School district officials in Albany say they’re mulling disciplinary action for a high school English teacher whose writing assignment asked students to make a persuasive argument blaming Jews for the problems of Nazi Germany.
School district spokesman Ron Lesko says Friday that administrators are discussing what official action the 10th-grade teacher at Albany High School could face for the assignment given to students on Monday.
The assignment, first reported Friday by the Albany Times Union, asked students to research Nazi propaganda, then assume their teacher was a Nazi government official who had to be convinced of their loyalty. The assignment told students they “must argue that Jews are evil.”
A third of the students refused to complete the assignment.
Superintendent Marguerite Vanden Wyngaard says she doesn’t believe the teacher who handed out the assignment had malicious intent. The school district has not named the teacher.
(AP)
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7 Responses
arguing that a group of people are evil and not malicious intent
Think about it if the scenerio involved an assignment that challenged students to figure out why Blacks commit the most crime in America. What would happen?
The assignment is backwards. If this teacher wanted to really “teach” she would say- make an argument AGAINST the Nazi propaganda. It’s easy to join the masses when EVERYONE says it’s specifically “their own” fault. The most memorable speakers are the ones that called for a change of common opinion like MLK, and Lincoln. Even Obama’s call for change from the Republican way of America.
Sounds like a writing assignment I and others in a 10th grade writing class had to write an essay in opposition to the U.S. refurbishing Israel’s military supplies in the 1973 war. I took that one to a school administration head who also happened to be a member of my congregation and he got the assignment cancelled.
@PBT
You cannot compare your assignment to this, one is anti-Jewish and is a question about American foreign policy in the 70’s.
These occurrences, first the assignment, and even more so the Superintendent’s reaction are not humorous, and do not call for humorous responses.
If it was as Commentator #2 suggested, the teacher would not have to worry about disciplinary action by the school, as she would not have lived long enough for it to matter.
But, we are the peaceful scapegoats again, “Mi k’Amcha Yisroel?”
But this incident is certainly an eyeopener for those with sealed eyes.
First to mend our ways, and beseech the Borei Olam.
And then, we may have to start packing.
Here’s to food for thought, if it were to eat, we could chas v’shalom choke.
Once again i fee that the only crime committed here is the crime of over reaction. It is not about black or white, right or wrong anti-senetisim or people bashing.
I think it is a bold gesture that we contemplate reasons for hatred. It is only through that, that we can truly understand that hatred has no logic has no reason and therefore has no place in our lives.
Lessons must be learned from every expression of hatred and violence.
The teacher in my opinion does not deserve the hysteria that has been created. The hysteria is doing more harm than good.