Let’s be honest – the aide should not have said this, even though the truth of the statement is well-documented.

The father of a middle school student in Spring is upset about comments a teacher's aide made in class. They had to do with Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

David Glasker is used to answering questions from his 12-year-old son. But there was one question last week about civil rights leader Martin Luther King that he wasn't prepared for.

Glasker recalled, "'Dad, what is a womanizer?' I looked to him, 'Son, where did you hear this term?'"

His son claimed that's how his teacher's aide described King during a discussion last Thursday. The students were in math class talking about the civil rights leader when he claims the teacher's aide injected her opinion. It's an opinion Glasker is not only offended by, but feels had no place in a math class.

"This is math, this is not American history," he said. "If you're going to talk about a subject, let's keep it to what the class is about."

So, is he objecting to a discussion of MLK in class? Or to the characterization of the civil rights leader?

Well, it quickly becomes clear what the problem is. The parent just doesn’t like having the truth told about King – and doesn’t know the difference between a fact and an opinion. Not that King’s apparent human weakness in any way diminishes his greatness or his accomplishments.

While Glasker isn't against the aide for having her opinions -- in fact, others have written similar statements about King in the past -- he feels based on what his son told him, the aide didn't provide context to the class nor verifiable documentation. Other parents agree.

"I would want the kids to find out the truth, and not something that somebody's assuming," said parent McCoy Brown.

So rather than deal with the facts, parents want the aide sanctioned – which may be an appropriate course of action in this case. After all, is the sex life of a long-deceased American hero a particularly appropriate topic for discussion with young children? However, the basis should be educational appropriateness, not some sort of politically correct sanitizing of history.

Posted by: Greg at 01:30 PM | No Comments | Add Comment
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