Tuesday, September 28, 2021


Washington state school BANS teacher from hanging pro-police flag in her classroom because it's too 'political' - but BLM and Pride banners are allowed

A teacher in Washington state says she was forced to take down the pro-police flag she hung in her classroom to honor her brother, over claims that it was 'too political.'

'She was told it makes students and teachers of color uncomfortable,' Sutherland told DailyMail.com.

'They told her that it's controversial to have that flag up,' Chris Sutherland, the teacher's brother, told The Jason Rantz Show on KTTH. 'That it makes kids and staff feel unsafe, which to me, that does not make sense at all.'

He said his sister, who has not been named, hung the Thin Blue Line flag on her bulletin board to support him, a former police officer with the Marysville Police Department who served as a resource officer during the fatal Marysville-Pilchuck High School shooting in 2014.

The flag in the teacher's room was surrounded with pictures of him.

But soon, administrators at the Marysville School District started to take issue with her flag, and asked her to take it down or face repercussions.

Yet the district reportedly allows banners supporting the Black Lives Matter movement and Pride flags to be hung on district property.

Sutherland said his sister first had a Thin Blue Line sticker on her laptop, which an assistant principal seemed to take issue with.

In a HR document about the incident, which conservative radio host Jason Rantz, of KTTH, obtained, the assistant principal said there were 'concerns about how students, families and community members might interpret what the image is intending to communicate, and that this interpretation may cause a disruption to the learning environment.'

The objections were soon dropped, though, and the teacher later posted the flag in her classroom.

Soon, Rantz reports, a second assistant principal ordered the flag to be taken down, an an HR representative for the Marysville School District said in a Letter of Clarification to the teacher that the district was 'highly concerned about the impact of this political symbol on students, staff and families of Marysville Middle School.'

It said the assistant principal 'had heard concerns from other staff members about how this political symbol might negatively impact the overall work environment,' but does not indicate what those concerns were.

She tried to fight back, he said, telling them 'she was leaving it up because of what it meant to her.'

District officials then told her to 'refrain from using the "Thin Blue Line Flag" symbol' in the school by the morning of September 8, or she could face 'further disciplinary action.'

But the district did not seem to have a problem with the Pride flag she hung up in support of her sister, Sutherland said. 'There's also, she was telling me, BLM stuff hanging on the walls, which she was told is OK,' he told Rantz. 'Just for whatever reason, just the Thin Blue Line flag cannot be hung up there.'

Eventually, Rantz reports, the teacher decided to remove the Thin Blue Line flag, but wrote in a message to the school's Human Resources department that the ordeal 'has been the most traumatic and hostile' situation she has experienced at the school.

She wrote: 'I was proud to come back as a Marysville alumni and begin teaching here in 2014. I remain hopeful for the remainder of the school year.'

The teacher further explained that the decision to pull the flag came from 'an agenda rather than really wanting to gain any understanding of me, who I am, or my story.'

She added that the incident 'left a lasting impression,' but she forgives the school district for the sleight.

'It really hurts,' Sutherland told DailyMail.com. 'I know it hurts her too and many more to make her take down the flag that represents us in law enforcement in a school district where we had one of the worst school shootings a couple years ago.

'I was on campus at Marysville-Pilchuck High School that day, and gave my heart and soul in an effort to make things normal,' he noted. 'I worked so close with the school district and community that it now feels like a slap in the face to me and my brothers and sisters in law enforcement who support us.

'Plus the district does not wait any time at all to call us when they need us,' Sutherland added. 'If the flag and sight of police officers is that bad and scary, then why do they still call?'

Sutherland noted that his sister will continue to fight to get the flag back up in her classroom without fear of being fired for it.

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Britain’s Covid-era university students may suffer ‘impostor syndrome’

New intake of undergraduates could feel like frauds, says study, because they didn’t sit A-level exams

New students are more likely to suffer “impostor syndrome” because they have won their place at university on the back of teacher-assessed A-level grades and not exams, a new study has warned.

Undergraduates arriving on campuses this week may “feel like a fraud” as they have not had the chance to “earn” their grades in public examinations, said the study from the University of Leeds. Such perceptions could particularly affect students from disadvantaged backgrounds, leaving some at risk of dropping out, it warned. A strong sense of belonging at university is associated with the feeling that a student “deserves” their place, said the Psychology Learning and Teaching journal’s study.

“When students do not feel that their place at university is legitimately earned, they may experience ‘impostor syndrome’, or ‘feeling like a fraud’, which is related to mental health problems, such as anxiety,” the paper said. “However, academic-related ‘impostor syndrome’ may be negated by pretertiary grades that serve as a testament to students’ ability to perform academically.”

Pandemic restrictions denied this year’s students traditional exam grades to “justify” their university place. “This may lead to unique identity management concerns that must be negotiated, particularly among lower socio-economic status students,” said researchers.

Under teacher-assessed grades this summer, 45% of candidates in England, Wales and Northern Ireland were awarded an A/A*, compared with the 25% awarded the top grades in exams in 2019. The Department for Education has said it “expects” exams to run in 2022 and is proposing mitigating measures for pupils who have missed out on teaching, such as allowing them to choose the topics they will be examined on.

But there are concerns that pupils will not be given enough advance notice of the changes and that no contingency plan has been drawn up by the government. “The last thing we want to see is exams cancelled again, but given what has happened this year and last, it is a matter of common sense to map out a contingency plan,” said Julie McCulloch, director of policy at the Association of School and College Leaders. “Students, teachers and leaders deserve to know what this would look like as soon as possible, so that they can plan, rather than decisions being left to the last minute yet again.”

The Leeds study also said that students’ sense of disconnect could be exacerbated by the reduced opportunity to mix because of online teaching. Most UK institutions are retaining some online teaching, despite students’ preference for in-person learning and government directives to scrap Covid restrictions and offer a normal student experience.

“Given that online teaching, or a hybrid of online and in-person teaching, may last into the next academic year, students in the incoming cohort may also not have … frequent in-person peer-to-peer social interaction during the transition to university,” the study said. “The social networks of students are an important factor in buffering stress and improving academic performance.”

It recommends universities take measures to foster a sense of belonging, particularly with underrepresented groups of students, through peer-to-peer support schemes and measures to boost the academic confidence of a cohort that has missed out on substantial amounts of schooling. The Office for Students has also told universities to provide more support for students who may be less well prepared than previous cohorts.

Jamie Halls, the first in his family to go to university, is about to start a biology degree at Essex University. Studying for A-levels during lockdown at the Sixth Form College, Colchester, was challenging, he said.

“I felt more confident about the A-level content that was taught before lockdown than during it. There was a lot of uncertainty about whether exams were going to happen or not, and that was unsettling. “I do feel that we missed out on the opportunity to sit the final exams, although we did exams and mocks at school. When it comes to comparing grades, it’s hard to know if you are on the same page and have the same knowledge as other people.”

Along with 700 other applicants, Jamie completed the Essex Preparation Programme over the summer, a specially designed six-week, online course to help new students hit the ground running when they begin degree courses next month.

“It was really useful. We covered things like independent learning and critical thinking,” said Jamie. “It’s felt like a long time since the end of the school term and the programme has helped to put me in the frame of mind to look forward to learning again.”

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Australia: A major Queensland university is set to ditch lectures next year in a move which has been slammed by the tertiary education union and protested by students

Seems a lot of nonsense to me, as a retired lecturer

From 2022 the University of the Sunshine Coast will no longer have in-person or online lecturers, with students instead to be provided with alternative learning materials such as quizzes and podcasts.

In a message to students about the change, USC stated “traditional style lecturers have been demonstrated to have poor learning outcomes”.

But many students have already voiced their concerns with USC psychology students launching a petition protesting the change, which has gathered more than 600 signatures.

USC Pro Vice-Chancellor (students) Professor Denise Wood told The Courier-Mai lecture attendance had been dramatically declining over the past few years, and students would now have access to more “engaging” online learning materials.

“USC remains predominantly a face-to-face on campus learning environment and that’s not changing,” she said.

“However over the years learning and teaching has changed, we are now living in a period of contemporary learning and teaching practice.

“Over the last decade, as has the entire sector, we’ve seen a gradual shift from the number of students wanting to come to face-to-face lecturers.

“A decade ago, you would see about 50 per cent attendance by week four, now you’re lucky to see between 20 and 25 per cent.”

National Tertiary Education Union Queensland secretary Michael McNally said members were concerned the university was taking a “one size fits all” approach, by ditching lecturers for all subjects.

“That’s a bit of a slamming condemnation of everything all of the staff up until now have been doing,” he said.

“A lot of our lecturers are quite happy to do some or even all of their teaching in this kind of format, because it works for them, it works for the subject they teach and their students prefer it.

“But there are also lots of situations where that type of format isn’t the best, and the academic staff need to have the ability to decide what’s the best learning format for their students.”

Prof. Wood said there would be no job losses with the change.

“The academics will still need to be available … and of course still need to respond to students,” she said.

In their petition, psychology students argued the “proposed will have a negative effect on student learning, specifically the psychology undergraduate degree”.

“Many students feel that the introduced interactive platform is a way for less and less teacher contact time,” the petition stated.

Prof. Wood said the university would listen to student feedback, with a survey currently underway.

“We will work with the student senate on analysing the feedback from students, and we will be responsive to it,” she said.

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My other blogs: Main ones below

http://dissectleft.blogspot.com (DISSECTING LEFTISM)

http://antigreen.blogspot.com (GREENIE WATCH)

http://pcwatch.blogspot.com (POLITICAL CORRECTNESS WATCH)

http://australian-politics.blogspot.com/ (AUSTRALIAN POLITICS)

http://snorphty.blogspot.com/ (TONGUE-TIED)

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