Propaganda in the Classroom
Many would agree that propaganda, defined as “material disseminated by the advocates or opponents of a doctrine or cause” should have no place in the classroom. If asked, many teachers and parents would deny the existence of it within the TSD. But if it doesn’t exist, why are so many parents concerned about it in their child’s classroom?
Let’s explore a recent lesson conducted at Maple View Middle School, in which students put Christopher Columbus on trial. The following pictures were made public after a concerned parent felt the school was entering into the realm of indoctrination over education. The seemingly innocent lesson started off with a fair question: Should people from the past be judged through the lens of today?
After students answered the initial questions, the presentation continued and asked further questions such as: “Who might want to celebrate Columbus day…?” and “Who may resent celebrating Columbus day?” Again, these are valid questions if we are to learn true, unfiltered history. Most parents are not opposed to such education. The issues come when teachers cross the line of teaching a lesson and move into the territory of pushing an agenda. Many parents believe the presentation began to cross that line with the following slides.
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Numerous parents expressed that the lesson was presented in a way to guide malleable minds to a predetermined answer to the original question. Admittedly, presenting rhetoric that paints Columbus solely as a murderer and stating that Europeans came for “Gold, God and Glory” seems a bit odd in a middle school setting. Vilifying Columbus by judging him and others won’t change the unfairness of the past. It will however delegitimize the contributions made to Western civilization through his actions which cannot be denied. While we must certainly learn factual history, teachers have a responsibility to paint it in a neutral light that tells all sides of the story. Do you believe this teacher crossed that line as other parents have claimed?
The concerns of parents go farther then possible skewed lessons of history. Current events that are controversial, such as the Black Lives Matter (BLM) riots, have even made their way into the classroom. One teacher at Summit Trail Middle School had kids read about Black Lives Matter and express what they thought the protests meant. On the assignment slide presented, kids were shown opinion pieces such as: “I’m Prejudiced.” Regardless of one’s opinion of BLM and the riots that took place, there is an undeniable fact that the subject is HIGHLY controversial. Putting kids in an uncomfortable situation where they must write about an offensive topic at such a young age is flat out poor practice.
Does this lesson enter into propaganda territory though? Many parents seem to think it’s pushing a narrative.
Beyond possible propaganda in lessons, other controversies exist such as the “rainbow library” or rainbow flags in the classroom meant to push LGBTQ+ narratives on young minds. To even question whether this should be allowed in school quickly brings accusations of bigoty and homophobia. Yet many parents are concerned that kids are not yet ready to be introduced to such confusing topics without parental guidance. Teachers who fly the rainbow flag in their classroom or wear a rainbow pin claim they are supporting the LGBTQ+ kids, but there have been many claims that staff will push LGBTQ+ clubs and agendas on their students. While these staff members act as “guardians” of a minority class, they completely discount the fact that the “rainbow” has very a sacred meaning in Abrahamic religions and that practitioners of those religions in our schools may find displaying the flag extremely offensive.
There are many examples of concerned parents who state teachers are going beyond teaching and pushing agendas. We will leave the answer of whether teachers are pushing propaganda on our kids to you. One thing is for certain though: school staff are being allowed to skirt basic education and introduce highly controversial topics with skewed opinions into the classroom. This should concern all parents because one day, the topic may not be one you approve of.
