Posted on 11/23/2005 10:58:14 AM PST by Jean S
Edited on 11/24/2005 8:03:40 AM PST by Admin Moderator. [history]
A letter-writing campaign by third-graders at Allis Elementary School encouraging an end to the war in Iraq was canceled because it violates School Board policy, district officials said Tuesday.
Julie Fitzpatrick, a member of the 10-teacher team that developed the project for the school's 90 third-grade students in five classes, said the assignment was intended to demonstrate citizen action, one of the district's standards in social studies.
"We saw peace as a common good," Fitzpatrick said. "We were just advocating that people keep working toward peace."
But Robin Reynolds, an Army veteran whose 8-year-old grandson is in Fitzpatrick's class, said she regards the assignment as a form of "anti-war protesting" that "is not suitable for elementary students."
"They're supposed to teach the facts and not opinions," she said. "That's brainwashing."
"It was certainly an unfortunate thing to have happen," Superintendent Art Rainwater said. "It's a direct violation of our board policy.
Madison School Board policy prohibits teachers "from exploiting the institutional privileges of their professional positions to promote candidates or parties and activities."
"We don't want our staff ever using our students in a political activity, which this obviously was," Rainwater said. "I think the district would apologize to anyone who was offended. It should not have happened."
Allis Principal Chris Hodge said a letter was sent to parents Tuesday apologizing to anyone who was offended and informing them that the project was rescinded.Reynolds, who served as a personnel assistant at Fort McClellan in Alabama during the Vietnam War and has three family members serving in Iraq, said she "blew up" last Friday when her grandson brought home a letter informing parents about the campaign, in which students were to write a letter every day for 12 days.
Letters were to go to other students, the state's U.S. senators and representatives, President Bush, and the secretary of the United Nations urging them to "join our press for peace." If the war were not over in 12 days, the sequence would be repeated.
Reynolds said her grandson was upset by the assignment. "He knows he's got an uncle and cousins over there."
Fitzpatrick and Hodge, said a misunderstanding resulted in the initial letter going out to parents.
"I left with the impression we could go with it," Fitzpatrick said.
But Hodge said she had wanted to find out what the School Board's policy was before the letter was sent home.
"I thought it was an inappropriate assignment," Hodge said, adding she felt the topic of war was "too vast" for third-graders to understand. "I just think it was too much to ask of a third- grader."
Hodge said she had only heard from one parent who also was concerned that the project was beyond a third- grader's level of understanding.
School Board President Carol Carstensen said board policy and the district's teachers contract also require teachers to withhold the expression of personal opinion unless asked a direct question when dealing with controversial issues.
While it would be appropriate for students to decide to write letters expressing their own views, Cartsensen said, "It isn't appropriate to mandate it."
U.S. Rep. Mark Green, R- Green Bay, who is seeking Republican nomination for governor in 2006, on Tuesday faxed Hodge a letter calling for the assignment to be rescinded.
Hodge said she had received Green's fax but had not had time to read it.
"We're really stunned by the reception," Fitzpatrick said. "In hindsight, I guess we should have anticipated it. It's kind of sad when peace causes a furor."
Fitzpatrick said many parents had sent envelopes and stamps as requested in the initial letter they received.
Sharon Johnson, co- president of the Allis's Parent Teacher Organization, and Toni Kress-Russick, both of whom have children in Fitzpatrick's class, said they were supportive of the project.
Kress-Russick, a special education teacher at Memorial High School, said it taught social responsibility and demonstrated to students that "people can make a difference" and that "just one little third-grader can matter."
"I thought it was a great assignment," Johnson said. "People just tend to blow things out of proportion all the time. I think this is one of them."
Susan Abplanalp, assistant superintendent for elementary and secondary schools, said she does not believe the teachers involved viewed the assignment as a political activity.
"They really looked at this as a peace project," Abplanalp said. "I don't think that the intent was to make this a political statement."
The assignment The letter sent home to parents last Friday said third-graders at Allis Elementary School would be "writing letters to encourage an end to the war in Iraq. The letter writing will teach civic responsibility, a social studies standard, while providing an authentic opportunity to improve composition skills and handwriting."
Students were to write a letter a day for 12 days to other students, the state's U.S. senators and representatives, the president of the United States, and the secretary of the United Nations "urging them to press for peace," as well as to the media.
If the war did not end in 12 days, the sequence would be repeated.
Parents were asked to provide 10 postage stamps and 12 envelopes.
An alternative assignment was to be provided for students whose parents did not want them to participate.
Vicki McKenna from WIBA 1310AM was instrumental in getting the word out on this. Had she not been contacted by an irrate Grandma (who is also a Vet!) about the issue, and had she not passed info on to the TV outlets and a few other people she knows "in the biz" you can count that those letters would be in the mail already.
You know, the CONCEPT of the exercise is fine, though 8 year olds are too young for this Civic Mindedness, IMHO. Maybe a High School Civics Lesson would be fine, with the rider that the kids could write pro OR con letters on the subject (any subject) to their Senators and CongressCritters.
But, it was like pulling teeth to even get my boys to write 'Thank You' cards to the Grandma(s) over the years! Like any of them truly care about the World Situation, anyway. It's so absolutely obvious that this was politically motivated by the teachers. And these teachers see NOTHING wrong with their actions and are STILL scratching their heads over why people were upset with this. *Rolleyes*
"Tyranny of Liberal Academia" ping
"Kress-Russick, a special education teacher at Memorial High School, said it taught social responsibility and demonstrated to students that "people can make a difference" and that "just one little third-grader can matter."
"I thought it was a great assignment," Johnson said. "People just tend to blow things out of proportion all the time. I think this is one of them."
Susan Abplanalp, assistant superintendent for elementary and secondary schools, said she does not believe the teachers involved viewed the assignment as a political activity.
"They really looked at this as a peace project," Abplanalp said. "I don't think that the intent was to make this a political statement."
These people just plain suck.
MADISON, WISCONSIN RAVING MOONBATTERY PING!
(I thought for sure this would have been posted by Diane from Wisconsin...)
Address: 4201 Buckeye Road, Madison, WI 53716
Telephone Number: (608) 204-1056
Fax Number: (608) 204-0364
Principal: Chris Hodge
Agreed. I have said it before...Liberalism is the gravest threat to the USA in the 21st century. Terrorism we can defeat, but liberalism will eat us from within.
"(I thought for sure this would have been posted by Diane from Wisconsin...)"
I was busy baking cheesecakes today. We Wisconsinites are good at sharing, and we don't care who points up the idiocy of the liberals in our state 'cuz there's plenty to go around. ;)
-"I don't think that the intent was to make this a political statement."-
What else COULD it be? The inanity of the left is simply astounding! What makes me even angrier is that the majority of parents just let it whistle past without a peep. Disgusting!
What is worse instead of the teacher admitting she made a mistake, which is often the rally call on the left, that Bush made a mistake bla bla.., the teacher mocks the parents by saying “It's kind of sad when peace causes a furor."
Either the teacher refuses to acknowledge the incident was an error on her part or she is just plain stupid about the Middle East.
Anybody who is wise enough to know the truth would know that bringing home troops would only increase violence resulting in control over the largest wealth reserves on the planet by criminals and terrorists, which is the opposite of peace.
However the grandmother got it right when she said the topic of war was "too vast" for third-graders to understand. "I just think it was too much to ask of a third- grader." ....and maybe even too vast for liberal college educated school admixtures too!
True. Seems like a good time of year to teach the writing of thank you notes, instead of political propaganda. Off to "Prayer Praise & Pie" at our church. Have a Happy Thanksgiving!
Too bad the leftist scumbag teacher didn't thnk of this.
Another sad example of the dumbing down of America.
Oh, it wasn't dumbing down, providing moral support to
soldiers was NOT on the agenda.
Also, read Jessica McBride's blog for an alternative, "Here's the assignment they would never do" letter.
Her bio is on the lower right. Married to Paul Bucher. Interesting.
For this dimwit teacher to sit there and even think that people would just let her do this and get away with it...is the finest example of common sense lost upon the American public.
If all of these teachers would go back to the standards and just recognize that there are fundamentals of education that they must pass onto these students, and they have barely 12 years to accomplish that...and to waste valuable time doing some amusing political magic tricks...simply demonstrates the teaching situation in the country. We need teachers to simply do their jobs. Bring the best you have to school and educate little Johnny and Salley, and make them capable of journeying through life.
My guess is that this dimwit teacher isn't finished. She will continue to press forward...anytime, anywhere. So you might as well write her name down and prepare for the next episode by 2007. She isn't going to just get some sense and do the right thing...she is a certified dope and will repeat her issues over and over.
The Admin Moderator seems to have updated the original article with a copy of the letter.
I don't know if these "teachers" offered a specific alternative. I just know that they had rejected out of hand the original offer by a relative to start a letter-to-soldiers project.
Diana -- any update?
And then there's Dan Rather's producer (Mapes) who believes "journalists" can broadcast unsubstantiated stories (left-wing propaganda), and it is up to others to prove the information to be incorrect. These people are all products of an American educational system which, especially in the social sciences, is dominated by the left-wing of political thought. As big a problem as the MSM is, it is apparent that the root cause of the explosion of left-wing bias in our schools and media is the long term, left-wing "thought control" of the social sciences in our universities. These are the professors who gave A's to insure male students kept their deferments and who turned unrelated classes into "anti-war seminars" during Vietnam (events which I personally witnessed), and who were supported by university administrations. Consider what the elementary teachers in this post did with what I just stated about professors turning their unrelated classes into anti-war seminars in the 60's and early 70's. Could the link be any clearer? Sectors of society like the MSM are only symptoms, the underlying cause of "left bias disease" is left-wing control of our university system.
Allis School apologizes for anti-war letter idea; Third-grade project canceled before it started
Associated Press - November 23, 2005
A Madison elementary school sent parents letters of apology Tuesday after its third-grade teachers proposed having their students start a letter-writing campaign to urge ending the war in Iraq.
The campaign was nixed because it violated Madison Metropolitan School District policies prohibiting any bias in the teaching of controversial issues and a ban on teachers using their jobs to promote a political position, district spokesman Joe Quick said.
The project - intended as a civics lesson while improving handwriting and composition - proposed having the students send letters to parents, fellow students, public officials and others urging an end to the war.
Frank Allis Elementary School Principal Chris Hodge said the third-grade teachers came to her with the proposal last week. She believed it violated district policy but wanted to check with administration officials first.
Hodge said the teachers misinterpreted her comments and sent a letter about the campaign to parents anyway. She immediately canceled the project after finding out.
She said no discipline was planned for the teachers involved, but she planned to remind teachers at their December staff meeting of district policies.
In the letter, Hodge wrote the assignment was not intended to be offensive but she recognized many families support the war in Iraq. *GASP*
"I have spoken with the teachers and they too recognize how the letter assignment could be very hurtful to many in the community," Hodge wrote. "They also wish to send their apologies."
One third-grade teacher contacted at the school by The Associated Press, who declined to give her name, said she did not have time to talk about the project. Phone calls left at numbers listed on the school Web site for other third-grade teachers were not returned.
The nixed project drew the ire of some, including U.S. Rep Mark Green of Green Bay, a Republican candidate for governor. He called it "improper and offensive," writing a letter to Hodge that "these are children, not political tools."
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