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IntrepidIsMe
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Location: New York
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 Thu Mar 02, 2006 10:16 pm Colorado Teacher On Leave After Alleged Anti-Bush Remarks |
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| Quote: | Colorado Teacher On Leave After Alleged Anti-Bush Remarks
Thursday, March 02, 2006
AURORA, Colo. — At least 150 Overland High School students walked out of class Thursday to protest administrators' decision to put a teacher on leave while they investigate remarks he made about President Bush during class, including that some people compare Bush to Adolf Hitler.
Cherry Creek School District administrators were investigating whether geography teacher Jay Bennish violated a policy requiring balancing viewpoints in the classroom, district spokeswoman Tustin Amole said.
Amole said Bennish was placed on administrative leave Wednesday to avoid further disruption at the school in this east Denver suburb.
She said the school had heard rumors about the protest, which included some students who objected to Bennish's comments. Students were told to return to class, but she said no disciplinary action was taken.
"It was peaceful. The students yelled, but there was no fighting," Amole said. "Most of them did return to class."
Sophomore Sean Allen recorded about 20 minutes of Bennish's class during a Feb. 1 discussion about Bush's State of the Union speech and gave the recording to his father, who complained to the principal, Amole said.
"After listening to the tape, it's evident the comments in the class were inappropriate. There were not adequate opportunities for opposing points of view," she said.
A telephone number listed for Bennish, who has been teaching social studies and American history at Overland since 2000, had been disconnected.
No action has been taken against Bennish, Amole said. She said the investigation should be complete by late next week while officials continue to talk to students, parents and faculty members.
Amole said Bennish told school officials he had received threats as news of the allegations spread, but she did not speculate on what the threats were and who made them.
She said he was the subject of similar complaints a few years ago, but said that case was resolved after Bennish met with a parent and the school principal.
Allen stayed home from school Thursday to avoid any backlash, Amole said. |
Source: FOXNews.com
Saw this on the news. Weiiiiiiiird.
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WeAz
Commodore
Joined: 03 Apr 2004
Posts: 1519
Location: Where you aren't
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| Thu Mar 02, 2006 10:20 pm |
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Ok, a teacher is put on leave for holding a debate in which things got out of hand? That is really stupid.
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Theresa
Lux Mihi Deus
Joined: 17 Jun 2001
Posts: 27256
Location: United States of America
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| Thu Mar 02, 2006 11:01 pm |
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Thats... irregular.
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Arellia
The Quiet One
Joined: 23 Jan 2003
Posts: 4425
Location: Dallas, TX
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| Thu Mar 02, 2006 11:33 pm |
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| Janeway_74656 wrote: | | Ok, a teacher is put on leave for holding a debate in which things got out of hand? That is really stupid. |
Have you heard the guy? This kid, Sean Allen, recorded the teacher's comments. The guy was nuts. I heard it earlier on Sean Hannity... he was saying how awful and violent the U.S. is, how bad capitalism is. Teach what you want... but those opinions are way off the scale and totally innappropriate for a public school. It wasn't just a debate gone wrong. This is on tape that the teacher was totally inserting his opinions and being an... explicitive, about it.
Last edited by Arellia on Thu Mar 02, 2006 11:35 pm; edited 1 time in total
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Theresa
Lux Mihi Deus
Joined: 17 Jun 2001
Posts: 27256
Location: United States of America
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| Thu Mar 02, 2006 11:34 pm |
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To reply to my PM, I meant what the teacher was doing was irregular.
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Theresa
Lux Mihi Deus
Joined: 17 Jun 2001
Posts: 27256
Location: United States of America
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| Fri Mar 03, 2006 10:10 am |
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| Quote: | teacher Jay Bennish said there were similarities between what Bush said during his State of the Union address and "things that Adolf Hitler used to say."
The United States was "probably the single most violent nation on planet Earth," the social studies teacher also said |
And now they are screaming freedom of speech. If that's his argument, should he really be a teacher anyway? Used to be with freedom of speech came responsibility.
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webtaz99
Commodore
Joined: 13 Nov 2003
Posts: 1229
Location: The Other Side
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| Fri Mar 03, 2006 4:27 pm |
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It is not the job or responsibility for a teacher to harangue students about their personal beliefs. Their job is to teach their subject in an effective and professional way.
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"History is made at night! Character is who you are in the dark." (Lord John Whorfin)
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WeAz
Commodore
Joined: 03 Apr 2004
Posts: 1519
Location: Where you aren't
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| Fri Mar 03, 2006 11:05 pm |
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"With great power, comes great responsibility"
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TrekkieMage
Office Junkie
Joined: 17 Oct 2004
Posts: 5335
Location: Hiding
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| Sun Mar 05, 2006 7:08 pm |
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I'm all for freedom of speech and allowing opinions to be discussed. But in a classroom all sides must be presented. It seems obvious to me that this teacher was not doing their job and it sounds like the students, parents, and administrators are handling this very well.
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WeAz
Commodore
Joined: 03 Apr 2004
Posts: 1519
Location: Where you aren't
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| Sun Mar 05, 2006 10:58 pm |
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| TrekkieMage wrote: | | I'm all for freedom of speech and allowing opinions to be discussed. But in a classroom all sides must be presented. It seems obvious to me that this teacher was not doing their job and it sounds like the students, parents, and administrators are handling this very well. |
I agree that all sides must br presented, but only in certain situations. We don't want to get into a Creationism debate here...
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webtaz99
Commodore
Joined: 13 Nov 2003
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Location: The Other Side
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| Mon Mar 06, 2006 8:55 am |
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| TrekkieMage wrote: | | I'm all for freedom of speech and allowing opinions to be discussed. But in a classroom all sides must be presented. It seems obvious to me that this teacher was not doing their job and it sounds like the students, parents, and administrators are handling this very well. |
This was a geography class. Not political science, history, or Socialism 101. Geography teachers don't get paid to badmouth the country.
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"History is made at night! Character is who you are in the dark." (Lord John Whorfin)
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TrekkieMage
Office Junkie
Joined: 17 Oct 2004
Posts: 5335
Location: Hiding
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| Tue Mar 07, 2006 5:30 pm |
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| webtaz99 wrote: | | TrekkieMage wrote: | | I'm all for freedom of speech and allowing opinions to be discussed. But in a classroom all sides must be presented. It seems obvious to me that this teacher was not doing their job and it sounds like the students, parents, and administrators are handling this very well. |
This was a geography class. Not political science, history, or Socialism 101. Geography teachers don't get paid to badmouth the country. |
O.o
I missed that...He wasn't even in his proper subject! I hope that they seriously review his teaching credibility long and hard before even considering letting him ever teach in a classroom again...
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IntrepidIsMe
Pimp Handed
Joined: 14 Jun 2002
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Location: New York
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| Wed Mar 08, 2006 5:05 pm |
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The student only recorded 20 minutes of a 50 minute class, so it's not as if he talked the entire time about Bush. CNN.com describes the class as "Social Studies" not "Geography," so I'm not quite sure which is correct.
Eitherway, if Bennish is a good teacher besides, I don't think he should be fired.
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webtaz99
Commodore
Joined: 13 Nov 2003
Posts: 1229
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| Wed Mar 15, 2006 11:39 am |
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If the calss was anything but "This teacher's views on contemporay American politics", he was outside the bounds.
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"History is made at night! Character is who you are in the dark." (Lord John Whorfin)
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IntrepidIsMe
Pimp Handed
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Posts: 13057
Location: New York
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| Wed Mar 15, 2006 6:23 pm |
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Yeah, but terminating his employment over it? If he's a good teacher as far as geography or social studies or whatever he teaches, then why fire him and go through the process of finding a new teacher? Tell him not to do it again, blah blah blah.
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webtaz99
Commodore
Joined: 13 Nov 2003
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Location: The Other Side
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| Wed Mar 15, 2006 8:15 pm |
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It's the kind of thing a professional of any type should not have to be specifically told not to do. Like coming to work drunk. You just don't do it.
And if he's such a hot-shot teacher, he should have no problem getting a job elsewhere.
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"History is made at night! Character is who you are in the dark." (Lord John Whorfin)
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IntrepidIsMe
Pimp Handed
Joined: 14 Jun 2002
Posts: 13057
Location: New York
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| Thu Mar 16, 2006 3:22 pm |
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Because people would want to hire him after this whole issue?
It just seems like a waste of resources to fire him.
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