The President's Speech to Students and the Craziness that Ensued
Justin Bathon on Thursday, September 3, 2009 at 5:09PM Okay ... approaching the edge of sanity today with the public outcry against the President's upcoming address to students returning to school. This whole thing, the politicization of this event by some, makes me a little sick to my stomach. He is tasked with making students do better, but is not allowed to simply ask them to do better. Perverse, no? If you don't want him trying to improve government, then you shouldn't have elected him to head the government. As it is, since the federal government spends $100 billion on education, I don't think it is wrong for the chief federal officer to address the recipients of those funds directly. In fact, I think it is a pretty cool, and potentially effective, idea. I am actually impressed at the President and his staff for even thinking of the idea. Who better to tell our underachieving African-American males to work hard in school?
But, so be it, the common trend I am seeing from administrators today is to a) either don't interrupt the schedule for it, or b) allow students to opt out. I am seeing some administrators on the various listservs I belong to requiring their students to see it - and I commend them for it - but they are the exception. The safe route here is to permit students to opt out. In fact, the new Commissioner here in KY has said that schools need to "provide alternatives." So, as long as you are providing an alternative (hello, study hall) to students or parents that are on the edge of the deep end, then you school administrators should be fine.
This, too, shall pass.
Reader Comments (4)
My school district had so many negative calls from parents that they are not allowing the video to be shown... What are the legal ramifications of that? I am OUTRAGED!
Our superintendent sent out a memo today saying that we wouldn't be watching it simply because we have too much curriculum to get through and not enough time to do it. I would tend to agree. If we're truly being accountable to taxpayers to improve student learning, then our focus needs to be on delivering that curriculum.
@GA - No legal ramifications, I guess, unless the Fed. wants to pull fed. dollars (which they won't even hint at - that would be a REAL firestorm). It would be interesting if teachers showed it without district authorization (I'm not recommending that by the way - don't do it and blame me).
@Rick - I get that argument, but if you can't teach it in the other 999 hours of instruction, then there are bigger problems. Your superintendent is copping out, which I don't really have a problem with, but that is clearly what he/she is doing. She sees an opening to avoid the controversy and is taking it, like a practical superintendent should. But, in my mind, this is a special case. The President wants to talk to your kids - seems as important or more important than Rikki-Tikki-Tavi. I think the effectiveness of his address would outweigh whatever your colleagues could do in that hour (no offense to them or you - but you don't have a private jumbo-jet and a personal army).
This has made me sick to my stomach too! My husband teaches middle school and they are requiring it to be shown but are not allowed to discuss it AT ALL. He is very perturbed about that part because he sees the value in talking about inspirations and goals to his kids, especially as a mathematics and science teacher. The positive thing his school is doing is if parents do come and watch it with their kids, the kids get pulled out and taken to the library. I think this is a smart move so that there are not a bunch of random causing ruckus in classrooms if they don't agree with what the President is saying.