Yet Another Installment of WUT I DON'T EVEN
Third graders in Gwinnett County, GA recently got a very interesting math test:Third graders in in Gwinnett County, Ga., were given math homework Wednesday that asked questions about slavery and beatings.
[...]
[One] question read, "Each tree had 56 oranges. If eight slaves pick them equally, then how much would each slave pick?"
Another math problem read, "If Frederick got two beatings per day, how many beatings did he get in one week?"
Another question asked how many baskets of cotton Frederick filled.
WHO IN THEIR FUCKING RIGHT MINDS ASKS ANYONE, LET ALONE THIRD GRADERS, QUESTIONS LIKE THAT???
Who thought this could possibly be appropriate?"In this one, the teachers were trying to do a cross-curricular activity," Gwinnett County school district spokeswoman Sloan Roach said.
Roach said the teachers were attempting to incorporate social studies into math problems.
"We understand that there are concerns about these questions, and we agree that these questions were not appropriate," she said.
Well, then, Ms. Roach, maybe you should find out what the hell else the teachers are doing as a "cross-curricular activity". And then maybe you should document all of it for their letters of termination, and refer the local and state Boards of Education to the matter, and have it on record that these foul people have no business working with children or in education ever again.
And then, given the tone of your statements, maybe you should check out your own soul. "Trying to do a cross-curricular activity"? "There are concerns about these questions"? "We agree that these questions are not appropriate"? The questions in this "math homework" use as a backdrop the hideous crime of owning another human being, measured in baskets of cotton picked and beatings per day. A little more outrage is not only appropriate, it's necessary. This is completely wrong on every level, and treating it with a monotone makes it a minor blip rather than a major offense.
In the immortal words of Bullwinkle J. Moose, "I think... I shall now... be sick."
This entry was originally posted at http://filkertom.dreamwidth.org/1476132.html. You may comment there or here, although LJ tends to have a livelier conversation at this time.
[...]
[One] question read, "Each tree had 56 oranges. If eight slaves pick them equally, then how much would each slave pick?"
Another math problem read, "If Frederick got two beatings per day, how many beatings did he get in one week?"
Another question asked how many baskets of cotton Frederick filled.
WHO IN THEIR FUCKING RIGHT MINDS ASKS ANYONE, LET ALONE THIRD GRADERS, QUESTIONS LIKE THAT???
Who thought this could possibly be appropriate?"In this one, the teachers were trying to do a cross-curricular activity," Gwinnett County school district spokeswoman Sloan Roach said.
Roach said the teachers were attempting to incorporate social studies into math problems.
"We understand that there are concerns about these questions, and we agree that these questions were not appropriate," she said.
Well, then, Ms. Roach, maybe you should find out what the hell else the teachers are doing as a "cross-curricular activity". And then maybe you should document all of it for their letters of termination, and refer the local and state Boards of Education to the matter, and have it on record that these foul people have no business working with children or in education ever again.
And then, given the tone of your statements, maybe you should check out your own soul. "Trying to do a cross-curricular activity"? "There are concerns about these questions"? "We agree that these questions are not appropriate"? The questions in this "math homework" use as a backdrop the hideous crime of owning another human being, measured in baskets of cotton picked and beatings per day. A little more outrage is not only appropriate, it's necessary. This is completely wrong on every level, and treating it with a monotone makes it a minor blip rather than a major offense.
In the immortal words of Bullwinkle J. Moose, "I think... I shall now... be sick."
This entry was originally posted at http://filkertom.dreamwidth.org/1476132.html. You may comment there or here, although LJ tends to have a livelier conversation at this time.