https://www.flsenate.gov/Session/Bill/2022/1557/BillText/er/PDF
Perhaps it would help if people would read the actual bill. Let’s call it what it actually is–parental rights bill. The right of parents to know what is being taught in their schools to their children. Nobody is banning books like the Illiad. Nobody says you can’t order whatever books you like from Amazon.
Right, but if you’re having a discussion about that, I don’t think it’s particularly effective to talk about things in the abstract. And part of getting rid of bullying is to talk about different kinds of people as a normal part of our society and not some sort of taboo subject.
I think I’m trying to figure out what the exact problem is… because, I think that would help figure out if a law is needed and what shape that should take. Because context matters - this same law is being proposed by the exact same people who just passed a law authorizing the state to separate children from their parents if they are receiving gender affirming care. So, I do not think this is a benign movement meant to protect parent’s rights, but part of an effort to target a minority.
Have you read it - unless I’m looking at the wrong regulation, here’s what HB1557 (https://www.flsenate.gov/Session/Bill/2022/1557/BillText/er/PDF) literally prohibits:
instruction by school personnel or third parties on sexual orientation or gender identity may not occur
So, I don’t see any qualifier with respect to biological identity, or that instruction on straight/cis-gender is excepted.
Instruction on the fact that the world has boys and girls would be literally prohibited.
At least in my case - bad (as in: poorly written) legislation.
Nope - doesn’t just say that parents have to be notified first - it has a blanket “may not occur”.
I do not read it that way. I do not think any court would. I do not think any person actually thinks that would happen, but it is the usual parade of horribles people fear in any legislation
Absolutely - a teacher who now has a class with some confused kids who only have “revolutionary new” information shared aloud by their peers, should be able to take that moment and teach the fact that a LARGE portion of society does not have family units with exactly one Mom & Dad, and be free to explain (age appropriately) a few scenarios how this (initially) confusing situation can come about, and that those are all perfectly “normal” families as well.
Being allowed to factually teach about our society should not start at grade 13.
In fact - just two weeks ago I posted a commentary by a Florida HS student now attending college in NY - and their experiences with coming from a state with “mandated blinds” on:
We don’t have such laws thankfully, but what we do have are parents getting loud at school board meetings over similar topics and book bans. Some have made the news. Others only make local news. Teachers who have been there long enough are saying, “You know what? I’m done. It’s not worth it anymore.” High school students who previously might have wanted to go into teaching look at what’s happening and it seems like 2/3rds opt for something else now.
It’s not just one “side” leaving either. No one I’ve encountered likes the fiasco from the parents whether it’s at school board meetings or individual emails expecting the teacher to align with whichever way they want them to.
You weren’t taught that some of these characters were gay and it was relatively common back then for guys… (I could go on). We were. At the time it was honestly new to me, but learning about it didn’t make any of us do anything different. It likely helped our one gay peer know there was nothing wrong about him.
The difference could be our locations. I was in NYS, in what was at the time the 2nd best public high school in the state as per Regents scores (so we were told).
Actually 100% of people have exactly one mother and one father. What’s changed is how families are structured.
Maybe kids are not comfortable sharing their parent is in jail, dead, or not their biological parent. Maybe they arent comfortable discussing their own sexuality, religious views, or political opinions-why should they feel coerced into doing so by a class discussion where their silence will be noted and commented upon?
The parents rights aspects of this is tricky because I agree that for normal loving parents, being informed of your child’s mental health and struggles with sexual and gender identity should be shared with them… however, I have personal experience meeting children in long term psychiatric care who were kicked out of their house and forced to live with older siblings, foster care or whatever couch they could find after being outed as gay or transgender.
So maybe if you pass this law, you pass another law that if you kick a child out or engage in emotional abuse after being informed that your child is gay or transgender you go to jail and the state pays for the care of the child in their own home until they turn 18…
I was in NYS too. Again, the high school claimed to be one of the top public, and got a fair number of us into Ivies, so your assumption is incorrect.
Teaching ≠ Coercion
It was just a thought. Our experiences just differed then. We had a terrific English teacher that everyone loved and I was content with my 4 on the AP test (esp since I’m a science lover and rather despised English).
Ivies and other top schools were common for our grads too, but they weren’t as difficult to get into back in our day, so I’ve no idea how it would compare to today.
Loved my AP English teacher too. Didnt spend a lot of time discussing anyone’s sexuality or sexual experience, in books or in reality among the students, in class. At lunch and in locker rooms kids talked about sex partners, or lack thereof. Not in class ( outside of health). Not even when one girl got pregnant, nor when one had an abortion. Not in class.
We did have heated debates on abortion, which I am sure are rare even in NYS schools now. Looking back on it, I am not sure if that was a good idea. I always supported, but perhaps some of the kids opposing were uncomfortable.
I wanted the teacher to make a developmentally appropriate response that acknowledged the reality of these children’s lives and perhaps instructed the child who didn’t know about them that there were various kinds of families including those with two moms for many reasons. These were first graders. And that’s what teachers do.
But I can easily imagine a middle school classroom where this kind of student self-revelation leads to a discussion of why there are different kinds of families. Foster parents, adoptive parents, divorce, sexual orientation. And I don’t want that to be against the law. Or for the teacher to fear disciplinary repercussions from that discussion
Hopefully the student you cite will soon learn that history and math and chemistry are all liberal arts. Her high school apparently neglected to teach her that.
I doubt this has a lot of time spent on it anywhere in school TBH. It’s certainly not a daily or weekly topic, and we never talked about individuals in class - just book content or world topics.
Even today in the school where I work controversial topics (like abortion) are fair game for kids to pick to use in writing assignments. One writing assignment has to be a controversial topic of their choice in government class. They have to look into both sides - getting facts from a source supporting that side, then argue for theirs in a class presentation.
It’s a really good assignment getting kids to check sources, delve into topics learning both sides, and learning to get along with others even if they disagree.
Kids need to graduate from high school aware of the real world, not pretending it doesn’t exist or needs to be hush hush in school and only looked at like in secret like magazines of our youth.
And no one objected to it then, right? So why are parents objecting now, if it still is such a small part of the class experience? At least some parents must believe it is not such a small part currently
That info isn’t on any of our quizzes or tests either. I’m not sure why it has to be TBH. What class is it covered in in TX?
My husband taught high school biology for 33 years. I know about parents who feel like they have the right to determine what is taught in the classroom. Usually around evolution and human reproduction. One special incident was with a family whose religious views precluded the existence of virii. That was fun.
I’m not sure where this current concern is rooted. Which is why I want to know what the teachers have been doing that would need to change under this law.
I actually am concerned about the incidence of rapid onset gender dysphoria that has emerged in the past decade. But I don’t think teachers are the ones promoting it through classroom instruction.
I never attended public school in Texas, nor did my children. I would hope that a woman studying at an elite liberal arts university such as Barnard would know what the phrase “liberal arts” means, but in this case apparently not.