Dec 05 2008
Teaching and ties that bind
A social studies teacher attempted to enliven a seventh-grade discussion of slavery by binding the hands and feet of two girls, prompting outrage from one girl’s mother. That is how the article would have started if I had written it instead of including white social studies teacher, black girls and the NAACP. This is a situation where the teacher crossed a line by binding the hand and feet of two students and had them crawl under their desks to simulate slavery. What is wrong with this lesson is that the teacher tied their hands and feet, not the color of the teacher or the color of the students.
I am not sure what this teacher was thinking. Did she ask for volunteers? Did she explain what she was doing? Did the girls have any choice? I have not seen anything answering these questions. I wonder-does this teacher have a history of problems with students of other colors? Was she picking out the girls just because they were black? Has anyone looked into motive or do we just assume prejudice or racism?
Before we take this woman and burn her at the stake, wouldn’t it be better to investigate further? Before she is removed from the room as the girl’s mother suggests, shouldn’t we see if the problem was a poor judgment call on the teacher’s part?
In teacher training, the story of a teacher who taught prejudice by using the eye color of the students was touted as wonderful in its day. Did she receive hear this example? Interactive education has been around a long time and is very useful and is better remembered than reading and discussions. The teacher took the realism too far for these girls and that is the problem that has reared its head so far. Not anything that would involve the NAACP. Another student, another day and you would have a different ending. Which makes me wonder, has she ever done this before with results that would encourage her to do it again? Binding the hands and feet of students is never appropriate but it doesn’t constitute racism. Is anybody asking questions? Or all we all just pre-judging?
