Schools that are neither "woke" nor conservative?

[Anonymous]

I'm laughing because I noticed these ridiculous books two years ago when my kid was in virtual kindergarten. His teacher was obsessed with these things. She read books about RBG, Michelle Obama, Jill Biden (???), Sonia Sotomayor, and the "She Persisted" series....what 5 year old gets excited about reading with stuff like this? Also she never even read about a single MALE role model of any political orientation. She also threw a party on Inauguration Day to "celebrate that we are getting a new president" and felt the need to teach 5 year olds that the Wampanoag were slaughtered by white settlers after the first Thanksgiving. Moved to Catholic school.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

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Anonymous wrote:The original question is a little ambiguous on the topic of religious since it says “super religious”? Is merely “religious” okay? St Anselms requires that students learn about Catholicism, but it doesn’t require them to believe Catholic doctrine.

No Catholic high school or University requires students to "believe" in any given faith or doctrine. This is an often misunderstood point about Catholic schools.

but I thought if you taught a kid about something you were grooming them to believe in it . . . impressionable minds and all that

I don't think the human brain is quite that simple. Do you?

No. Clearly some minds are complex enough to believe that grooming is topic dependent.

I'm not sure where grooming came into this conversation, but I'm pretty sure we are on the same page.

[Anonymous]

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Anonymous wrote:You all make it sound like kids at a "woke" school hires drag queens to read Michelle Obama books to your kids all day, every day. Turn off your fox news and get a life.

LMAO! Stick with public OP-- your kids are too stupid for private. Better yet- homeschool because they are too precious for this world.

Wow. That’s original. Are you really that insecure?

-DP

Au contraire! Very secure in knowing OP is a fearful Fox News fanatic.

And you are an ignorant snob.

Better to be a snob than a Trumper.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:You all make it sound like kids at a "woke" school hires drag queens to read Michelle Obama books to your kids all day, every day. Turn off your fox news and get a life.

LMAO! Stick with public OP-- your kids are too stupid for private. Better yet- homeschool because they are too precious for this world.

Wow. That’s original. Are you really that insecure?

-DP

Au contraire! Very secure in knowing OP is a fearful Fox News fanatic.

And you are an ignorant snob.

Better to be a snob than a Trumper.

Aiming pretty low there. But by knowing your level, you can at least claim some degree of self-awareness.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I'm laughing because I noticed these ridiculous books two years ago when my kid was in virtual kindergarten. His teacher was obsessed with these things. She read books about RBG, Michelle Obama, Jill Biden (???), Sonia Sotomayor, and the "She Persisted" series....what 5 year old gets excited about reading with stuff like this? Also she never even read about a single MALE role model of any political orientation. She also threw a party on Inauguration Day to "celebrate that we are getting a new president" and felt the need to teach 5 year olds that the Wampanoag were slaughtered by white settlers after the first Thanksgiving. Moved to Catholic school.

The jazz Jennings book was totally confusing teacher read for our kids when 7 yo.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:So basically you want a school with a “slavery was bad but there were some GOOD slave owners” kinda vibe.

Do you know the impact of your protectionist trade policies on destitute African farmers? The role of slave and child labor in global production system benefiting wealthy capitalist countries? Most Americans, even if they wanted to understand their role in the injustices of the world, would find it beyond human comprehension, because it is. Especially when you layer in generational, ancestral and bystander effects. Progress is not made by raging against the human condition including ignorance, imperfection and limitations. Progress is made by the work of many people with many voices in many vocations including economists, physicians, scientists, artists, politicians, historians, lawyers. And the foundation of an education that requires many voices should not be determined by one singular set. Woke perspectives are valuable. Your mission is a good one. But so is one of someone seeking to preserve the ability to digest a plurality of voices, a cornerstone of democracy

Huh?

+1 That was my thought as well. WTF is she talking and rambling about?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:So basically you want a school with a “slavery was bad but there were some GOOD slave owners” kinda vibe.

Do you know the impact of your protectionist trade policies on destitute African farmers? The role of slave and child labor in global production system benefiting wealthy capitalist countries? Most Americans, even if they wanted to understand their role in the injustices of the world, would find it beyond human comprehension, because it is. Especially when you layer in generational, ancestral and bystander effects. Progress is not made by raging against the human condition including ignorance, imperfection and limitations. Progress is made by the work of many people with many voices in many vocations including economists, physicians, scientists, artists, politicians, historians, lawyers. And the foundation of an education that requires many voices should not be determined by one singular set. Woke perspectives are valuable. Your mission is a good one. But so is one of someone seeking to preserve the ability to digest a plurality of voices, a cornerstone of democracy

Huh?

+1 That was my thought as well. WTF is she talking and rambling about?

https://www.un.org/africarenewal/magazine/september-2002/how-northern-subsidies-hurt-africa

https://www.worldbank.org/en/news/feature/2019/09/23/costo-moda-medio-ambiente

https://www.un.org/africarenewal/magazine/april-2011/drop-drop-kenyans-struggle-climate-change

https://www.globaltimes.cn/page/202109/1235240.shtml

https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1994-12-22-me-11662-story.html

https://www.rollingstone.com/culture/culture-features/world-cup-built-on-modern-slavery-stadium-workers-blow-the-whistle-on-qatars-cover-up-of-migrant-deaths-1234627582/amp/

And that’s just a 3 min google search.

Should I say with contempt, educate yourself? Be better? Does contempt ever improve anything?

You live in a country where the government is elected by the people for the people *of the United States of America.* On this world stage, that includes you.

You vote with your dollars to support businesses like H&M, Nestle, NBC / FIFA and if not those than others

Does the fact that your government and companies are involved or have been involved in slavery, war crimes, and other atrocities meant you condone it? No. Does your ignorance mean you condone it? No. Are you fighting for your schools to teach it? No. Do you understand how the prices and lifestyles play out in your favor? No. I bet you are 100% against abuse. Just as I am 100% against slavery and injustice.

Do you want to separate out your individual role in this? I didn’t watch the World Cup. I don’t buy Nestle. How many times have I heard people say that? My ancestors didn’t own slaves. My parents came to this country in 1980. There are ways in which I also suffer from oppression. “Yes, but you benefit from the system and need to understand how,” comes the reply. But do you understand how you benefit?

You have dollars. Others have none.

Being woke is good. It is limited. No one can know every way in which they are ignorant. As a result, we need many voices with many perspectives. For that we need a broad society and a broad education including pushing back against those who try to silence others.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I'm laughing because I noticed these ridiculous books two years ago when my kid was in virtual kindergarten. His teacher was obsessed with these things. She read books about RBG, Michelle Obama, Jill Biden (???), Sonia Sotomayor, and the "She Persisted" series....what 5 year old gets excited about reading with stuff like this? Also she never even read about a single MALE role model of any political orientation. She also threw a party on Inauguration Day to "celebrate that we are getting a new president" and felt the need to teach 5 year olds that the Wampanoag were slaughtered by white settlers after the first Thanksgiving. Moved to Catholic school.

OMG, I think we might have been at the same school. We left, too.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

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Anonymous wrote:WIS! Some of the people in the WIS community who are most confused by the concepts of being woke are black foreign nationals from places like France, Ghana, Morocco and Nigeria. Thus, there is highly legitimate, non-racist questioning around woke-ness amongst the parents. Where it comes to the students, the teachers and administrators follow the IB to a T.

There probably is highly legitimate, non-racist questioning about what people like you call “woke-ness”.

So let’s pause for a moment and think seriously about why you had to reach to “black (sic) foreign nationals” to believe that you could find it.

Note: At least some of those people surely realize that without the efforts of the “woke” their children would not legally be able to attend WIS, since prior to the 1970’s schools were racially segregated.

There are 7 billion people on this planet. 300m live in America. That means there are over 6 billion who have no clue what you’re talking about. Some of them move here with a focus on bringing energy or health care to people living in horrific poverty. Truly horrific. They have a desire to see their kids grow up with a world perspective, perspectives that you may be ignorant about. Ignorance is why we have education, and we can want to be educated about different parts of humanity and all be good people.

I got lost counting the weird, vague generalities in your answer. So let's take a look.

1. US media and culture are transmitted by satellite and Internet to every country on the planet. Only a minority are ignorant of US history and society, not 6 billion. Look at movie ticket sales worldwide.

2. Only a tiny minority who come here are involved in aid projects for their home countries. The vast majority in DC and around the US are parents who immigrated for economic opportunity and educational opportunities here. Survey any set of private school parents here.

3. What is "a world perspective" since there are 200 countries and even more languages and cultures in the world, each with its own history and perspective? Anyone who has been to more than a handful of countries knows that.

4. Education about different parts of humanity to be a good person is the foundation of understanding that the world is both a diverse and often unfair place, even moreso in the past than now. That's the ignorance that modern education aims to lift.

So whatever point you were trying to make got VERY lost along the way.

The movie posters are of Tom Cruise. The vast majority of people globally do not know what being woke means to you. The unreciprocated dominance of American culture is highly problematic and merits its own discussion. At a school like WIS where many families have at least one parent who works at an embassy, World Bank or IMF, a great number of families are here to help those who face global inequities and hardships. The world is a vastly unfair place. There are people here whose idea of unfairness only reach the limits of their own country. Outside of it, it gets worse, and there are educations that focus on issues outside the US, and that is good. There are certainly enough educations that are US-centric and raise US-centric Americans who see no problem with American dominance. As for the specific education designed to teach children to learn about this world that has 200 countries, take a look at the WIS curriculum. It is designed to raise globally aware students, and the IB is very unique but thoughtful.

You’re sweet to think this is true.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:WIS! Some of the people in the WIS community who are most confused by the concepts of being woke are black foreign nationals from places like France, Ghana, Morocco and Nigeria. Thus, there is highly legitimate, non-racist questioning around woke-ness amongst the parents. Where it comes to the students, the teachers and administrators follow the IB to a T.

There probably is highly legitimate, non-racist questioning about what people like you call “woke-ness”.

So let’s pause for a moment and think seriously about why you had to reach to “black (sic) foreign nationals” to believe that you could find it.

Note: At least some of those people surely realize that without the efforts of the “woke” their children would not legally be able to attend WIS, since prior to the 1970’s schools were racially segregated.

There are 7 billion people on this planet. 300m live in America. That means there are over 6 billion who have no clue what you’re talking about. Some of them move here with a focus on bringing energy or health care to people living in horrific poverty. Truly horrific. They have a desire to see their kids grow up with a world perspective, perspectives that you may be ignorant about. Ignorance is why we have education, and we can want to be educated about different parts of humanity and all be good people.

I got lost counting the weird, vague generalities in your answer. So let's take a look.

1. US media and culture are transmitted by satellite and Internet to every country on the planet. Only a minority are ignorant of US history and society, not 6 billion. Look at movie ticket sales worldwide.

2. Only a tiny minority who come here are involved in aid projects for their home countries. The vast majority in DC and around the US are parents who immigrated for economic opportunity and educational opportunities here. Survey any set of private school parents here.

3. What is "a world perspective" since there are 200 countries and even more languages and cultures in the world, each with its own history and perspective? Anyone who has been to more than a handful of countries knows that.

4. Education about different parts of humanity to be a good person is the foundation of understanding that the world is both a diverse and often unfair place, even moreso in the past than now. That's the ignorance that modern education aims to lift.

So whatever point you were trying to make got VERY lost along the way.

The movie posters are of Tom Cruise. The vast majority of people globally do not know what being woke means to you. The unreciprocated dominance of American culture is highly problematic and merits its own discussion. At a school like WIS where many families have at least one parent who works at an embassy, World Bank or IMF, a great number of families are here to help those who face global inequities and hardships. The world is a vastly unfair place. There are people here whose idea of unfairness only reach the limits of their own country. Outside of it, it gets worse, and there are educations that focus on issues outside the US, and that is good. There are certainly enough educations that are US-centric and raise US-centric Americans who see no problem with American dominance. As for the specific education designed to teach children to learn about this world that has 200 countries, take a look at the WIS curriculum. It is designed to raise globally aware students, and the IB is very unique but thoughtful.

You’re sweet to think this is true.

When a mom can’t chaperone a field trip, because she’s lobbying the UN to provide aid to a war torn country I know it. I myself lived in a totalitarian regime and work in the development sector. There is a spectrum of self-interest you cannot understand if you silence everyone who wants more than a woke education. Unless you think sacrificing a minority voices is a small price to pay…

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I'm laughing because I noticed these ridiculous books two years ago when my kid was in virtual kindergarten. His teacher was obsessed with these things. She read books about RBG, Michelle Obama, Jill Biden (???), Sonia Sotomayor, and the "She Persisted" series....what 5 year old gets excited about reading with stuff like this? Also she never even read about a single MALE role model of any political orientation. She also threw a party on Inauguration Day to "celebrate that we are getting a new president" and felt the need to teach 5 year olds that the Wampanoag were slaughtered by white settlers after the first Thanksgiving. Moved to Catholic school.

Have you been happy with the Catholic school? Do students who aren't Catholic feel welcome? (Not OP, but a non-Catholic Christian considering Catholic school for similar reasons).

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I'm laughing because I noticed these ridiculous books two years ago when my kid was in virtual kindergarten. His teacher was obsessed with these things. She read books about RBG, Michelle Obama, Jill Biden (???), Sonia Sotomayor, and the "She Persisted" series....what 5 year old gets excited about reading with stuff like this? Also she never even read about a single MALE role model of any political orientation. She also threw a party on Inauguration Day to "celebrate that we are getting a new president" and felt the need to teach 5 year olds that the Wampanoag were slaughtered by white settlers after the first Thanksgiving. Moved to Catholic school.

Have you been happy with the Catholic school? Do students who aren't Catholic feel welcome? (Not OP, but a non-Catholic Christian considering Catholic school for similar reasons).

Depends on the school. If it’s one with a substantial non-Catholic presence already, no one will notice.

But, at most there won’t be any special effort to make non-Catholics more welcome than they would other students. Attendance at Mass will be required, but only Catholics can receive Communion. Most of the other parents will assume you are Catholic. “After all”, they think, “It’s a Catholic school”.

The teachers are overwhelming Catholics, but respectful of other religions. But they might also start conversations with, “As Catholics, we believe …”

And then there’s the matter of getting admitted as a non-Catholic. These schools favor legacies (There are lots of them), graduates of parish schools they have long symbiotic relationships with, and Catholics in general. Some non-Catholics do get it. But their odds of being accepted are generally longer.

The experience of non-Catholics seems to vary from “It was never a problem” to “I couldn’t stand it and I’d never put my daughter or son in the position of being part of a small minority”.

It’s been my experience that non-Catholics generally have little understanding of the Catholic religion and the differences between themselves and Catholics religiously and culturally. It’s not just another Protestant sect. That’s especially true in MD and NWDC where a large percentage of the Catholics have Irish roots.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Yes they exist:
Potomac School
St Stephens St Agnes
Stone Ridge
Georgetown Prep
St Albans
St Anslems
Visitation

These schools are inclusive but not pushing ideology of any kind in the classroom

My kids started at st stephens st Agnes this year and every single classroom has a copy of a children’s book by Barack Obama. Many have Malala’s book as well. I’ve been pleasantly surprised by what the op would consider “wokeness” by all the teachers. I’m very liberal
Minded and SSSAS is “woke” enough for me!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Are there any schools that are known to be more culturally and politically moderate or neutral... neither "woke" nor super religious or conservative?

It seems like a lot of schools even in Kindergarten are openly very progressive (for example, they'll read board books praising Michelle Obama, Ruth Bader Ginsburg, etc., but you'd never see a book about Laura Bush or Sandra Day O'Connor or some other equivalent figure on "the other side"). I'm looking for more of a straight-forward focus on academics without the pushing of any political ideology.

Does this still exist?

Woke is such a weird term. You mean respecting other people, not being racist or antisemitic, being respectful and supportive of your fellow LGBTQ classmates? It’s called being a nice good person.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Are there any schools that are known to be more culturally and politically moderate or neutral... neither "woke" nor super religious or conservative?

It seems like a lot of schools even in Kindergarten are openly very progressive (for example, they'll read board books praising Michelle Obama, Ruth Bader Ginsburg, etc., but you'd never see a book about Laura Bush or Sandra Day O'Connor or some other equivalent figure on "the other side"). I'm looking for more of a straight-forward focus on academics without the pushing of any political ideology.

Does this still exist?

Woke is such a weird term. You mean respecting other people, not being racist or antisemitic, being respectful and supportive of your fellow LGBTQ classmates? It’s called being a nice good person.

I think it’s hilarious that person thinks Obama-lovers are remotely progressive. But then, since “woke” and “progressive” have joined “liberal” and “socialist” on the “everything I don’t like is this” list, I’m not surprised.