posted
Next week I start a lesson on Judaism followed by a week on the history of Islam and Islamic empires. Throughout the year I teach about Hinduism, Buddhism, and Christianity.
I know the question from my students is coming. What religion am I?
Last year I told my students that I do not discuss my religion or politics, because I want them to think for themselves.
Is this the right stance to take? Should I tell them I am an atheist if they ask? Should I bring up my Jewish mother and Catholic father?
They are 7th graders.
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posted
I've seen both approaches work. My philosophy teacher would mention exposure he'd had to many different religions, but he would politely decline to state what religion he was personally. I think he helped that we didn't try to color what he said by what we thought his religion would lead him to believe.
I also had a constitutional law professor who shared my religion, and it didn't hinder the classes ability in the least to discuss all sides of an issue. If anything when he told us to not try and take just his side, it was alittle easier to guess what that side might be based on his religion.
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posted
I wouldn't tell them. Maybe at the end, but not at the beginning. It will color everything they hear from you.
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quote:Originally posted by katharina: I wouldn't tell them. Maybe at the end, but not at the beginning. It will color everything they hear from you.
I'm leaning that way for that reason. But it is very hard not to make connections with my own life, because I almost always do.
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posted
I'm very hesitant to talk about my religion with students. I don't hide it from them, but I think there are certain ethical responsibilities you have as a teacher. As a teacher, you have a position of authority and I think it would be unethical to use that authority to influence students religious interests and beliefs -- even if its unintentional. Students might perceive that it could improve their grades or the recommendations you might right or just your opinion of them if they show they share or appear to share you religious biases or they might simply give more credence to your beliefs because they respect you as a teacher. Its not a clear cut line and maybe I'm too hesitant to talk religion with students. Still I think there are ethical reasons to avoid discussing your personal religious beliefs with your students.
Perhaps you could make a game out of it with the students. Write down a synopsis of your religious background and beliefs and seal it in an envelope. Show the students the sealed envelope and tell them "At the end of the semester we'll open this envelope, anyone who is interested can try to guess what I've written." You could then have a prize for the person who comes closest.
It might end up being an interesting experiment on how well you are able to conceal your biases while teaching this subject.
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quote:As a teacher, you have a position of authority and I think it would be unethical to use that authority to influence students religious interests and beliefs -- even if its unintentional.
This is an interesting thought - why do you think this is unethical?
I'd be inclined to think that, except perhaps in government-sponsored public schools (where freedom of religion legal issues come into play), teachers have an ethical responsibility to serve as role models to students. Part of that means modeling the difference between right and wrong, which inherently touches on religion, especially when religions are being studied. For instance, a teacher that teaches students to respect different religions is going to have a very different influence than a teacher that techers students that foreign religions are bizarre and absurd.
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posted
I would tell them that's not their business. Americans are way too hung up on the religions of their neighbours anyway; set a good example and teach some manners.
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posted
I'd be tempted to tell them that you don't know, and you do the lesson every year in order to hopefully find out, but you never get any answers and are starting to spiral into a depression... that might get them to not ask you any more personal questions.
Edit: Just to be clear, this post is a parody of KOM's comment.
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quote:I'd be inclined to think that, except perhaps in government-sponsored public schools (where freedom of religion legal issues come into play), teachers have an ethical responsibility to serve as role models to students. Part of that means modeling the difference between right and wrong, which inherently touches on religion, especially when religions are being studied. For instance, a teacher that teaches students to respect different religions is going to have a very different influence than a teacher that techers students that foreign religions are bizarre and absurd.
I'm confused by your post. Perhaps I'm reading too much into the example that you ended with, but a teacher is at least marginally MORE likely to disparage other religions, even if only by implication, if he openly espouses his own, than he would be if he kept his own religion private. In other words, I can't see how talking about his own religion is likely to help a teacher with the goal of teaching students to respect other religions.
I also think that a teacher's ethical responsibility is to model ethical responsibility, not right & wrong as defined by any particular religion.
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posted
I might note that the goal of the class may influence the approach you take.
If the goal of the class is indeed to teach students to "respect" other religions, then thats a very different goal and may entail a different approach than if the goal of the class is merely to teach the historical background of other religions and what they believe.
In other words, the idea that religions (other or not) should be respected is in and of itself a judgement about right and wrong as defined by particular religions.
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quote:I'm confused by your post. Perhaps I'm reading too much into the example that you ended with, but a teacher is at least marginally MORE likely to disparage other religions, even if only by implication, if he openly espouses his own, than he would be if he kept his own religion private. In other words, I can't see how talking about his own religion is likely to help a teacher with the goal of teaching students to respect other religions.
My example was intended to illustrate that in either case, the teacher is influencing their students' religious beliefs.
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quote:Originally posted by katharina: I'd need a diagram to explain all the ways that post was both wrong and rude.
Then I suggest you get drawing. Your habit of crying "Wrong! Wrong!" without stating how is seriously annoying. Put up or shut up.
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posted
1. It's a class on religion. Religion is a natural topic. Asking about religion in a class about religion is not rude. Saying that it is is wrong. Mistake number one.
2. Interested in not the same thing as "hung up." "Hung up" is pejorative phrase that fails to account for the varied reasons and levels of interest that exist. So, it's both wrong and rude. Mistakes number 2 and 3.
3. It's a classroom dedicated to exploring a topic. Encouraging students to keep silent rather than to ask questions is the antithesis of a liberal arts education and goes completely against the point of education, so far against the point that I can only assume that you have abandoned educational ideals due to your zealousness in tamping any religious inquiry. Both wrong and rude (to the students - why should they not ask questions?) again. Mistakes 4 and 5.
4. Manners is a broad topic that includes both the kinds of questions and the way they are asked. Just as it is possible to discuss political in a political science class politely, it is possible for people to discuss religion in a religious studies class politely. Mistake number 6.
I believe that YOU don't believe it is possible to discuss religion politely, but you are wrong to extrapolate your personal failures to the population in general.
-----
I think it is better to not tell them, for all the reasons non-KoM people have said, but all of KoM's reasons were wrong.
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posted
Stephan, if you explain that you are Atheist, the next question will be "why?". You will then find yourself in a position of having to defend Atheism. There is little between defending one's beliefs and espousing those beliefs to others. I would find that as inappropriate as a teacher spending class time on an evangelical recruitment spree.
The class is not there to convert them to any one religion, or to no religion. That is obvious. Stating a preference can be seen as promoting a choice, and that is not what this particular class is about.
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quote:Stephan, if you explain that you are Atheist, the next question will be "why?". You will then find yourself in a position of having to defend Atheism. There is little between defending one's beliefs and espousing those beliefs to others. I would find that as inappropriate as a teacher spending class time on an evangelical recruitment spree.
This is why I believe a teacher should not discuss their personal religious beliefs in a classroom setting. By stating one's religious affiliation, one is implicitly stating their position on several matters ranging from who is and isn't going to spend an eternity in fiery torment to who may or may not again see their dead siblings or parents in the next life.
posted
You should tell them your religion will be written on the board at the end of the last day of class. Leave without speaking a word immediately at the end of that day. Posts: 1945 | Registered: Jul 2005
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posted
If you're not going to tell them your religion, I wouldn't tell them -- not on the first or last day. If you tell them on the last day of class, then someone is going to tell the students in your next class. If you tell them, you may as well be up front about it, although I lean towards not telling them for reasons already stated.
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posted
What I did when I taught World Religions was tell the students that, for arguments sake, I would always take the other side. For the most part then, being an atheist like I am was easy because most of the students were religious and so taking the other side meant that I would argue my beliefs most of the time. I think you are correct to worry about coloring their perception of religion because it is so difficult to appear unbiased with such a controversial and sometimes emotional topic, and so, I think not telling them is the best path to take.
ETA: I told them on the last day about my own religious beliefs, and one my students called me and asked if he could try to proselytize me.
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posted
Maybe you should just wait until *if* the students bring the issue up.
In my experience in grade school, especially in grade 7, I can't remember a single teacher that the I knew the religion of nor did I hear anyone ask about it, even when we were covering religion in social studies class or history.
Maybe you can just wait until it really becomes an issue.
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quote:Originally posted by Mucus: Maybe you should just wait until *if* the students bring the issue up.
In my experience in grade school, especially in grade 7, I can't remember a single teacher that the I knew the religion of nor did I hear anyone ask about it, even when we were covering religion in social studies class or history.
Maybe you can just wait until it really becomes an issue.
That's a great idea - you don't know they are going to ask so you should be as unprepared as possible to answer if they do. The possible waste of effort in figuring out the right thing to do ahead of time isn't worth the risk - you're better off just winging it later and hoping for the best...
posted
I don't know, I don't think saying that your mom was one thing (Jewish), and your dad another (Catholic) and you not very religious is a very big deal. Especially because there are plenty of Christmas/Easter churchgoers who DO believe in God.
As a seventh grader, I would be pretty curious about your family combining two different religious traditions, whether there was friction between sides of the family, and how that reflects itself in your own beliefs. Was "no" religion a compromise your parents decided on? I think it's almost easier to mention your family because of the two different religions. You aren't converting anyone, in fact, you are already on at least two sides, and wouldn't be a teacher of history and religion if you didn't find the subject interesting.
My ninth grade history teacher. who was (I think) the son of Chinese immigrants, who married a Catholic-Italian woman with whom he attended the College of the Holy Cross. Perhaps we were told a bit too much about his personal life. We knew he was an agnostic, but had nothing but respect for the Holy Cross Jesuits, as they were known for making students question everything, even Catholicism. He recommended HC to everyone. This being nearly 8 years ago, I don't remember exactly what he said, but he made some comment about his wife's family being confused by the Chinese concept of ancestor worship, and contrasted it with praying to Saints, which he found just as weird. Anyway, the point I took home was that the concept of ancestor worship, which I had never heard of outside of Mulan, was not so foreign. In fact, his class was my only exposure to world religions, and what I got out of WAS that they weren't so foreign.
Now I have no idea whether your school is tolerant, diverse or filled with the deeply religious, but mentioning that your parents had two different religions is always useful to horny little squirts and their 48 hour relationships.
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posted
My seventh grade World History teacher was a Muslim, my seventh grade math teacher was an Atheist, my seventh grade French teacher was a Catholic by birth, my seventh grade English teacher was a Christian, and my seventh grade science teacher was a Jew. I went to a public school.
Of those, only my World History and French teachers made a point about it, and the others let it slip indirectly in response to student questioning. Though the attitude among those that let it slip was generally "I'm a public school teacher, I'm not here to convert you to my religion."
Maybe you didn't ask the right questions, Mucus.
Posts: 1029 | Registered: Apr 2007
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quote:Originally posted by Mucus: Maybe you should just wait until *if* the students bring the issue up.
In my experience in grade school, especially in grade 7, I can't remember a single teacher that the I knew the religion of nor did I hear anyone ask about it, even when we were covering religion in social studies class or history.
Maybe you can just wait until it really becomes an issue.
That's a great idea - you don't know they are going to ask so you should be as unprepared as possible to answer if they do. The possible waste of effort in figuring out the right thing to do ahead of time isn't worth the risk - you're better off just winging it later and hoping for the best...
Mucus never said anything about not preparing for the question. He just said to wait until a student asks the question.
EDIT: Though his post is actually ambiguous. I could be wrong.
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quote:Originally posted by katharina: I wouldn't tell them. Maybe at the end, but not at the beginning. It will color everything they hear from you.
Just be aware that this approach won't work in the long run unless you're not planning on teaching the course again at the same school. Kids talk. If you tell them at the end the next group you teach will come in already knowing.
quote:Originally posted by Tresopax:
quote:As a teacher, you have a position of authority and I think it would be unethical to use that authority to influence students religious interests and beliefs -- even if its unintentional.
This is an interesting thought - why do you think this is unethical?
I'd be inclined to think that, except perhaps in government-sponsored public schools (where freedom of religion legal issues come into play), teachers have an ethical responsibility to serve as role models to students.
There's a famous Canadian case that I studied once in high school and then again in university. A guy named James Keegstra was a public high school teacher cira 1984. He was also an outspoken anti-Semite. He taught that Jews are evil and the Holocaust didn't actually happen. He also expected students to reproduce these ideas on tests.
Long story short: he was convicted of hate speech and lost his teaching credentials.
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posted
I wasn't a law major or anything, but one fundamental difference that I've learned between jurisprudence in the States and here in Canada is that Canadian law makers are much more willing to make and enforce laws that Americans would call violations of personal rights in order to protect society as a whole. That being said, the ruling against Keegstra was first overturned on appeal as a violation of his personal rights, and then reinstated by the Supreme Court on the basis that his exercising of those personal rights was harmful to society.
Americans tend to see this sort of thing as the first step towards fascism. Canadians tend to trust the government to know where to draw the line. At least, that's my totally unbiased view. Posts: 1569 | Registered: Dec 2004
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posted
In regards to not worrying about it until it comes up, well it already has. I still stick to my response, I do not discuss me personal politics or religion.
It will be hard not to bring up my familiarity with Judaism when I teach it in two weeks. I am constantly trying to connect what I teach to either my life or theirs. Especially when I address the holocaust at the end of the year, having my grandfather escaping Germany and losing his parents in the process.
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quote:Originally posted by katharina: Speech like that isn't illegal in the United States. There's no such thing as "hate speech."
Although he'd almost surely still lose his teaching credentials.
That pretty much sums it up. I could get up tomorrow in front of my class and use every derogatory term I can think of. I would lose my job, but not go to jail.
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posted
The first step towards fascism isn't quite the right characterization; it isn't a slippery slope argument, but that such restriction is actively wrong in its own right.
And the argument that forbidding such cases of speech actively betters society is extraordinarily flimsy. I'd love to see examples of any particular harm to society beyond a few people being rather annoyed that would have been prevented in the US if someone had been prosecuted for speech crimes, and I can point to numerous instances over the course of history where speech laws have been used in attempts to shut down political and religious speech.
And, given cases like Maher Arar, I think the general notion of muzzling gov't restrictions as much as possible is pretty well supported.
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quote:If you're not going to tell them your religion, I wouldn't tell them -- not on the first or last day. If you tell them on the last day of class, then someone is going to tell the students in your next class. If you tell them, you may as well be up front about it, although I lean towards not telling them for reasons already stated.
I agree with this. And I wouldn't tell them I was an atheist. I've had some success in the past when people demand to know my religion is to respond with a question: "Why must I have a religion at all?"
This could imply atheism, but it can also imply an unwillingness to adhere to a particular ideology, or a dislike for organized religion. In any case, answering with a question generally stimulates thought.
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Blayne Bradley
unregistered
posted
I disagree, teaching the difference of right and wrong does not require to touch upon religion at all but can be self consistently explained entirely through ethical theory.
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posted
I agree that you should not say what religion or lack of religion you are. Worst case, they dismiss what you say because of your religion.
Posts: 8473 | Registered: Apr 2003
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quote:Originally posted by Stephan: In regards to not worrying about it until it comes up, well it already has. I still stick to my response, I do not discuss me personal politics or religion. ...
And I happen to think thats sufficient.
As an explanation, honestly (and this is for Just_me), I'm not trying to be provocative here, but it really just didn't come up in my area.
C3PO: Its true. I didn't ask questions about my teacher's religions. But that would also be true of the other people in my class, at least during class time. Maybe its a Canadian thing, maybe its even an Ontario thing, but in class we generally didn't ask personal questions about religion. I'm not saying thats a good or bad thing, but I can't remember even having to defend my choice of faith (or lack thereof) even to schoolmates in grade school, beyond simple curiosity.
quote: It will be hard not to bring up my familiarity with Judaism when I teach it in two weeks. I am constantly trying to connect what I teach to either my life or theirs. Especially when I address the holocaust at the end of the year, having my grandfather escaping Germany and losing his parents in the process.
I agree with the general consensus to not share your personal belief system, but this sounds like an experience worth sharing. I don't see why you couldn't talk about your Jewish grandfather. If questions get asked, you can say that you have family within several religious traditions.
Posts: 1947 | Registered: Aug 2002
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quote:In regards to not worrying about it until it comes up, well it already has. I still stick to my response, I do not discuss me personal politics or religion.
It will be hard not to bring up my familiarity with Judaism when I teach it in two weeks. I am constantly trying to connect what I teach to either my life or theirs. Especially when I address the holocaust at the end of the year, having my grandfather escaping Germany and losing his parents in the process.
Being familiar with religions is a good thing, though, since you are teaching about religions. I don't think revealing that you have relatives who are Jewish is quite the same as saying which religion you personally believe in.
quote:I disagree, teaching the difference of right and wrong does not require to touch upon religion at all but can be self consistently explained entirely through ethical theory.
In doing so, you are necessarily touching on religion. For instance, if you come up with an ethical theory that explains right and wrong entirely without referring to God, you contradict all those religions that say one cannot understand right and wrong without first accepting God.
Ethics and religion are directly tied together, because right and wrong is always one of the primary concerns of religion. So as a society we have a choice: we can either teach children to be good people and accept that in doing so we may influence their religious views and values, or we can take character education out of schools and leave the teaching of right and wrong entirely to families. As of right now, our compromise solution to this tends to be that our schools teach a broad version of right and wrong that doesn't refer to religion directly but also doesn't contradict the majority of religious views, while allowing the minority of parents on the extremes to homeschool or attend private schools if they feel their child needs religion to be a bigger part of their school life.
But that is all a tangent from the main thread topic.
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quote:In my experience in grade school, especially in grade 7, I can't remember a single teacher that the I knew the religion of nor did I hear anyone ask about it, even when we were covering religion in social studies class or history.
That is so not the case here, where it's more likely that teachers will be asked "What church do you go to?"
Of course, this is the Bible belt. It's also pretty expected that you will not assign homework on Wednesday because so many kids are in church on Wednesday night, and in fact a teacher who does assign homework on Wednesday will probably have a complaint filed about him/her with the principal.
A friend of mine teaches at the local middle school, where one teacher is an atheist, she has said so publicly, and in fact my husband did some work at her house and she told him, so I'm not getting this solely through rumor mill (admitting, of course, I did not hear it from her own lips, but I trust my husband.) Regardless, even if she ISN'T atheist, the point is the community THINKS she is.
Anyway, at our school system you cannot request a specific teacher, but you do have the option to send a letter to the principal opting out of a teacher, in other words, you could send a letter that said "Do not put my child in Mrs. X's class" and the principal would do it. At this particular middle school, the principal usually receives about 50-75 letters a year from parents requesting that this teacher not teach their child.
Now, I myself would never send such a letter based solely on the fact that this woman had publicly declared herself an atheist. I do not believe religious affiliation or lack thereof has any effect on a person's capability of being a good teacher. But this is the Bible belt, as I said already, and down here at least, announcing to the class that you were an atheist would cause a pretty strong reaction from parents, even if the teacher did nothing wrong.
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posted
I tell my physics students my religion. Of course, I don't REALLY have a choice since my district has school on rosh hashanah and yom kippur, and I'm not there those days. But its easy enough to tell high school students "I'm Jewish." "Why?" "Thats personal."
Actually, with 16-18 year olds, the strategy I usually use when kids ask about my personal life or politics (or whatever) is "If you really want to talk about it, come see me after school." So far, i've had one student come once.
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posted
Well, its not as sad when you realize they ask me "why" about any bit of personal information i let slip, accidentally or otherwise. They're mostly just curious about the people who have power over them.
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posted
I was going to say, that doesn't surprise me in the least. I've noticed even when I go in as a student teacher, I get the third degree.
Posts: 14428 | Registered: Aug 2001
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quote:Originally posted by Paul Goldner: I tell my physics students my religion. Of course, I don't REALLY have a choice since my district has school on rosh hashanah and yom kippur, and I'm not there those days. But its easy enough to tell high school students "I'm Jewish." "Why?" "Thats personal."
Actually, with 16-18 year olds, the strategy I usually use when kids ask about my personal life or politics (or whatever) is "If you really want to talk about it, come see me after school." So far, i've had one student come once.
I was shocked my students did not figure it out yesterday. I always start my lesson with something significant about that day. It could be a holiday, it could be the day the stapler was patented. On Monday I talked about Rosh Hashanah starting at sunset, and explained a bit about the holiday. I guess they just did not notice my absence yesterday. I know, I'm an atheist, but I still spend the day with my mother each year now.
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posted
My beloved philosophy of religion professor said, at the beginning of the term, something like this: "And by the way, I am not going to discuss my personal beliefs about religion. This class isn't about testimony but about understanding and critically analyzing ideas in historical and cultural contexts. Testifying about your or my individual beliefs is not going to help that analysis."
I have known him for almost 20 years now, and we haven't had that particular discussion yet. As we call one another by our first names now, I bet I could ask, though. But for the class? Not relevant, possibly obfuscatory. As a student, I came to very much appreciate and rely on that.
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quote:In doing so, you are necessarily touching on religion. For instance, if you come up with an ethical theory that explains right and wrong entirely without referring to God, you contradict all those religions that say one cannot understand right and wrong without first accepting God.
This is like telling an artist that they can't draw a candlestick without drawing two faces in the negative space around it. The artist didn't draw the faces, and an ethical theory that doesn't touch on religion doesn't touch on religion. The fact that it can be perceived as a contradiction of a religious belief doesn't make it a contradiction until the context is supplied by someone other than the person explaining the theory.
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quote:As a teacher, you have a position of authority and I think it would be unethical to use that authority to influence students religious interests and beliefs -- even if its unintentional.
This is an interesting thought - why do you think this is unethical?
I'd be inclined to think that, except perhaps in government-sponsored public schools (where freedom of religion legal issues come into play), teachers have an ethical responsibility to serve as role models to students. Part of that means modeling the difference between right and wrong, which inherently touches on religion, especially when religions are being studied. For instance, a teacher that teaches students to respect different religions is going to have a very different influence than a teacher that techers students that foreign religions are bizarre and absurd.
The issue is one of professional ethics. As an educator I feel it is my obligation to model good professional ethics for my students. The profession of teaching puts one in a position of authority. It would be unethical of me to misuse that authority even if the misuse is unintentional.
A teacher has two distinctly different types of authority. The first is the authority to assign grades and assess students. I'm pretty sure you'd agree that it would be unethical for me to, for example, offer extra credit to anyone who converted to Mormonism or even extra credit for listening to the Mormon Missionaries.
The second type of authority a teacher holds is more etherial, it is the authority that comes with being a recognized expert. When one is recognized as an expert because of ones profession or title, one is ethically obligate to use that authority only when it is justified. It is unethical to imply that your degree, title, or position makes you an expert in something when it does not.
The classic example of this are medical doctors who endorse products. Very frequently these doctors have no more expertise in the product the average Joe who tried it once, but their endorsement is considered to be more authoritative than average Joe's because of the the initials M.D. behind their name.
My PhD wasn't awarded because of my Testimony of Jesus Christ. I do not hold the position of Professor because I am more spiritually adept than other people and more able to discern divine truths. In fact I sincerely doubt that I have any other than average abilities in these areas. Yet because of the relationships that often exists between teacher and student, there is a very real possibility that some students would consider my religious opinions to be more authoritative and might give more weight to my testimony of Jesus Christ because of the position that I hold. For this reason, I feel ethically obliged to be very circumspect about my religious beliefs around my students. I don't hide my beliefs but I don't advertise my religion with art and posters, I don't hand out tracts or bear my testimony to my students. If asked, which rarely happens, I answer honestly but briefly.
I should add that I don't teach religion but I think the same principles apply. If I taught religion at any place other than a religious institution, I would likely refuse to discuss my personal religious beliefs with my students for the reasons best articulated by CT earlier in this thread.
Posts: 12591 | Registered: Jan 2000
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quote:The second type of authority a teacher holds is more etherial, it is the authority that comes with being a recognized expert. When one is recognized as an expert because of ones profession or title, one is ethically obligate to use that authority only when it is justified. It is unethical to imply that your degree, title, or position makes you an expert in something when it does not.
I agree. But would you agree that telling students your religion is only unethical insofar as they might think your position makes you an expert on which religion is true?
Posts: 8120 | Registered: Jul 2000
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quote:I agree. But would you agree that telling students your religion is only unethical insofar as they might think your position makes you an expert on which religion is true?
No, the issue is much more nuanced than that. Since I don't teach religion, I don't see an ethical problem with revealing my religion to a student if the subject arises, I am simply extremely cautious about any interaction I might have with my students which could be remotely construed as proselytizing.
I'd definitely have a problem with using class time or official student contact hours to say anything about my religion.
If I were teaching an ethics class or a philosophy of religion class at an institution other than my own church, I'd be extremely reticent to reveal any information about my persona religious beliefs for the reason CT explained earlier. As a teacher, I also have a professional ethical responsibility to teach objectively and sometimes that means hiding my personal opinions when I think they will interfere with the students abilities to objectively assess the material.
That doesn't mean I avoid sharing any of my opinions with my students. I've taught engineering ethics and I am more than willing to share my opinions on professional ethics. I'm also willing to tell my students what I think of GW Bush, the WTO and numerous other controversial issues.
Posts: 12591 | Registered: Jan 2000
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quote:Originally posted by The Rabbit: [QUOTE] I'm also willing to tell my students what I think of GW Bush, the WTO and numerous other controversial issues.
That is another issue that will come up shortly. As a social studies teacher I don't share my political views because I teach current events, and again want them to think for themselves.
However we are doing a school wide mock election, and I am worried about other teachers sharing their views a little too much.
My wife is a 5th grade teacher, and held a mock election in 2004. She did a wonderful job teaching views of both Bush and Kerry. Then along comes the music teacher slamming Bush on a daily basis. Only one or two students ended up voting for him.
Now of course there is a huge difference in the power to think for themselves between college students and 5th or 7th graders.
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As we call one another by our first names now, I bet I could ask, though. But for the class? Not relevant, possibly obfuscatory. As a student, I came to very much appreciate and rely on that.
