Editor,
Thanks, James Utt, for not returning to teaching and recognizing that your liberal bias would seep into any classroom you enter. We already have a liberal invasion in our colleges, where professors stray far off course syllabi to indoctrinate young minds with extreme bias masquerading as education.
In the early 1980’s, I successfully appealed an “F” on my final, refuting my UC Santa Barbara professor’s liberal view of rehabilitation of all criminals, my first taste of liberal bias. It reeked then, but nothing like the liberal affront facing students today. Something is seriously wrong with our education system when teachers like Orange Coast Community College’s Olga Cox are permitted to isolate and shame conservative minded students, and declare a U.S. president’s election an act of terrorism.
In Santa Cruz, a teacher assigned seven books in an English literature course, all about black rights and the black lives matter movement. Maybe appropriate for black studies, but not English literature. The objecting student was told to either drop the class or leave the school. In Florida, a student opposed a teacher in class after she exalted Islamic extremism and said Jesus’ crucifixion was a hoax and his disciples did not believe in God. She gave the straight “A” student an “F,” and had him suspended, claiming she felt threatened by the opposition to her teachings. That teacher also filed a false police report against the student. Last week, a Cal State Fresno teacher tweeted at #TheResistance that President Trump should be hung, encouraged assassination, and called for the execution of two Republicans for each immigrant deported. There is something seriously wrong with our education system when teachers like these are permitted in our children’s classrooms.
So I’m glad you’re not teaching, because we already have too many teachers who cannot differentiate the course subject from their political beliefs. For the first time in years, there is hope that the downward spiral of this country will be up righted, and that the flow of extreme liberal bias that has been allowed to seep into our education system and indoctrinate our youth will cease. Children should be taught to think critically, and not simply become indoctrinated followers. If they develop that skill, they will be able to identify bias from fact, and intelligent thought from political rants masquerading as education. Unfortunately, it is likely too late to save California. It’s already being taxed to death by our governor and legislature.
Jennifer Welsh-Zeiter, Laguna Beach
God bless you, Jennifer. Thank you very much for writing that important letter.
“Public education is a socialist monopoly, a real one.” – The Late Milton Friedman
Education spending has a negative correlation to educational achievement, but every year, without exception, teachers’ unions make increased education spending their number one priority. Couple this fact with the fact that the average teacher graduated in the bottom third of their college class, and you have a very depressing situation which explains this failed bureaucracy, which desperately needs to change. May Education Secretary, Betsy DeVos succeed in helping our vulnerable and impressionable youth escape from the horrors we have been experiencing for much too long.
I want to thank educators like Jim Utt for teaching me critical thinking skills. Cherry picking anecdotes does not a cogent argument make. You flunked a class almost three decades ago, appealed the grade and got a pass. I could find no reference to the incident at your alma mater involving an English Literature syllabus that had too many books by black writers. Then you drag in the Rollins College incident (March 2017) the Olga Cox story from January of this year that happened at Orange Coast CC and the CS-Fresno teacher who tweeted too much. You fail to convince me of anything with these paltry scraps of “evidence” strung together with hyperbole.
[…] writing in response to Jennifer Welsh-Zeiter’s letter to the editor (“Thanks for Not Teaching”) posted April 20, […]
Ms. Welsh-Zeiter, Thanks to people like you, today’s teachers are so scared to cover current politics in an objective fashion, for fear they will be fired. You are whitewashing our nation with your myopic views. Throw in a President who does not read or is educated in history, and yes, our nation could be headed into war, a true downward spiral.
Christinee Fugate…Get A Grip! Teachers are far from afraid to throw up their liberal/left political views on our students. Time to wake up!