GURPS]

High School Biology Class Tells Kids Biological Sex Is a Social Construct​

For those not in the know, sex is a social construct. So says Needham High School in Massachusetts.


If you’ve been under the impression that there are only two sexes, you’ve been duped by the anti-scientific word on the street. Ditch your social conditioning, and it’s a whole new physical world.


“Humans are socially conditioned to view sex and gender as binary,” one of several slides obtained by the Parents Defending Education makes clear to kids.

The lesson was reportedly presented to youngsters in biology class.

For those unfamiliar with the term “intersex,” PEDIAA has the 411:

The main difference between hermaphrodite and intersex is that hermaphrodite is an organism possessing both types of gonads whereas intersex is an organism possessing several sex characteristics of both male and females such as chromosomes, gonads, sex hormones or genitals.

How common is intersexuality? Per Needham High, just think of hair color:

Intersex people represent just under 2% of the population — a comparable percentage to people born with red hair.

Hence, there are some things you should never suggest:

Only mentioning biological sex as male and female marginalizes intersex people, who have been persistently discriminated against.

 

[GURPS]

Liberal Perv Parade Proving Exactly Why Florida Law Is Needed​

When did the world become so insane that kindergarteners needed to know what teachers did for fun over the weekend? I come from an era when it was nigh on impossible to imagine my teachers existing outside of the school when I was that young. And we certainly weren’t going deep on gender issues then. We were mostly playing tag and eating boogers.

More from Megan:

But at least one teacher, Amber Mercier who works at The Academy, says she’ll keep lying to parents about their kids, and she’s willing to lose her job over it.
Mercier is gay, and she believes keeping secrets about sexuality from her students’ families — if the student wants her to — is worth losing her job over. “I just want to go ahead and state that I would rather lose my job than out one of my students to their families. Being a safe person and a safe place for kids who don’t have that at home is one of the best parts of being a teacher, so, yeah, I’m not doing it. Fire me, sue me, take me to jail — I’m not doing it.”

Again, we’re talking about kids between the ages of four and eight, exactly what is she going to out them for?

Kids that young who have sex issues have them because adults put them there. Yeah, I’m stating that unequivocally. I’m not going to buy into the liberal perv world that says kids in the sandbox are riddled with gender identification issues. We not only have to reject their lunatic premises, but we must also get louder and louder about doing so.

 

[GURPS]

Florida Teacher Says She'll Break the Law to Keep Secrets About Sexuality From Parents​

But at least one teacher, Amber Mercier who works at The Academy, says she’ll keep lying to parents about their kids, and she’s willing to lose her job over it.

Mercier is gay, and she believes keeping secrets about sexuality from her students’ families — if the student wants her to — is worth losing her job over. “I just want to go ahead and state that I would rather lose my job than out one of my students to their families. Being a safe person and a safe place for kids who don’t have that at home is one of the best parts of being a teacher, so, yeah, I’m not doing it. Fire me, sue me, take me to jail — I’m not doing it.”


Mercier could get her wish. Under the new law, teachers can be sued for violating the new statute.

[Correction to the title of the tweet below: Mercier seems to have been an elementary teacher at one time but is now a middle school and high school teacher].




Mercier’s statement that she will break the law of Florida to keep secrets from Florida parents is a problem. The law states that it is illegal to “[prohibit] a parent from accessing certain records” and also sets statute “prohibiting a school district from adopting procedures or student support forms that require school district personnel to withhold from a parent specified information or that encourage or have the effect of encouraging a student to withhold from a parent such information” and “prohibiting school district personnel from discouraging or prohibiting parental notification and involvement in critical decisions affecting a student’s mental, emotional, or physical well-being.”

 

[GURPS]

High-Quality 'Public' Schools Don't Want Low-Income Students​

In other words, the high cost of living keeps less affluent kids out of their schools.

High-performing public schools often have the best and most experienced teachers in a school district and greater academic amenities, such as tutoring services and mentorship. Unfortunately, government-imposed district boundaries create exclusive educational enclaves nationwide. As Tim DeRoche wrote in his book, A Fine Line, "Poor families know that there are good or even great public schools in their district….But their children aren't allowed to attend those schools. Who is allowed to attend? Wealthier people who pay through their mortgage or their rent for access to these public schools that are 'public' in name only."

Despite the fact that vulnerable students would benefit the most from the academic advantages and climate of high-performing schools, geographic barriers and housing prices create an insurmountable barrier. Families that try to get around this unfair system to do what's best for their child can find themselves wrapped up in the court system. This was true for Kelley Williams-Bolar, a mother from Ohio who received two concurrent five-year sentences (suspended to 10 days) for using her father's address to enroll her children in a better school district.

Kansas policymakers, however, are looking to change the geography-based status quo. The House Committee on K-12 Education Budget submitted a proposal that would weaken these barriers through open enrollment. Following the lead of Florida and Wisconsin, this proposed open enrollment policy would allow children to attend any public school outside their assigned school district with open seats on a first-come, first-served basis.



so instead of building up the under performing schools they want to bus children out of their shite hole neighborhoods [ bringing their low income ghetto problems to high performing schools ] bringing down everyone else

 

[GURPS]

‘Hate And Misinformation’​

“While I am strongly in the support of first amendment rights, I am disappointed when those rights are used to make others feel unwelcome and even unsafe in our community,” Farley explained.

He added that he does “not condone the hate and misinformation spread by the speaker and his supporters.”

After reading Farley’s comments, Knowles challenged the president to join on him stage for his talk, tweeting, “President Farley of course did not cite any evidence for his defamatory claims because none exists. But in the spirit of open dialogue and the free exchange of ideas, I would like to invite President Farley to share the stage with me tomorrow night.”

“If President Farley believes that I have spread ‘hate and misinformation,’ then he can cite specific examples, and we can discuss them,” he added. “If he believes that my thesis that boys and girls are different constitutes misinformation, then he can defend his alternative thesis.”

“Or he can cower in his administrative office, defame me for speaking common sense, and attempt to hide the fact that he personally invited me to speak in the first place,” The Daily Wire host continued. “The choice is his. I look forward to a respectful debate if he has the courage of his convictions!”

 

[GURPS]

Teacher Targets College Student Because She Works For Conservative Radio Station, Student Says​

“This is a screenwriting class that is required for my major. I didn’t choose to take it, I have to take it,” Almstedt said, and she detailed a recent assignment that required her to write a script for and then conduct an interview. She chose to interview her boss, Jeff Allen, about the new conservative talk radio station he had started in St. Louis last summer: Newstalk STL.

“We had to stand up in front of the class and talk about what we were writing about and who we were interviewing, and when I said I was interviewing the owner of the radio station I worked for, the teacher wanted more details about the station because he had not ever heard of it,” Almstedt continued.

“I said, ‘Well, it’s a conservative talk station,'” Almstedt said. “And he said, ‘Oh, well, that’s why I haven’t heard about it.'”

She said that she tried to continue with her presentation, but that Millians continued to interrupt her with more questions about the radio station — and at one point, he asked her who the station’s “audience” was.

She told him that the audience was primarily middle-aged men.

“Middle-aged white men,” he corrected her.

“Not necessarily,” Almstedt objected, and she pointed out to The Daily Wire that two of the station’s regular weekday hosts were black men.

“But it’s a conservative station, so your audience is going to be white,” Millians replied.

“None of my classmates reacted, no one thought it was funny,” Almstedt added.

 

[Hijinx]

This is what happens when pervs and homosexuals , and transgenders speak out and the silent majority either accepts it or doesn't apeak out against it.

The freaks have gained the momentum and if we keep quiet and accept it,---it will only get worse.

 

[GURPS]

Gay substitute teacher fired after handing out pride bracelets to students​

“If a kid has questions, if a kid wants honesty, I don’t think I should be forbidden from providing that,” he told WSYX.

Huntington Local School District Superintendent Peter Ruby said the teacher violated policies by speaking about personal beliefs and political and religious topics.

“While we recognize there are diverse points of view on this matter, this policy exists for the purpose of ensuring all students feel comfortable in the classroom,” Mr. Ruby said in a statement Sunday.

Mr. Bowman said in a Facebook post that the school’s response was “completely evasive” when he asked how the issue differentiated from the “blatant religious signage” posted throughout the school.

 

[GURPS]

'I cannot teach in Florida': LGBTQ educators fear fallout from new school law​

Last month, a group of parents in Orlando, Florida, demanded “consequences” against sixth grade science teacher Robert Thollander. His crime? Thollander acknowledged his marriage at school.

“He married a man. This alone is not an issue. Sharing the details … with all his 6th grade students is the issue,” the parents wrote in a letter sent to their children’s school board, which was shared with NBC News. “It was not appropriate. Many of these students felt very uncomfortable with the conversations and shared this with their families.”


Had Thollander just “said he will be out for a few days because he was getting married, no problem,” the letter continued, “but to discuss the details and create an uncomfortable situation for the students with no benefit to teaching his subject matter is inappropriate.”




WT Actual F does your PERSONAL Life have to do with Teaching

I cannot teach unless I can proselytiz to children about my queer lifestyle

 

[GURPS]

Dr. Alan McKee thinks it’s important that ‘we do everything we can’ to help young people become porn literate​

It was last summer when a British journalist, facing quite a backlash, deleted her tweet about how “someone needs to create porn for children.” “They need entry-level porn,” she argued. They’ve already got Teen Vogue, which is widely available and keeps posting its illustrated guide to anal sex. But the idea of porn for children hasn’t gone away. Alan McKee has made it his mission to find porn that’s appropriate for children, and even lists a number of sites he’s deemed OK for consumption by kids, including his own blog, Sex School.





McKee writes:

For this reason I worked with colleagues from the Faculty of Health at the University of Technology Sydney to ask a group of experts around the world what makes for healthy pornography for young people. We spoke to people from a range of backgrounds: sex educators, pornography researchers, pornography producers, adolescent development experts and sexual health experts, for a total of thirty experts. We asked them what criteria they would use to decide what counts as healthy porn; and to give us some examples.
…
The experts agreed that six criteria are important when looking for porn that supports young people’s healthy sexual development:

1. Includes a variety of sexual practices and pleasures – not just ‘penis-in-vagina intercourse’, not just orgasms
2. Includes a variety of body types, abilities, genders, races and/or ethnicities
3. Shows negotiation of consent on screen, including but not limited to open communication, explicit statements of sexual desires, respect of boundaries and/or ongoing consent
4. The material is known to be ethically produced, including but not limited to attention to consent, safe working conditions and fair pay
5. Focuses on pleasure for all participants
6. Shows safe sex, including but not limited to condom use, dams and/or lube

 

[GURPS]

Researcher finds that early grades are the best time to introduce gender identity before ‘cisnormative’ values become ingrained​