Posted on 03/05/2008 8:54:28 AM PST by girlangler
Eagle Rock teacher creates insect monitor job to treat creatures respectfully
By Naush Boghossian, Staff Writer
When Eagle Rock teacher Melodie Conrad saw a student stomp on a bug several years ago, she knew she had to do something.
But while student monitors for the hallways, chalkboards and classroom windows have been around for years, nobody was quite prepared for the new duty she created: bug monitor.
Now, if any creepy-crawly wanders into her classroom at Eagle Rock Elementary School & Magnet Center, the student bug monitor swoops in with a paper towel or napkin, scoops up the critter and shepherds it outside.
"I absolutely just feel like we live in a society where violence is prevalent, and I've seen that over the years I've been teaching. I just wanted to be careful that they're exposed to just the opposite in this room," said Conrad, a 21-year teaching veteran.
"I'm not trying to turn them into bug activists. But I hear these kids say how cool it is when they shot this person in a video game or how cool these bloody movies are, and I'm concerned. That made me think."
To get her students to start thinking about the same issues, she asks them why some want to kill bugs. And it's instilled a sense of respect for life among her students.
Rebecca Tokofsky, 9, said she used to call her dad to get rid of a "scary-looking spider." Now, she is eager for her turn to become bug monitor.
"I don't like hurting animals," she said. "Even though they're tiny, they have an ecosystem, and it's a good idea to take bugs outside and to be kind, even though sometimes it's creepy."
Conrad's bug monitor bid comes amid a growing national shift in consciousness toward more socially responsible efforts, from recycling to caring about endangered species.
An Internet search shows several bug-advocate sites including Insect Rights Activists, an organization that "lobbies for the humane treatment of insects."
"Insects are prone to unnecessary slaughter," said Daniel Marlos, department chair of media arts at Los Angeles City College.
So Marlos, who doesn't have a background in entomology, launched www.whatsthatbug.com to offer general information on which insects are harmless.
"What we promote is trying to stop senseless slaughter, just people being afraid of things they know absolutely nothing about," he said. "Once they understand it's not harmful, they don't hurt them, and they become a little bit more tolerant."
But the message also is a lot bigger than just bugs.
"The Web site is trying to promote tolerance on many levels," said Marlos, 51. "It has far greater ramifications in terms of a world view than just killing insects.
"It's more of a prevailing world view that when they don't understand something, they fear it and want to get rid of it."
Dirck Morgan, a 54-year-old radio-TV reporter from Tujunga, said he grew up respecting all forms of life because of martial arts training that started at age 8.
"It boils down to: Unless something is endangering us, like a black widow or bugs that carry germs, I can easily coexist with it," he said.
"I have a deal with nature - it leaves me alone; I leave it alone. I never had a deer pull a knife on me and demand my wallet."
He and his wife have passed that sensibility to their son, 12-year-old Makena.
"It's important because people are going to have to get along with nature sooner or later, and it also teaches them how to behave with other kids as well and how to make new friends," Makena said. "It really does teach me to get along with other kids."
People are paying more attention to such views in the wake of tragedies such as the Columbine High School shooting in 1999 - in which the two students who killed a dozen teens and a teacher had a history of torturing animals.
"Animal issues are becoming more and more a part of our consciousness," said Sangeeta Kumar, coordinator for the teachkind.org program for the People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals, which offers schools and colleges free humane-education materials and policy resources.
"If you can teach a child to respect and protect the smallest and most maligned among us, you can help create better citizens who have compassion for others."
But while Kumar said PETA has heard of students being inspired to stop stepping on bugs, the group has never heard of any teacher in the country like Conrad who has created a bug monitor.
To show its gratitude for the unique idea - and in hopes Conrad will serve as an example to others - Kumar said PETA will give the Eagle Rock Elementary instructor a Compassionate Teacher Award.
Still, some suggest society is becoming too sensitive. On the HBO comedy show "Curb Your Enthusiasm," actor Larry David highlighted the issue in an episode last season.
While on a school campus, he notices a spider scurrying on the pavement and stomps on it - only to see horrified faces of students and parents who yell at him for killing a living thing.
Thrown off by the reaction, he defends himself by stating what's obvious to him: It's just a spider.
Marlos acknowledges society might have taken political correctness a bit far and says he wouldn't demonize someone who squashes a bug.
But a higher level of compassion can't be so bad in the world, he said.
"What we're seeing is there's this trend that people used to be vegetarians and now they're vegans, and there's animal rights and animal activism," he said. "People are very much concerned about the environment and are becoming a little bit more understanding."
Still, some say that with all of the bigger problems in the world, it's a bit much to worry about the "feelings" of a spider.
There are plenty of Internet sites that take a stab at the politically correct stance - including the tongue-in-cheek People for the Ethical Treatment of Insects group.
Those who make getting rid of insects their business acknowledge some frustration.
"We're in the pest-control business. That's all we do is kill," said Lori Helwed of Terminix exterminators and pest control in Chatsworth. "It is a little much."
“You couldn’t pay people to act this stupid.”
Since she’s a government teacher, they already are.
That district is definitely over-funded.
That was the money quote. Excess touchy feely verbage.
I have millions of ladybugs invade my house every fall, and I don’t kill them. I have released these in my garden, but mostly I just let them be, sweep up the piles of dead ones and pay them no mind.
On the other hand, when I was growing up in Oklahoma, the scorpions would get into people’s houses and sting, it was very painful, could have caused repiratory failure in a small infant.
My best friend’s husband took a shirt out of the closet once, put it on, and thought he was having a heart attack, his chest pain was so bad. A scorpion fell out, it had stung him.
And I had a scorpion crawl across my face one night when I was a kid. My face was tickling, so I brushed my hand against it, then sat up and saw a scorpion striking the bed. Had I taken my hand and smacked it, I’d of been stung on the face.
Needless to say, I was a very cruel kid when it came to these, killed every one I came across. On the other hand, we also had these huge non-biting/stinging trachela (sp) spiders get in the house when we were kids. We used to play with them, and put them in other kids/teachers desks for fun.
My brother used to catch scorpions and sell them to the guy who had a sovenir shop at the foot of the wildlife refuge. He’d make paper weights and key chains out of them, and sell them to tourists.
My “House Bug Rules” are very simple. Stay outside or die.
Like someone else already said, this type of idiot will go out of their way to “Save the Spider” but think absolutely nothing about getting an abortion.
“It’s for the Children”, don’t you know?
Personal hygene and sanitation are also among their greatest enemies.
LOL
40 years ago I brought a magnifying glass to school and ‘popped’ numerous ants using focussed sunlight. The school principle saw me and told me to stop.
Liberals are simply deranged.
Most likely little boys stomping on bugs does more to CURB violence in society than anything else.
LOL.
My brother and I used to play “Army,” and declare war on big ant hill populations. We’d blow them to smitherines with firecrackers.
We’d place his little green plastic toy soldiers in strategic places around the ant hill, have them sneak up and toss a “grenade” at it.
If I lived anywhere near this EcoTard teacher I would refuse to ever pay local taxes again!
“I’m not trying to turn them into bug activists. But I hear these kids say how cool it is when they shot this person in a video game or how cool these bloody movies are, and I’m concerned. That made me think.”
Zoykes, Shaggy! There wasn’t a week that went by when my boys and I weren’t networked together, hunting down and shooting one another on some computer or Nintendo game while they were growing up.
If we weren’t inside on a cold, wet day playing games, we were outside shooting, skinning and preparing dinner, LOL!
No serial killers in the family, so far. I guess I’m a ‘Bad Mom,’ LOL!
These people are morons. Absolute morons.
Awesome
I love spiders. I have a nice collection of Daddy Long Legs in my house year-round. They are awesome killers; great at eradicating those stupid Asian Beetles (that look like Lady Bugs, but aren’t) as well as flies and mosquitoes.
One usually drops down for a drink from the wet shower stall in the morning, and we have a nice little chat.
Now THAT’S Karma, LOL! :)
“This was in 1960 something, before the environmental wackos were loose.”
Rachel Carson was EVIL. ‘Silent Spring,’ my @ss! ;)
http://science.infoshop.org/index.php?name=News&file=article&sid=267&theme=Printer
Same here - the catch-and-release program, I call it. :-)
There are exemptions, like flies and mosquitoes for instance. But spiders, lacewings, mosquito hawks, anything beneficial goes back outside unharmed.
When I was a kid, those shower spiders used to scare the heck out of me.
Why? ‘Cuz they saw ya nekkid? LOL!
I have an irrational fear of spiders. Either that, or everyone else has an irrational affinity for them. lol
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