Advertisement
The Edutopia Poll
by Sara Bernard
Teachers who address controversial topics in the classroom -- Darwinism and evolution, for instance, or anything else that touches religion or politics -- may find it pays to keep their mouths shut. In Arizona, Senate Bill 1542 aims to forbid educators from advocating for one side of any social or political issue, claiming that students are impressionable and this sort of thing may encroach on parental territory.
Must teachers, by the very nature of their profession, place stricter limits on their ability to express opinions in the workplace? Or are the kinds of free-speech struggles that teachers face unwarranted and undeserved? Tell us what you think. -- Sara Bernard
Should there be limits on teachers' freedom of speech?
Yes. Educators have the power to influence their students. To promote neutrality and equity in the classroom, it's important for educators to keep strong political, religious, or otherwise controversial opinions to themselves.
35% (84 votes)
No. The First Amendment should be applied to all equally. The stating of controversial opinion -- as long as it is presented as opinion -- is a good lesson for students in democracy, critical thinking, and tolerance.
53% (126 votes)
Neither. (Click on Vote, then Click on Comment on the results page to offer another response, or to tell us about your experience.)
13% (30 votes)
Total votes: 240
As a classroom teacher I
Submitted by Peg Cagle (not verified) on April 15, 2007 - 14:19.
As a classroom teacher I believe it is my responsibility to teach my students how to form an opinion, not my opinion. However, I do not think it is necessary or wise to pretend that I do not have an opinion. Learning to judge the veracity of information and then fit it with one's own values to form opinions is an important skill of an informed and active citizenry. If all we do is teach students our opinions OR pretend that it is not important to form opinions we are doing them and society a great disservice.
As an educator, the only
Submitted by J. Mahlon (not verified) on April 14, 2007 - 06:58.
As an educator, the only time when it "pays to keep your mouth shut" is when doing so benefits the students, by letting them grasp toward their own truths and discoveries. However, in general terms, we can not easily educate and create democratic citizens without modeling what it means to be one. Good citizens are not afraid to engage in reasonable and respectful dialogue concerning social or political issues. By sharing our beliefs (and more often our indecision) when contextually appropriate, and allowing our students the freedom to do the same, we are doing our duty to help mold impressionable students into thoughtful democratic citizens, citizens who are experienced in challenging and analyzing the complex realities of social and political life. At the end of their education, this is a much bigger contribution to society than whether every grammar lesson has been retained.
Does this belong in the classroom? It all depends on the context of age, subject matter, environment, etc. Teachers of course should use their best judgement, as with almost everything else in the classroom. Teachers who are evangelical or overbearing with their opinions can be challenged by parents and administrators, and rightly so. It would be going completely overboard to get legislation involved.
Anytime we open the door
Submitted by Dana (not verified) on April 14, 2007 - 03:18.
Anytime we open the door to censorship, we threaten the very ideals of this country. If we allow the censorship of teachers, what keeps us from making censorship a habit? I think that allowing any censorship in one instance makes it easier for it to happen again, and possibly again and again. Where is the line drawn?
Instead, I think schools need to focus more on introducing students to differing views and theories and then challenging them through discussion and research to think critically. The teacher needs to present the views and then serve as a mediator for any subsequent discussion, not as a facilitator.
May I just say how
Submitted by Joanna Vogel (not verified) on April 14, 2007 - 02:57.
May I just say how much I agree with and love what Peter Kuzma commented here? Having said that much, my own two cents: while teachers have every right to express their personal views on a subject (and they MUST, really, if they are not modeling and sharing and showing that they too are people and learners with opinions and feeling on controversial subjects, how are students to learn a truly positive way to, and feel comfortable with, sharing their opinions and advocating for themselves?) teachers also need to share the other side of the coin (or however many sides there may be to a certain issue...) and play Devil's Advocate as well, in order to ensure that all points of view are represented and validated in conversation.
The choice of questions reminds
Submitted by Bruce Rockwood (not verified) on April 13, 2007 - 17:36.
The choice of questions reminds me of the "issues" to be voted on in my Nation-States country: they mix valid and invalid points, and ignore things like age or class level, course subject and the like. I can see faculty who want to comment sardonically on the war objecting to freedom to advocate creation science, say, and so forth. And of course, since one major topic (the disastrous law "No Child Left Behind" with its fall out of teaching to the test above all else) impacts teachers and students alot, it is hard to avoid needing to talk about it.
The key is to permit teachers to fairly discuss current issues where they naturally come up, and as they may relate to the subject or, in some instances, to the needs of the students (I can see a need to discuss the Imus affair in some instances, for example). And to understand the difference between reasonable analysis and criticism, on the one hand, and partisan campaigning on the other. Though it may be hard to do this if, for example, one is teaching "Bush v Gore" in an American history or civics class.
Great question and a tough
Submitted by Mark Richardson (not verified) on April 13, 2007 - 04:19.
Great question and a tough topic. Varied responses were fascinating to read. As a teacher of students in grades 3-5 I suppress my personal opinion about political topics when teaching. I do not suppress my personal opinion because I feel Big Brother Admin is watching and listening, but rather because I do not want to sway my students in one direction or another. As Elizabeth posted above, it is the educators respon. to help the students tackle a tough topic from all sides so that they can see an issue from multiple perspectives so they can make the most informed decision. Not the decision that they think will make their teachers happiest or even their parents happiest but will make them feel best about making. My high school Civics teacher was a master as presenting all political information from all viewpoints. To this day I am not sure what political party she was affiliated with. It just doesn't seem right for a teacher to advocate one way or another while on stage as a teacher with a captive audience. Outside of class is a completely different issue however. Cheers...Mark
There already put constraints on
Submitted by jim kilkenny (not verified) on April 12, 2007 - 19:14.
There already put constraints on the freedom of everyone's speech. In New Hampshire and other states teachers, especially social studies teachers, have to sign a loyalty oath. This oath makes it hard to speak of decent. If you are speaking about racial slurs or the seven deadly words of radio and tv, that is called moral turpritude and will automatically get you fired. Please don't talk to me about freedom of speech.
Teachers don't even have the rights of tenure. Tenure is only a job description. When a professor is tenured it is to protect the professor's freedom of speech. How else does education push people forward? High schools and some colleges have no push anymore. In most states, if you put up any political information, you have to put up the information of the opponent also. I think the state's grand standing on this issue. As a matter of fact all the stuff in these polls is a grand stand. There is, has been and will be accountability in education twice or thrice that of any other business in the country. It is a heck of a lot more ethical. The men and women who take advantage of children are dealt with quickly and firmly. Even Elliot Wiggington was banished. Think about the last studio executive who was banished from the field for inappropriate touching--can you?
As you all are aware,
Submitted by Stephen Treacy (not verified) on April 12, 2007 - 19:07.
As you all are aware, the first amendment right of free speech is not a carte blanche
endorsement of "any words" said at "any time." As educators and citizens, we have a responsibility attached to the freedom. Educators are in a somewhat unique position to influence attitudes and thoughts. We are disseminators of information and "truths" to our students. Expectations are that teachers will guide the student in a non-biased manner to discover their own truths. I believe the classroom as a forum for new and/or controversial ideas increases in importance as you progress up the educational ladder, i.e. a high school classroom is more appropriate than a gradeschool classroom. This said, I am not sure why an educator would need to try and sway a student's opinion to match his own. To answer the question posed, yes, educators must place a stricter limit on the expression of their own opinions in the classroom of their workplace.
I am an educator.
Submitted by Elizabeth (not verified) on April 12, 2007 - 15:49.
I am an educator. It is my job to educate my students to see all sides of an issue before they make a decision. I believe I have a right to express my opinion after the students have made their decisions. I always accept and respect my students' points of view and I ask them to do the same with me. Being polite and respectful of all viewpoints is far better, in my opinion, than being politically correct.
Educators often do not have
Submitted by Bonnie Sutton (not verified) on April 12, 2007 - 15:03.
Educators often do not have freedom of speech or action. In the classroom is one thing, but it has been interesting to be an educator who got it that technology makes a difference in teaching and learning. What that has gotten me is a lot of administrative decision making to move me from schools, from the use of programs, Kidsnetwork, from using programs that supervisors did not know, Voyage of the Mimi 2 ( fortunately that program was not claimed by anyone and was allowed ).
Once I did a radio program and my principal called me to the office and yelled at me because I said that technology and other media could replace the constant use of books in a classroom.
That time they moved me to a high school to teach students who were considered dropouts, That worked for me. The high schools was wonderful.
Then I was moved to an elementary school. I was not moved because of any difficulty. I wanted to teach students again, but I was given the job of technology teacher. The problem with this was the use of programs and resources. The teacher who was the technology assistant and support for me, only wanted me to use shareware.
I could not believe it. The reason for this was because it was safe. Oh my! I was not allowed to use NASA resources because they were on the Internet. The Internet, I was told was a bad place for a school computer. Never mind the good things. It was unbelievable.
I finally was able to demonstrate, using AOL and a telephone line that there was substance in the resources that I was using. But being a technology advocate has its problems.
The problem in the last school was that we read newspapers on line. We were only supposed to read the kiddy newspapers. We were accessing the space program news reports.
Too much for me.
Post new comment