They do have the right. No one is arguing that. But does the school have the right to determine which ideologies get passes? And I agree with a2z's point: How many are doing this to "get out of school" that would never do it on their own time?
The teachers in WV put their livelihood on the line, and knew they could face the ultimate consequence if things didn't go well.
In my opinion they should do this on their own time. They are hurting students and families in the process of their strike by failing to educate the students and causing hardship on families by unexpected schedule changes. Actually, what they are doing is against the law in WV. You can't stop them from doing it, but the government could fire all of them. Doing it on their own time would show that they care about the students but they want their plight known. Strikes are done to impact harm so that they will get what they want.
That is a cynical viewpoint that is disheartening to hear from educators responsible for creating civic minded citizens. The school does have the right and obligation to stop dangerous activities so if they And if they did it on their own time, what change do you think would occur? That’s kind of the point of a protest, to make those in power understand the suffering they cause and to force change. That is exactly what the WV teachers are doing, making the government answer for spending years devaluing education.
It depends on how it was covered in the media. Teachers are willing to give up their own time to make it known they need better wages (or whatever the fight is). Yes, the point of a strike is to hurt others so you get what you want. The sad part is the people who are hurt the most often don't make enough to pay taxes which teachers are going after to increase their pay.
We are supposed to create students who can think for themselves. So, what is cynical about being impartial?
While it sounds all well and good to say you will support any civic protest by students, you likely run into trouble "cheering them on". Are you fair enough that personal opinion will never get in the way so that every student protester gets the same teacher cheer? Will you find yourself giving more support to those students who match your views? Will you find yourself harsher on those with opposing views? I think it would be easier to simply administer fair school consequences and save the protest-support-from-teacher for another time.
IMO, they get to make up a similar quiz, which negates sharing of information between the students. Giving the same quiz always favors those who do make ups, because someone always shares the questions. A similar quiz means the material covered is the same, but no advantage because they will not know the exact questions.
The walkout is only supposed to be for 17 minutes, from 10-10:17am. What time does your class meet that day? Can they take it before they leave, or once they get back? If they are gone for longer, that probably means they blew off the rest of the class, since the protest is very clearly delineated: 17 minutes, one for each student dead in Parkland. It so happens that on that day, the 17 minutes fall during our nutrition break, so I will be joining the students. I think most of my students will be there and I personally want to show support, as well as perform my professional duty to supervise students.
What is your goal for giving the quiz -- to provide feedback to students on their progress and learning, or to teach them civic responsibility?
Not at all. So then, is it more important to you to have grades that reflect what students know and can do, or whether they care more about their grades than, say, their lives?
I know I have students having to pick between their lives and school work everyday. Good grief, it's an assessment and a peaceful protest. If they pick the latter, they may have consequences affecting the former based on school/teacher policies. I'm sure most teachers would make exceptions if lives were actually at stake. Don't make it something it's not.
I appreciate the way our school is handling it. Our student government planned an event for outside of school time. During that event students will meet and discuss ways to make the school safer and share information about mental health and anti-bullying programs in our area. But if students want to walk out on the other two "official" protest days, we are to tell them to go to the football field. They'll have administration out there to supervise and send them back in after 17 minutes. They will be allowed to make up work. This is not being advertised like the school-sponsored event is.
I think all the teachers need to figure out what they are going to do. Accept late work, make up tests/quizzes, etc. All the students should be aware of what will happen if they don't show up for class that day. Then they won't be able to say they can't get a 0 because Mr. Smith let them make up the quiz, etc. All the teachers need to be on the same page and have admin. back it up.
No, I did not. I asked whether he expected the students to care more about the quiz than their safety.
In fact, the OP specifically said he supports the protest. What is in question is not his support of the protest, but the message he would send by penalizing them for not letting them make up the quiz.
I agree with others who have said that if the point of the quiz is to demonstrate mastery of material, they should be able to retake by scheduling time at your (the teacher's) convenience, whether that be lunch or whatever. That sounds like it's consistent with other absences.
OP, if you misunderstood my point and took it as a personal attack, I sincerely apologize. I hope you understood that my comment comes from a place of honest fear and frustration, which I did not mean to take out on you.
I'm at an elementary school, so it's not quite the same... However, our district-wide policy (which includes the high school) is that all students wanting to participate will be allowed to do so without discipline or penalty. This comes straight from the superintendent. At our building, all instruction will stop for that 17 minute time period and students will participate in kindness/character activities. Those wanting to walk out (who have parental permission) will be allowed to do so (with staff supervision). At the secondary level, parental permission is not necessary in order for students to walk out. Giving a quiz during that time wouldn't be allowed in my district.
Thanks for the feedback everyone. As it turns out, the two snowdays we already had this week, and the potential third snowday tomorrow have forced me to change the schedule anyway so that it is no longer an issue. Mother Nature made the decision for me.
Same here -- we just got notice form the super that as long as no behavior issues occur during that time, no disciplinary infractions will be issued. Again, if they blow off class after the 17 minutes -- that's a different story!
Unless their opinion was racist, homophobic, sexist, or pure evil then yes, I absolutely mean it. I teach middle school and most are not exactly aware of the larger world around them yet. I am a hard core liberal and if I had students that cared enough to organize a protest for something that is hard core conservative, I'd be happy to help them get it done. Having an opinion is what matters and it's up to us to teach them how to use it.
If this a school-directed/approved event, then you may be required to make alternate arrangements. However, if this is not planned by the school/district and the students dictated this even, then it is class cutting. Class cutting can result in suspension, forfeiting course credit, detention, and write-up. A zero on a quiz seems appropriate.
