Opression of teachers is a problem both here in the United States and in less democratic nations, such as Saudi Arabia. The impetus behind the oppression of teachers and what they can and can not say to a classroom of students is identical in many ways. (Although the choice of punishment is different.)
For example, in Saudi Arabia:
Saudi high-school chemistry teacher accused of discussing religion with his students has been sentenced to 750 lashes and 40 months in prison for blasphemy, officials said Thursday.The court ruling was condemned by human rights activists, who said Mohammed Salamah al-Harbi was being imprisoned for having an “open discussion” with students.
Al-Harbi was convicted of questioning and ridiculing Islam, discussing the Bible and defending Jews, judicial officials said Thursday on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to talk to the media.
While here in the United States, a similar mindset, from both sides of the political spectrum, seems to be rather prevailant:
A Papillion-La Vista High School math teacher was fired Tuesday night for comments he made in class about religion. Robert Ziegler is a second-year math teacher at Papillion-La Vista High School. Administrators said he discussed Christianity while teaching his math class several times, and parents and students had complained. Administrators suspended Ziegler last month for violating school policy: He deviated from the system’s math curriculum. [...] Administrators testified that Ziegler was an excellent teacher. They said they had asked him several times to teach math, not Christianity, and that his lectures on God violated the Constitution and state law. Ziegler said he had chosen to follow God’s law instead of man-made laws.
And, this one, while not a free speech issue specifically, is rather interesting:
The New York Civil Liberties Union has filed a federal discrimination complaint against a Catholic school, charging that it unjustly fired an unmarried teacher for being pregnant.“I don’t understand how a religion that prides itself on forgiving and on valuing life could terminate me because I’m pregnant and choosing to have this baby,” Michelle McCusker said Monday at a news conference to announce the suit.
The 26-year-old preschool teacher was fired last month from St. Rose of Lima in Queens, according to published reports. [...] “This is a difficult situation for every person involved, but the school had no choice but to follow the principles contained in the teachers’ personnel handbook,” diocese spokesman Frank DeRosa said in a news release.
The handbook says that each teacher must “convey the teachings of the Catholic faith by his or her words and actions.”
Lawyers at the NYCLU, which filed the suit on McCusker’s behalf, argued that administrators enforced the policy in a way that disproportionately affects women.
“The school used her pregnancy as a marker,” attorney Cassandra Stubbs said. “How do they determine if male employees engage in premarital sex?”
Good question.
It is all very interesting because, as said, the mechanism for oppression knows not from left or right. The level of tolerance though, is something different.
Ultimately, it is important to remember that students are smart, for the most part. We have to assume that people are individuals, and that they are going to make mistakes and assume perspectives, political positions based upon much more than simply what they are told in a classroom. Such things occur over an entire life.
Certain things have been established as being separate for a reason: teaching religion in public schools for example. Not something the government nor the states should be involved in. If you want to learn about religion, go to a religious school.
Also, at a certain level, high school for example, it becomes necessary to respect a teachers person perspective and political orientation. That said, there is a place for teaching religion, and the math class is not the place.
When I was at prep school and when I was in college, I had teachers who were Liberal, I had teachers who were Conservative. And, to be entirely honest, the two teachers I cherish the most in my education experience, one was a Liberal, the other was a Conservative. They were both excellent teachers. Sure, they let us know how they felt on a given issue. But, they also taught us how to think and to discuss and argue our point and to seek to understand all points of view. I didn’t always agree with either of them, but I learned from them.
That is because I was taught at an early age to think on my own. So, when a Liberal or a Conservative teacher was a bit overboard, I understood that and worked accordingly. I had a very pro-Communist Liberal teacher at NYU my sophmore year. And, we bumped heads. And you know what? He failed me. He hated my work. I wouldn’t bow to his views. And, I learned from that. Others were smarter and played his game and passed. By the same token, the next year I had a Conservative teacher who was equally as rigid in his views who I totally did not get along with at all and we bumped heads every class. But, I was wise by then, and I wrote all my papers and did my work to his liking. And, I got a B. (It would have been an A if I had been smart enough to not speak up in class and just parroted what he wanted to hear, but we learn some things the painful way.)
My point is, we have to give students a bit more credit, and ensure that they are learning the real skills they need to be productive members of whatever society they choose to be a part.
And, that means critical thinking.
But, as long as there are those who want everyone to think alike, teachers will be given the proverbial and symbolic 750 lashes for their sins, committed in the fight to explore the boundaries of education and free speech.
