Teachers and parents are reacting to an incident where faculty member from another school district was expressing their own political beliefs in the classroom.
A case of political bias from an instructor sparked frustration amongst parents in the Central Bucks School District. Teachers in our area are taking notice.
“I don’t believe that a teacher’s opinions on politics have any place in the classroom.”
The Central Bucks School District held a board meeting later with dozens of children’s parents attending. This lead to a legitimate banning of political advocacy in the classrooms.
Local teachers share their logic.
“We exist to create an objective viewpoint for the students, where we present the facts of whatever case or whatever issue you are currently studying… and you let the students decide.”
“I think it’s the teachers job to at least show them what’s out there, but look at each of those things objectively, and say, what do you think about this?”
Teachers tell me they stress the importance of respecting others beliefs. They say that politics play a small role compared to who someone is, as a person and that they shouldn’t be thrown aside based solely on that belief.
“It’s complicated. It’s difficult, and people have widely different viewpoints on a wide variety of topics. But I think at the core of all of us is that we’re human beings.”
And instructors say to me, that in these times it is sometimes better to agree to disagree.