Reply to How to address biased HS teacher

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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]DC has a teacher with known conservative views on many social issues (pro-choice, against gay marriage, aligned with groups that do not believe in affirmative action or kids who are trans using their preferred gender bathroom) based on previous advocacy work.

This year DC wrote what we thought was an excellent paper related to about a particular historical moment in the LGBT rights movement, and got a poor grade. When she got the rubric and grading back many items that were marked off did not make any sense. When she tried to inquire with the teacher the teacher was very defensive and kept coming back to the point that the teacher did not agree with the thesis. The teacher also came down on DC for not presenting the other view point which is that LGBT rights are not a good thing. DC did mention that there is opposition from some groups, especially religious groups, but it was not half her paper because the assignment was not to present all sides of an issue but to pick a moment and make an argument about it. One of my good friends is a HS teacher and read the assignment and paper and was shocked about the grade and thought this needed to be brought up to the administration.

We are not sure what to advise DC to do next if anything. Is this something you would bring up and how would you do it? Would you go to the teacher first? The department head or the principal? This is a public school.[/quote]

You think the paper is wonderful because it represents your point of view and you feel that you are proving to the teacher she is wrong. The paper in fact could suck.  Just depends. Does the rubric say to provide opposing viewpoints and explain them?  Refute them?  Teens' ideas of refuting an argument can be based on feelings but maybe the point was to refute the arguments with actual facts and citations. Even so they might pick the wrong facts that don't actually refute argument. It's still a learning process.

Your friend of course is going to tell you the paper is brilliant even if she doesn't think so.

Other posters are right, you and your DD just want the teacher to be wrong.  It's a waste of time. Don't teach your kid this kind of nonsense. They don't need to try and fix the teachers view points. That's not her responsibility and it's not even possible. Do your kid a favor and just tell them yeah this wasn't the right approach, learn to tread your audience, and don't waste any more time on this.[/quote]

WHAT KIND OF BS REPSONSE IS THIS? ARE YOU F'ING KIDDING ME?? Are you really saying that kids should be treading lightly around their teachers personal belief systems instead of trying to learn, meet the grading rubric, and succeed based on the merits of the assignment? In high school none the less? You are ridiculous. [/quote]

Ever hear the expression "Discretion is the better part of valor"? Just because you've been wronged doesn't necessarily mean the best move is to take an epic moral stand, especially considering it will most likely fail. It's good for the teen to learn that there are, in fact, people out there who abuse their authority and you should be strategic about confronting them. The goal of confrontation should be to change behavior, not just to feel good.

Any attempt at confronting needs to be weighed against 
1)the fact that the teacher has been there for years and the first instinct of the administration will be to defend them, and 
2)the strength of the evidence. 2) has to be enough to overwhelm 1).

If you're arguing the finer points of what the rubric really means, you've already lost. Instead you're just advising the kid to kick up a big fuss and indulge their latent urge towards righteous indignation, with the only real result being branded a whiner and/or troublemaker.

OP might be best served as a parent by using this as an opportunity to demonstrate a bit of grace and forebearance. As an adult, that kid is at some point going to have a bad manager, [b]or need something from an aloof bureaucrat who treats their authorities like a petty dictator.[/b] If all the kid knows how to do is make a moral stand and issue demands for fair treatment, they're going to faceplant in the adult world. Better to learn how to recognize that situation, and figure out how to get by while looking for the exits or keep your composure until they finally cross the line and do something actionable. [/quote]

Yes, teach people to just acquiesce even when the person in authority is/may very well be wrong.  Nothing bad ever comes from that.  Sycophants to Trump didn't harm anything and didn't lead any of them into any negative publicity, public ire, or legal trouble.  Obedience to ridiculous or tyrannical laws out of fear of Hitler or Stalin's wrath never led to anything bad.

I admire the courage and bravery of Russians publicly protesting Putin's actions on Ukraine - they are doing so out of a sense of right and wrong in spite of knowing full well what becomes of Putin's critics and enemies.

Yes, absolutely OP's child should not bother to get a third party objective opinion of her work if they have any reason at all to believe something inappropriate took place.  And they should absolutely continue to just "read" their teachers and classmates and bosses and colleagues and play along like a sheep throughout their academic and professional careers.  That's what makes a great, courageous, effective individual to be admired by history for their contributions to society.  Just like our country's forefathers, MLK Jr, FDR, etc etc etc.  Acquiesce!!!

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