Students Told to Call 9-11 Hijackers “Freedom Fighters”

[badrose]

http://radio.foxnews.com/toddstarnes/top-stories/students-told-to-call-9-11-hijackers-freedom-fighters.html

An Advanced Placement World Geography teacher at a Texas high school who encouraged students to dress in Islamic clothing also instructed them to refer to the 9-11 hijackers not as terrorists – but as “freedom fighters,” according to students who were in the class.

Students at Lumberton High School were also told to stop referring to the Holocaust as Genocide – instead they were told to use the term “ethnic cleansing.”
John Valastro, the superintendent of the Lumberton Independent School District, told Fox News that the teacher did absolutely nothing wrong.
“What is more dangerous – fear and ignorance or education and understanding,” he asked. “From our standpoint, we are here to educate the kids.”
Valastro said the teacher involved is a 32-year veteran who was simply following state teaching guidelines.
“I don’t think my freshman-level teacher was trying to politicize radical Islam or anything like that,” he told Fox News. “I don’t think our teacher has..to my knowledge ever converted a single student to Islam.”

[badrose]

LeBlanc said the students were told that they could no longer use the terms suicide bomber or terrorist. Instead, they were instructed to use the words “freedom fighters.”
“This teacher taught her that a freedom fighter is when they give their life for the Holy War – and that they’re going to go to heaven,” she told Fox News. “They were saturating these kids in Islam and my daughter is an American Christian child.”
Madelyn LeBlanc told Fox News that it was clear her teacher was very uncomfortable lecturing the students.
“I do have a lot of sympathy for her,” the 15-year-old said. “At the very beginning she said she didn’t want to teach it but it was in the curriculum.”
Her mother added that it was her impression that the teacher did not agree with the quote about calling the terrorists freedom fighters and laced her lecture with sarcasm.
During a lesson on Judaism, LeBlanc said the teacher told the class, “Students, I’m supposed to be politically correct and tell you that the Holocaust was not Genocide. It was an ethnic cleansing.”

LeBlanc said her daughter kept detailed notes of every classroom lecture and as she read the transcripts she became disturbed.
“Really,” she asked. “They can’t call the Holocaust Genocide? I was more upset with that than the lessons on Islam. It made me sick.”
And then came the comparison between the 9-11 hijackers and the freedom fighters.
Madelyn said a young man sitting beside her was stunned.
“He was shocked that we had to call them that,” she told Fox News. “He laughed and asked the teacher, ‘Is that a joke? Are you serious? Why do we have to call them that? That makes it sound okay (what they did) And it’s not.’”
Madelyn said the teacher didn’t know how to respond.
“She said it was something we have to learn for the end of the year testing,” she said. “I’m sure it was very difficult for her to do.”
Madelyn said the lesson about freedom fighters made her feel “terrible.”
“That made it sound like what they were doing was okay,” she said.

[BigBlueBrock]

I don't know about anyone else, but the most shocking thing I got from this was that it happened at a Texas high school and is apparently part of the Texas curriculum for AP Geography.

[CitizenBBN]

gen·o·cide [jen-uh-sahyd]
noun
the deliberate and systematic extermination of a national, racial, political, or cultural group.

ter·ror·ism [ter-uh-riz-uhm] Show IPA
noun
1.
the use of violence and threats to intimidate or coerce, especially for political purposes.



Um, how is the Holocaust not genocide or a mass attack on innocent civilians not terrorism? That's not political correctness, those are the dictionary definitions of the words.

Terrorism is one possible tool of the "freedom fighter", but the attack was an act of terrorism, black letter definition of it, and one who carries out an act of terrorism is a terrorist. One may be a "freedom fighter" as well as a terrorist, but one is a terrorist when they use the fear of violence against innocent people to affect political change.

The Holocaust is the definition of genocide, the attempt to exterminate an entire ethnic group. I hope the Anti-Defamation League gets involved in this along with everyone else. Whoever has these things in the Texas exams should be fired and probably stoned.

[KeithKSR]

Those aren't geography topics.

[dan_bgblue]

Those aren't geography topics.

Now class can you give me the lat long coordinates for Iceland? (64.8343° N, 18.9770° W) No teacher I can not, but I know that Kim Jong Un is being unfairly treated by the government of the United States and he is a freedom fighter.

[TheBluesZZZ]

Again we have a term for folks such as this. Down here in the country they are called "The Ship of Fools".

[suncat05]

When teachers and those that decide their teaching curriculum teach lies and facts that are less than truthful, and that which we know to be lies, then there can only be bad results concerning the minds of our children.

Given what we see and hear and experience going on all around us, the only logical conclusion that a reasonable person can arrive at is that bad times are just over the horizon for us as a country. Very bad times.
How many warnings do we need before we act in our own defense to protect ourselves? Or do we just capitulate? I see no future in the latter. And I am not a sheep. Yes, we have a legal & legislative solution available to us, but what other recourse do we have available to us when that solution is no longer honored by those who feel they know better than us? The same people who seek to disarm all of us because "they" fear us and our arms?
I am a citizen.........not a "subject", and I choose to remain that way.

[jazyd]

Sun I agree and I hope you read some of the stories at the bottom of the page.we are under attack from within and few know because of the silence and apparent agreement by the media. It may all be hopeless at this point, too many on the gov tit who don't care about anything other than getting their free ride and continuing to vote for whoever gives it to them. Many of our children are being brainwashed, and it shows in so many in the 22-40 age group that vote for an Obama, hang out in cities w/o bathing, and leading so called rally's against Wall Street or whatever they don't like that day. They have a wrapped opinion our our system and economy. It might just be over my friend
Boston tea party members are terrorists, 9-11 murderers are freedom fighters, students made to recite the Mexican pledge and stand for their flag but our Flag is racist, Islam is taught in school but Christians are demeaned, etc, etc, etc.



When teachers and those that decide their teaching curriculum teach lies and facts that are less than truthful, and that which we know to be lies, then there can only be bad results concerning the minds of our children.

Given what we see and hear and experience going on all around us, the only logical conclusion that a reasonable person can arrive at is that bad times are just over the horizon for us as a country. Very bad times.
How many warnings do we need before we act in our own defense to protect ourselves? Or do we just capitulate? I see no future in the latter. And I am not a sheep. Yes, we have a legal & legislative solution available to us, but what other recourse do we have available to us when that solution is no longer honored by those who feel they know better than us? The same people who seek to disarm all of us because "they" fear us and our arms?
I am a citizen.........not a "subject", and I choose to remain that way.

[suncat05]

jazy, it's not over until we say it's over. It's not up to them. They don't know or understand that. But they will when the SHTF!

[badrose]

jazy, it's not over until we say it's over. It's not up to them. They don't know or understand that. But they will when the SHTF!

One of the problems for those of us who are too busy working to provide for our families is the lack of organization. This is the area where those who have brought all of this crap about have us sorely beaten. In order to stand up and beat them we'll need to have a working game plan. It will be hard to do that without showing our hand. If a realistic plan for that comes about I'm all in. Otherwise it seems they could just pick us off one by one. Just typing this makes me a little paranoid, not knowing if someone is watching.

[suncat05]

At a disadvantage? Yes, absolutely. But the rest I disagree with. Why? Because there are millions of arms out there, and people with a will. Where there's a will, and the means to enforce that will, then the game is changed. And the organization, if it hasn't already started happening, will.
Yes, the other side has everything working for it on its side right now. So did the British in 1775 and 1812. Now would it be a tough obstacle to overcome? Yes, absolutely. Is it worth it? Yes, absolutely.

[Darrell KSR]

Who is in charge of the Texas state curriculum for education? That's bizarre.

[BigBlueBrock]

Who is in charge of the Texas state curriculum for education? That's bizarre.

That's what I said!

[CitizenBBN]

Who is in charge of the Texas state curriculum for education? That's bizarre.

I'm hoping you'll be able to find them at the Dallas unemployment office in the near future.

I can see this crap in San Fran, but Texas?

They should be fired for it being BS, but also for it just being flat wrong, political issues aside. The Holocaust was "genocide", that's the proper word in every grammatical and intellectual sense. the 9/11 attackers were "terrorists", even if they were also in the view of some "freedom fighters". They committed an act of terrorism, a well and easily defined act of violence that is one used by some "freedom fighters".

It's like taking off on a math test for 2+2=4. "Genocide" is the right answer, and no amount of proclamation from someone in the Texas Dept of Education with an agenda changes it.

I'd also like to know how this got through all the way to classes. Hope they're all fired and banished from the state.

[badrose]

A couple of months back I heard on the radio that Texas schools were calling the Boston Tea party an act of terror. So, this fits. Hard to believe this is happening there. Normally, I think if push comes to shove Texas is the place I'd want to be.

[jazyd]

brother for our childrens and grandchildren, I hope you are right but the swing is far against us right now and there are so many stupid people out there believing what the media is saying to them, not seeing thru the lies, have you heard anything about this crap on the national media? NO and you won't because this is what they want, bascially a communinism type state where we give and they take and the top elite tell us when to jump.



jazy, it's not over until we say it's over. It's not up to them. They don't know or understand that. But they will when the SHTF!

[jazyd]

I'd like to know why the teachers are accepted it and are teaching it. Guys this is just the tip of the iceberg, this is what these damn liberals/progressives want. We are the bad guys, they are all for the Mexicans taking the south part of our country and allowing the muslims a strong foothold and they are too stupid to realize once it happens, all those smartass elites will be out on their ass in the streets.

You dont' hear the media talking about this, you only will hear about it on conservative outlets, they are the only ones getting the truth out and yet there are so many that want to call them Faux News, tells you how stupid those people are, they don't know the truth when it hits them between the eyes.

And yes badrose we are being watched and listened to. And yes we need a movement but like you and me we are too busy trying to provide the best we can while getting screwed by this current administration. Those that don't work and rely on the government to provide everything from a phone to a toilet are the ones now controlling the vote and we know how they will vote every time.


I'm hoping you'll be able to find them at the Dallas unemployment office in the near future.

I can see this crap in San Fran, but Texas?

They should be fired for it being BS, but also for it just being flat wrong, political issues aside. The Holocaust was "genocide", that's the proper word in every grammatical and intellectual sense. the 9/11 attackers were "terrorists", even if they were also in the view of some "freedom fighters". They committed an act of terrorism, a well and easily defined act of violence that is one used by some "freedom fighters".

It's like taking off on a math test for 2+2=4. "Genocide" is the right answer, and no amount of proclamation from someone in the Texas Dept of Education with an agenda changes it.

I'd also like to know how this got through all the way to classes. Hope they're all fired and banished from the state.

[dan_bgblue]

Now class can you give me the lat long coordinates for Iceland? (64.8343° N, 18.9770° W) No teacher I can not, but I know that Kim Jong Un is being unfairly treated by the government of the United States and he is a freedom fighter.

Must be true. Dennis Rodman Thinks highly of him (http://www.reuters.com/article/2013/03/01/us-korea-north-rodman-idUSBRE91P04X20130301)

[CitizenBBN]

"An awesome kid" who is starving millions in pursuit of nuclear weapons which he needs only to use as a shield so he can invade another country and actually kill millions outright.

Rodman also apparently was confused about the difference between NOrth and South Korea, the reason most actors/athletes should be seen and not heard.

[KeithKSR]

FWIW, I believe that professors at Texas and Texas A&M had a lot of influence in designing Texas public school curriculum.

[KeithKSR]

Looks like that curriculum is not what the legislators of Texas put their stamp of approval on: http://news.yahoo.com/texas-public-school-students-don-burqas-learn-muslim-063126528.html

Some excerpts:

The controversial lesson came from a lesson plan provided by CSCOPE, an all-embracing, online K-12 educational curriculum used in 80 percent of the school districts in Texas. A rapidly growing chorus of critics charges that CSCOPE is a radical, backdoor way for progressives to circumvent both the Texas legislative process and the desires of local school boards and communities.

The CSCOPE curriculum seems to be inherently agenda-driven — particularly in history and social studies courses. The curriculum provider has foisted some hilariously biased coursework on public school students in The Lone Star State.

----------------------

For example, CSCOPE has given students material suggesting that Christianity is a cult that parallels the death and resurrection in the story of Osiris, the Egyptian god of the dead. The same material takes pains to point out that early Christians were accused of incest, cannibalism and other atrocities.

There’s an infamous chart that innocuously describes communism as “the idea of living together in a ‘commune’ where all people work together for everyone.”

Another notorious CSCOPE lesson (now ostensibly removed from circulation) depicts the Boston Tea Party, the famous protest against taxation without representation, as an act of terrorism.

[suncat05]

So if that somehow got by the Texas Education Board, then who was minding the shop when that happened? They're the ones who need to be fored for not doing their jobs.

But of course, and IF there is an investigation, nobody will be held accountable. Nobody.

[KeithKSR]

http://dailycaller.com/2013/02/21/ten-shocking-things-a-huge-texas-curriculum-conglomerate-has-foisted-on-public-school-students/

You gotta read the drivel that CSCOPE is passing off as legitimate curriculum.

[KeithKSR]

So if that somehow got by the Texas Education Board, then who was minding the shop when that happened? They're the ones who need to be fored for not doing their jobs.

But of course, and IF there is an investigation, nobody will be held accountable. Nobody.

Typically what happens in the world of curriculum is that the state approves a curriculum and then companies take that curriculum and then correlate their materials to the curriculum. The spinning of things that far left is not typical, and as the article indicates the company is subverting the legislative process by presenting curriculum in a manner that is skilled to the extreme left. Instead of teaching simply the facts of the Boston Tea Party the company is presenting the facts skewed in a manner of their choosing. I do not think the Texas legislators are going to stand for this.

[bigsky]

"Hate America First"

"Noble Primitives are always better than western civilization"

"Kwaanza is just like Christmas"

"Everyone deserves everything"

[jazyd]

Posters on the walls of the WH




"Hate America First"

"Noble Primitives are always better than western civilization"

"Kwaanza is just like Christmas"

"Everyone deserves everything"

[UKHistory]

Standards are set by the state. School districts have quite a bit of latitude in terms of content. A significant portion of text books are published in Texas. As a state it has a unique role in terms of how its decisions impact the availability of text books options for the country.

Still I have a few questions to actually believe this story and it full context. And an ethnic cleansing is the same damn thing as the holocaust.

1) What is the title of the text book and who publishes it?
2) There is some validity to seeing how other countries and cultures view themselves and others. Some might call that cultural relativism--and it can go that direction.

Understanding the other side is a key way to eventually defeat them too. There is nothing wrong in teaching someone that our enemy doesn't call themselves the bad guys and this is what they think.

What was the purpose of the lesson? How was it taught? What else was taught? There is a lot missing from this story.

Let's put it in context of the civil war...also referred to as the war of northern aggression. Confederates fought for states' rights and their liberty to enslave people for economic gain that they didn't deem as equal. Northerns fought to preserver the union, to free slaves or when they got off the boat from Ireland some guy handed them blue clothes and a gun.

Back to the story, it is weird.




Who is in charge of the Texas state curriculum for education? That's bizarre.

[KeithKSR]

Standards are set by the state. School districts have quite a bit of latitude in terms of content. A significant portion of text books are published in Texas. As a state it has a unique role in terms of how its decisions impact the availability of text books options for the country.

Still I have a few questions to actually believe this story and it full context. And an ethnic cleansing is the same damn thing as the holocaust.

1) What is the title of the text book and who publishes it?
2) There is some validity to seeing how other countries and cultures view themselves and others. Some might call that cultural relativism--and it can go that direction.

Understanding the other side is a key way to eventually defeat them too. There is nothing wrong in teaching someone that our enemy doesn't call themselves the bad guys and this is what they think.

What was the purpose of the lesson? How was it taught? What else was taught? There is a lot missing from this story.

Let's put it in context of the civil war...also referred to as the war of northern aggression. Confederates fought for states' rights and their liberty to enslave people for economic gain that they didn't deem as equal. Northerns fought to preserver the union, to free slaves or when they got off the boat from Ireland some guy handed them blue clothes and a gun.

Back to the story, it is weird.

CSCOPE is the name of the company providing curriculum to most Texas school districts. They provide curriculum services only to Texas schools.

Texas changed its curriculum a few years ago, and CSCOPE emerged as a curriculum provider for the state. I am not sure what makes the Texas curriculum so different from the rest of the country that it cannot be supplied by others. I do know Texas did not move to the Common Core as most of the country has done.

[dan_bgblue]

CSCOPE is the name of the company providing curriculum to most Texas school districts. They provide curriculum services only to Texas schools.

Texas changed its curriculum a few years ago, and CSCOPE emerged as a curriculum provider for the state. I am not sure what makes the Texas curriculum so different from the rest of the country that it cannot be supplied by others. I do know Texas did not move to the Common Core as most of the country has done.


Based on what I have read, CSCOPE was formed with the idea that they wold provide curricula that was more in tune with what local Texas school districts wanted to offer the students. The train went off the tracks and the local "proof readers" failed to do their due diligence. In their defense, they never expected the group they created to proffer up such drivel.

Given the liberal bias of the majority of institutions of higher learning in this country it is actually remarkable to find educators that have a modicum of common sense.

[CitizenBBN]

A little quick googling on CSCOPE makes it pretty clear the comments and concerns are in context and are valid IMO.

CSCOPE is primarily online, and whenever a lesson creates controversy they delete it without a trace. They have teachers sign non-disclosure agreements, the chairman of the state board coudln't get a password for 6 months.

I was born in the morning, but not this morning. When an educational curriculum or anything like it is shrouded in secrecy and edited without an audit trail in response to public concerns it's not an attempt to honestly educate, it's an attempt to further a agenda and in this case ideology.

Here's a whole site dedicated to it and its ties to Bill Ayers (a self described terrorist who tried to bomb the Pentagon and close Obama confidant - not making that up folks): http://www.txcscopereview.com/

The Texas legislature is going to get involved apparently, but some are pushing for a lawsuit. Texas law says all materials have to be available to parents but CSCOPE keeps all but summaries unavailable to non-authorized persons. There's such a thing as copyright, every textbook ever made is available to parents, but this isn't. If it walks like a duck...

Personally I find the entire educational system very worrisome. First I want the federal government to have ZERO influence in education. I can see good overall reasons for it, trying to improve education in the US, but it is far too easily corrupted by all political sides and certainly by lobbies and corporations. As with most things, the best way to protect something is to keep government out of it.

By having the 50 states on their own we can introduce competition between them, at least providing some compared to none using federal regulation. Education is about oversight, and it is a deeply parental responsibility. The further it is removed from parents and put in hands of career "educators" who have no real experience teaching children and have their own agendas and petty politics the worse it will become.

This is pretty clearly an agenda, both financial (buy our massive product) and ideological. Hopefully the Texas legislature can put a stop to it.

[KeithKSR]

Here's a whole site dedicated to it and its ties to Bill Ayers (a self described terrorist who tried to bomb the Pentagon and close Obama confidant - not making that up folks): http://www.txcscopereview.com/
.................................................. ....

Personally I find the entire educational system very worrisome. First I want the federal government to have ZERO influence in education. I can see good overall reasons for it, trying to improve education in the US, but it is far too easily corrupted by all political sides and certainly by lobbies and corporations. As with most things, the best way to protect something is to keep government out of it.


Don't forget that Ayers is a self ascribed communist.

In regards to the Feds and education, the more they become involved the more convoluted things become. If the Feds wanted to have the greatest impact on education they would supply funds to be used by local districts in manners they feel can make the most impact. The initiatives that have done the most good for the students and maximized improvement were school level initiatives.

[CitizenBBN]

Standards are set by the state. School districts have quite a bit of latitude in terms of content. A significant portion of text books are published in Texas. As a state it has a unique role in terms of how its decisions impact the availability of text books options for the country.

Still I have a few questions to actually believe this story and it full context. And an ethnic cleansing is the same damn thing as the holocaust.

1) What is the title of the text book and who publishes it?
2) There is some validity to seeing how other countries and cultures view themselves and others. Some might call that cultural relativism--and it can go that direction.

Understanding the other side is a key way to eventually defeat them too. There is nothing wrong in teaching someone that our enemy doesn't call themselves the bad guys and this is what they think.

What was the purpose of the lesson? How was it taught? What else was taught? There is a lot missing from this story.

Let's put it in context of the civil war...also referred to as the war of northern aggression. Confederates fought for states' rights and their liberty to enslave people for economic gain that they didn't deem as equal. Northerns fought to preserver the union, to free slaves or when they got off the boat from Ireland some guy handed them blue clothes and a gun.

Back to the story, it is weird.

There is no textbook. That's the #1 problem IMO. Just online materials that can be deleted. No accountability.

I can't argue that education should broaden perspective, but I see no balance here internally. Maybe a balance against the accepted beliefs in the country, but none internally. The Islam sections seem to be very positive and ignore the obvious nightmares it also creates, whereas Christianity seems to be similarly unbalanced internally. I have no problem with it teaching both the good and bad of Islam, just don't cherry pick the good. yes some Muslims do good work and compassion for others and even tolerance. Far more Muslims in the world are utterly intolerant and repressive beyond even what the Catholic Church at the height of the inquisition was able to achieve.

Honestly I'm even concerned religion is being covered much at all. I took a lot of history, and we stayed well away from it. It's the same reason we have the Barber Shop on this board. There's far more to learn in history than can possibly be covered in the alloted time anyway, so focus on things that are not so personal that it will derail the rest of the teaching effort.

This is also not "history" of Islam, it is about islam the faith and the links I saw them using go to Islam in the modern day, not a history of Islam's impact on the world. I learned about Islam as a movement and its conquest of the Middle east and north Africa and Spain. I also learned of their more open sciences during that time and their advances in mathematics, astronomy and other sciences. Those are historical truths that dont' have to bear on the teachings themselves. Discussing Islam's repression of women (or not) is not an historical discussion but a sociological one.

It's just not tactically wise, and if it is to be covered I prefer parents be given WIDE leeway, control and input. Separation of church and state and freedom of religion bear heavily on this issue. It's not the role of the state to teach religion.

I have a friend who is in fact a history teacher in Texas. Hoping to find time to get her input on what's going on there. She's no liberal, more of a libertarian like myself, will be curious to hear her thoughts.

[CitizenBBN]

Don't forget that Ayers is a self ascribed communist.

In regards to the Feds and education, the more they become involved the more convoluted things become. If the Feds wanted to have the greatest impact on education they would supply funds to be used by local districts in manners they feel can make the most impact. The initiatives that have done the most good for the students and maximized improvement were school level initiatives.

Of course they were. What will reach kids in rural Kentucky is probably not what will reach kids in Manhattan and vise versa.

Ayers and the Obama brain trust is a situation of crying wolf. People called every liberal and left of center administration "socialists" so many times the word lost meaning, and now that we have real Leftists, real socialists in that group no one believes it.

At one time America had the best primary school education in the world, all of it with no federal regulation and almost no state regulation. My grandmother could do basic math better than me or my cousins and she was taught in the classic one room schoolhouse. I've seen it, the parents built it on a corner of one parent's field. The teacher was hired by the local parents and was boarded with them. Now THAT's parental input, and of course parents then really cared about their children getting an education.

That's the long and short of it. Too many parents just don't care about their children or their education. No amount of government can fix that, and it's a perfect opportunity for those wanting to influence those minds in ideological ways.

It's no coincidence that the first things repressive regimes do is: take over education, confiscate guns, centralize government, etc. They dont' all do it by accident, it's by design.

[jazyd]

[this is the easiest way to brainwash children, in the classroom by their beloved teacher.


QUOTE=CitizenBBN;62316]Of course they were. What will reach kids in rural Kentucky is probably not what will reach kids in Manhattan and vise versa.

Ayers and the Obama brain trust is a situation of crying wolf. People called every liberal and left of center administration "socialists" so many times the word lost meaning, and now that we have real Leftists, real socialists in that group no one believes it.

At one time America had the best primary school education in the world, all of it with no federal regulation and almost no state regulation. My grandmother could do basic math better than me or my cousins and she was taught in the classic one room schoolhouse. I've seen it, the parents built it on a corner of one parent's field. The teacher was hired by the local parents and was boarded with them. Now THAT's parental input, and of course parents then really cared about their children getting an education.

That's the long and short of it. Too many parents just don't care about their children or their education. No amount of government can fix that, and it's a perfect opportunity for those wanting to influence those minds in ideological ways.

It's no coincidence that the first things repressive regimes do is: take over education, confiscate guns, centralize government, etc. They dont' all do it by accident, it's by design.[/QUOTE]

[UKHistory]

Based on what I have read CSCOPE is horrible. Really shocked about this.

[CitizenBBN]

Based on what I have read CSCOPE is horrible. Really shocked about this.

It's pretty impressively bad from what I read as well.

I have to say I'm not surprised though, I have an extremely low opinion of the high up theories on primary education. They run around with this or that theory that just messes up another generation of kids. It's not like there's some secret to what has to be taught. None of my best teachers subscribed to some educational theory that was all the rage. Read the books, discuss the content, take the test. Keep it simple.

My mother moved me to a different school in part b/c of that stuff. Too much silly stuff and not enough straightforward education.

Yet another theoretical teaching methodology foisted on kids, this time complete with leftist tripe, no doubt to be dismissed in some years and replaced with the next great idea on how to educate.

[kritikalcat]

* I don't have a problem with AP level curriculum which includes exposure to opposing viewpoints and beliefs, even to the extent of limited immersion. A come we're going to "be" Muslims day in class doesn't bother me (it might offend bona fide Muslims?) My daughter attends a Catholic HS and is given the freedom to advocate - in papers or class debates - for viewpoints contrary to Church dogma. She took the side in favor of gay marriage in a recent class debate. It becomes a problem if the immersion becomes too lengthy and intense, like the "The Third Wave" experiment back in the 60's (teacher created ea classroom movement modeled on Nazism as a class exercise and it got out of control,) or the opposing viewpoints are presented as correct rather than as a way to allow high functioning students (again, this is AP) to experience how other sides see the world rather than just reading something in a text.

* I'd argue that the subjects discussed ARE part of Geography. Geography goes far beyond mere cartography and location of countries and capitals. It's one of the most widely inclusive disciplines, combining both physical and political/social aspects. That's not a new "lefty" view of Geography either, but one that Geographers have understood for 150 years.

Not defending CSCOPE or the particular curriculum, but I don't object to AP geography students being trusted with exposure to different, diverse and radical viewpoints.

[suncat05]

Well, that is the function of education, to expose a person to differing ideas and thoughts. I too am all in favor of this approach, and letting the student determine which way is the best way. But don't manipulate the facts and lie to a student to achieve a political/socialist agenda that is nothing but lies and bare of facts and the truth.
Which is exactly what is happening all over the U.S. and has been for decades, and even before WWII.