Posted on 09/01/2002 10:48:35 AM PDT by gitmo
Parent offended by lesson in vocabulary</font< Use of a word that sounds like a racial slur has landed a New Hanover County teacher in the middle of a controversy. Stephanie Bell, a fourth-grade teacher at Williams Elementary School, taught the word "niggardly" to her class last week in an effort to improve her students' vocabularies. Now, a parent wants her fired.
Although the word means stingy, Akwana Walker said it was inappropriate to use it because it sounds similar to a racial slur. She said she doesn't think fourth-graders can distinguish between the two words. "My daughter told me what that word was, and I told her not to complete that part of her homework," said Ms. Walker, who is black. Ms. Bell, who is white, defended her choice of the word and said she didn't mean to offend anyone. She has already sent home letters of apology with her students, as her principal instructed. The word came up Aug. 20 during a comparison of two characters from different stories. One character was a Hispanic girl; the other was a white boy. The class talked briefly about the proper words to use when describing a person's race, Ms. Bell said. Then, the class discussed other ways to describe people. One child described the boy as stingy. Ms. Bell said she thought this would be a good chance to find a word for the day, a practice she has used this year. "The idea for the word of the day is to pick part of the curriculum or something you can extend from it," she said. She began looking for a synonym for "stingy." The children's dictionary offered "self-centered." But Ms. Bell said most of the children already knew that word. That's when she landed on the word "niggard." She added the "-ly" because the class was studying adverbs. Ms. Bell explained the meaning of the word and told the students how to use it in a sentence, something they would have to do on their spelling tests to gain extra points. "And that was it," she said. "These words for the day are used solely as extra credit. They have to use the word in a sentence that shows they understand the meaning." Her students did that on their vocabulary tests, she said. A few days later, Ms. Bell received a letter from Ms. Walker saying the word was not allowed in her house, no matter what it means. "Common sense tells you not to put a word like that on the board," Ms. Walker said. Ms. Walker met with Ms. Bell and the school's principal, Susan Hahn, Thursday. As a result, Ms. Walker's daughter, Gabrielle, has been moved to another class. In addition to the apology sent home Friday, Ms. Bell has agreed not to use the word again in her class. A counselor will meet with Ms. Bell's students. Ms. Walker doesn't think that's enough. She wants Ms. Bell removed from her teaching position. Norm Shearin, deputy superintendent for the New Hanover County Schools, said Friday the principal is dealing with the situation. "Our position is that it was an inappropriate action in terms of using that word at that grade level, in that context," he said. "… It was a bad choice." This isn't the first time the word has stirred controversy. In 1999, for instance, an employee in the Washington, D.C., mayor's office resigned after being accused of using a racial slur. He had used the word "niggardly" during a conversation about funding. Ms. Bell said she was sorry the word offended someone, but she wants people to understand that "niggardly" is an appropriate word. "If these children read it, they are going to need to know what they are reading," she said. "My concern is that we are treading a fine line here. … What word do we take out next?" William Whalen, whose daughter also is in Ms. Bell's class, said he thinks the situation has been blown out of proportion. Mr. Whalen is white. "One mother was offended because she took that word to mean something it didn't mean," he said. "Ms. Bell apologized. That was sufficient." He added his daughter has encountered the word when reading The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers. "She's a good teacher," Mr. Whalen said. "I don't think she had any ulterior motives. … It's a word. That's all it is." Sherry Jones: 343-2378 sherry.jones@wilmingtonstar.com
Niggardly as defined by Webster's:
adj.
1. reluctant to give or spend; stingy;miserly
2. meanly or ungenerously small or scanty
Wake up America.
The principal would be fired for not backing up an innocent teacher of hers. Her administrative license or whatever credentials she has would be revoked for a period of five years. Now, I will not declare that she was stupid enough to believe in the ideals of Ms. Walker, since that would result in an extensive jail term. Instead, she would be fined $1500 for not having the backbone to stand up for that which she believes in, and an additional $100,000 (or 1000 hours of what I consider community service, whichever she so chooses) for becoming a part of the politically correct movement. The same goes for the superintendent.
The parents of Ms. Walker would be fined $1000 for giving a human such a stupid name (Akwana?? What the hell??) unless they can convice me that Akwana is a good name.
The teacher would be given a completely free, no-strings-attached trip to any city in the world that she would like to visit. The vacation would include a private jet and limousine, $2500 in spending money, food from the area's best chefs, and various other "necessities." She would also be honored as Panther33's Teacher of the Year for teaching fourth graders adverbs such as "niggardly." I personally know dozens of high school seniors who wouldn't even know what an adverb is (or how to spell "adverb").
Um, let's see... oh, and Mr. Whalen, the parent who was quoted in the article for backing up the teacher, would be given the money received from the $1000 fine imposed on Ms. Walker's parents.
I think that just about does it. Gee, I should become a judge...
P.S. Please don't interpret this post as if I am an arrogant idiot. I am saying this all as if it would happen in my dream world, which I occassionally think about to relieve stress, ease tension, and create a bit of humor for myself.
Common sense seems to be something that Ms. Walker doesn't possess.
I'm offended that Mr. Whalen chooses to use a word with such sexual overtones. This word should be banned from the English language!
Better change the name of Nicauragua, too....
Come October, will some teacher be reprimanded for using the word "spook"?
Don't forget the famous sisters from Texas: Ima and Ura Hogg. Real names, real people.
Can I prohibit the word Democrat in my house because I find it offensive??? Perhaps I can sue the newscasters for using it without a warning.
witch, ditch, pitch, Mitch
hit, bit, fit, git(southern speak), mit, nit, wit
duck, luck, muck, tuck
runt, punt, stunt, shunt
I wish it wasn't against the law to slap some of the dumbasses in the world silly for their ignorance.
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