Saturday, December 25, 2021


Fury over council sex survey being sent to 14-year-old schoolchildren that asks them which sexual practices they have experienced

Councillors have urged the City of Edinburgh Council to scrap a controversial sex survey aimed at 14-year-old pupils.

The Scottish Government's national Health and Wellbeing Census, an online questionnaire for children in P5 to S6, has been rejected by some local authorities for the content including asking pupils if they have had anal sex.

According to the Government, it will help local authorities to 'identify and drive forward local improvements and monitor the results of any changes made' to the health and wellbeing of young people.

But concerns have been raised about some of the questions about sex and relationships that will be put to children in their early teens.

The survey that will go to students in S4 and above, who could be as young as 14, includes questions such as 'how much, if any, sexual experience have you had?', and asks pupils about the first time they had sex.

It also questions youngsters' experiences of 'oral sex', different sexual practices and the use of different contraceptives.

Conservative councillor Callum Laidlaw said a 'significant number' of parents and parent councils are worried about the questionnaire.

He said: 'We have health and wellbeing in the classroom already so it's not necessarily about that, it's about why you want to ask individual children those sorts of questions.

'It's not just the questions around types of sex. It's also 'do you have a boyfriend or girlfriend?'.

'It's asking very personal questions that will put a lot of young people potentially in a difficult position, they will feel awkward.

'From the questions I know are going to be asked by other local authorities and will in theory be asked in Edinburgh, I personally think some of them are inappropriate.'

The survey will be completed by pupils during class time and, although they will not be asked to type in their name, pupils will be have to provide their SCN number which schools and the council could use to identify and offer support if responses flag concern.

Councillor Laidlaw added: 'The sort of questions that are being asked around sexual activity and relationships, I think they're very legitimate concerns that many parents and indeed the Children and Young Person's Commissioner for Scotland have had.

'They're being asked to be very specific about sexual experience, about their relationships and the census is using their candidate number.

'It's still a little bit unclear to me as to how anonymous this is and quite when there would be an intervention, which it's stated there would be if there's something of concern - what is 'of concern' and how is that being determined in the context of the census?

'That is unclear to me and asking young people these sorts of questions in a classroom environment raises all sorts of concerns about how young people react to each other and the impact on bullying that this could have.

'At this stage, I and others are unconvinced that the supposed benefits of this outweigh the clear intrusion into private life and possibility of causing serious upset to young people in the classroom and also putting teachers in quite a tricky position as well.'

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UK: Nearly half of 'outstanding' schools downgraded this term by Ofsted, figures show

Nearly half of "outstanding" schools have been downgraded by Ofsted this term, data shows.

The highest-rated schools were previously exempt from inspections but the policy changed last year following concerns that hundreds of premises had not been reviewed for years.

During the three months up to the end of November, 47% of schools that were judged to be outstanding were stripped of their top rating following inspections, the latest figures showed.

More than half of the 99 schools visited between 1 September and 30 November had not been inspected for more than a decade.

Of those that lost the outstanding rating, 36% dropped one rating to "good", 9% fell two grades into the "requires improvement" category, and 2% were handed the bottom ranking of "inadequate".

However, the overall grade given to schools across England has improved in comparison with the period before the pandemic.

In total, 83% of schools were judged as good or outstanding during this term, the data showed.

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AustralianFederal government’s Christmas Eve veto of research projects labelled ‘McCarthyism’

The Morrison government has been accused of using the cover of Christmas to politicise research funding, after a federal minister vetoed grants for six recommended projects.

Proposed research relating to climate activism and China were among the projects recommended through Australian Research Council processes but blocked by the acting education minister, Stuart Robert.

Robert has argued the projects he rejected “do not demonstrate value for taxpayers’ money nor contribute to the national interest” – but the decision, announced on Christmas Eve, has drawn criticism from education figures and the federal opposition.

The vice-chancellor of the Australian National University, Prof Brian Schmidt, said that in a liberal democracy it was “completely inappropriate for grants to be removed by politicians, unless the grant rules were not followed”.

The Victorian Labor senator Kim Carr said the government was using Christmas Eve to “sweep under the carpet” its “further politicisation of the ARC and research” in Australia.

Carr, a former minister for research under the Rudd and Gillard governments, tweeted: “Their McCarthyism subverts research which was recommended by the ARC.”

The winning Discovery Projects for next year were finally revealed on Friday, with a report published on the ARC website saying it had received 3,096 applications for funding commencing in 2022.

The report said 587 of those projects had been approved for funding, totalling $259m over five years.

“Of the unsuccessful applications in 2022, 51 were found not to meet eligibility requirements and six were recommended to, but not funded by the minister,” the report said.

A spokesperson for Robert said the minister had approved “98.98%” of the 593 Discovery Projects the ARC recommended, but had not accepted the following six:

Robert’s spokesperson said the minister “believes those rejected do not demonstrate value for taxpayers’ money nor contribute to the national interest”.

“After going through a peer review process, it is clear to the minister the application of the national interest test is not working in every case,” the spokesperson said.

“This test should ensure taxpayer-funded Australian government research funding is directed to areas of national importance and delivers public value. It’s why in his letter of expectation the minister asked the ARC to strengthen the test.”

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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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Friday, December 24, 2021



Woke Mob Comes for Professor Who Opposes Left-Wing Social Values

If you don’t agree with the politically correct narrative, you must be destroyed.

That’s the attitude elite Western institutions increasingly take with anyone who disagrees with the ever-moving and increasingly radical cultural left. If you have the gall to still be operating within those institutions, you are treated with an even higher level of hate.

Boise State University professor Scott Yenor is witnessing this firsthand.

Yenor, a tenured professor of political science, stirred up an angry hive of discontent for a speech he made at a National Conservatism conference in late October.

In the speech, he denounced the feminist ideology that treats boys and girls as if they are not only the same, but should want and value the same things as each other. He said that the modern feminist ethos of “careerism” without connection to family and religion leaves them finding meaning in politics and what he called the “global project.”

He also said that our culture now devalues and expects little out of men.

These comments spurred countless media articles, denunciations, and protests on the Boise State campus.

The attacks came with little actual engagement with Yenor’s view. We are simply to assume that he’s wrong and that his words and ideas are unacceptable.

This isn’t the first time Yenor has provoked a cancel mob at Boise State.

In 2017, Yenor wrote an article for The Daily Signal in which he wrote that transgender activists are undermining parental rights and traditional family values.

Yenor wrote at the time:

Transgender rights activists are seeking to abridge parental rights by elevating the independent choices of young children. Respecting the sexual and gender “choices” of ever-younger children erodes parental rights and compromises the integrity of the family as an independent unit.

The reaction to Yenor’s comments then was also extreme, to say the least. Students, staff members, and outside activists sprung into action to get him fired, typically calling his words “hate speech.”

You can read his article here and decide for yourself if this constitutes hate speech.

Activists immediately launched a petition to get Yenor fired.

Boise State’s Vice President for Equity Initiatives Francisco Salinas went on a crusade against Yenor, tying his work to Nazism. As usual, it’s the diversity, equity, and inclusion administrators who act as the woke inquisitors on college campuses—reinforcing dogma and intimidating dissenters into silence.

Yenor didn’t back down. In an interview with The Daily Signal, Yenor explained that it was disappointing to see just how little the vehement denunciations addressed his arguments.

“It strikes me that there has really been, first of all, no effort to first understand what I’m arguing, and second of all, to get anywhere beyond name-calling and labeling,” Yenor said.

Instead of debate, Yenor said that the response felt like little more than a “mob.” The worst thing of all was not just that they were trying to get him fired, it was that their actions created a deep chill on speech.

Boise State didn’t fire Yenor. Instead, the dean offered a statement on Facebook, filled with woke buzzwords, saying that while the school supported free speech and debate, Yenor’s views weren’t really welcome on campus.

The latest round of outrage at Yenor only shows how much further the cultural revolution has proceeded in our elite institutions in just a few years.

Again, there has been little real engagement with Yenor’s ideas. Instead, he’s simply been subjected to rounds of ritual denunciations based on the assumption that his opinions must be untrue and that they were meant as an attack on women.

The attacks have been vicious and personal. Yenor released audio recordings of voicemails he received after the flurry of left-wing media stories came out. The messages were hateful, called for violence, and were in some cases completely deranged.

What’s happening to Yenor is how elite institutions—academia and establishment media—treat anyone who disagrees with prescribed cultural narratives. They now ruthlessly enforce specific social views to the exclusion of everything else.

Intellectual diversity is a threat to diversity. Inclusion requires the exclusion of dissenters. Equity is only given to those deemed worthy and without wrongthink.

The socially radical and increasingly stifling atmosphere of the modern college campus is growing and spreading to all areas of our society.

Those who do not shout their devotion to the revolution are to be treated without civility or humanity.

This is the ugly course our woke institutions are taking us. Genuine debate and civil disagreement are being replaced by enforced ideology and mob retribution toward dissenters.

This is the real threat to “democracy” and self-government in America. It’s the real threat to the land of liberty where free speech, meant to lead us to the truth, is replaced by speech codes and enforced groupthink

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Perdue University President Stands Up to Red China after It Threatens a Pro-Democracy Student

As China increases its efforts to control the conversation in the West, using everything from radio stations to deals with Amazon to push its weight around overtly and everything from subterfuge to MSS (the CCP’s secret police) agents to push the party line covertly, standing up to the Reds is becoming more and more important.

Unfortunately, many Americans, especially on the left, either side with China or don’t recognize the stakes. Rather than standing up to the Red Dragon, they keep their opinions hidden or back down if they accidentally say the wrong thing.

Fortunately, however, a brave few are willing to stand up to the Chinese menace. One such brave soul is the president of Perdue University, Mitch Daniels, who stood up to China after it attempted to terrorize a pro-democracy student.

At Perdue, there is a brave student named Zhihao Kong who stood up to the CCP, boldly praising the bravery of the student protesters murdered during the Tiananmen Square protest.

Shortly afterward, the student’s family received a visit from MSS personnel and he was bullied and viciously slandered by other Chinese students at Perdue. He told ProPublica that he thought many of them were Chinese informants and spies.

Then, later, his family was again harassed by MSS after he was invited to speak on the Tiananmen Square protests.

In such a situation, many university presidents would have backed down and submitted to the CCP, which wields immense influence on many American campuses.

Mr. Daniels, however, didn’t. Instead of bending the knee to the CCP, he threatened the CCP spies on campus, saying:

“If those students who issued the threats can be identified, they will be subject to appropriate disciplinary action. Likewise, any student found to have reported another student to any foreign entity for exercising their freedom of speech or belief will be subject to significant sanction.”

He added that while all are welcome on Perdue’s campus, those who do attend must respect its values, especially freedom of inquiry and expression and that “Those seeking to deny those rights to others, let alone to collude with foreign governments in repressing them, will need to pursue their education elsewhere.”

Responding, Kong told Radio Free Asia that “President Daniels’ courage to safeguard freedom of speech is admirable.”

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San Diego State University dean calls conservative agenda 'sexist, racist and a stench': Republican students slam her 'cancerous leftist ideology'

Leftist hate speech is OK

A dean at San Diego State University has described the 'Right's agenda' on Twitter as a 'stench' saying it consists of racism, unintelligence, and inequality.

'Just so we're clear on the Right's agenda: racism good, abortion bad, money good, women bad, capitalism good, sustainability bad, stupidity good, science bad, power good, equality bad, white people good, nonwhite people bad. Stench, indeed,' Dr. Monica Casper, SDSU's dean of the College of Arts and Letters, tweeted.

In other tweets, Dr. Casper wrote about the acquittal of Kenosha shooter Kyle Rittenhouse calling it a victory for 'white supremacy'. 'No mercy, no justice – white supremacy wins again,' she tweeted.

Earlier this month, she reacted to the opening arguments in the Supreme Court which is considering a Mississippi ban on abortions at 15 weeks; and could be used to reverse Roe Vs Wade.

She described the Supreme Court as consisting of: 'Two sexual predators, a white lady, and some racists walk.' She tweeted her observation adding the hashtag 'abortion is healthcare.'

Earlier this month, she reacted to the opening arguments in the Supreme Court which is considering a Mississippi abortion ban at 15 weeks; and could be used to reverse Roe V Wade
Earlier this month, she reacted to the opening arguments in the Supreme Court which is considering a Mississippi abortion ban at 15 weeks; and could be used to reverse Roe V Wade

The outspoken comments have Republicans attending San Diego State College up in arms describing her comments as 'hateful.'

'The tweets reflect the cancerous leftist ideology that has infected not just the average professor, but the upper leadership of our public universities,' Dylan Martin, a spokesperson for the California College Republicans, told CollegeFix, which first reported the tweets. 'This dishonest narrative harms students,' Martin added.

'This isn't isolated to Casper at SDSU, either; this way of thinking and this narrative is being driven by professors across the country every day.'

Casper's bio states she is 'deeply invested in the promise of sociology as a means to understand and change the world.'

Her faculty bio describes her as being focused on feminism, environmental studies, and infant mortality among other topics.

One of her specialties includes 'combating infant mortality in black communities.'

San Diego State has defended the comments made by its faculty member stating educational establishment supports her right to free speech.

'It is important to know that faculty speech is protected by both the First Amendment and academic freedom principles, which are advanced by the American Association of University Professors,' the school said in a statement.

'At SDSU, we encourage all members of our community, including our faculty, to engage in open discourse, as it is our responsibility as a public institution to uphold and protect free speech.

'We know that open dialogue may introduce conversations about topics that are uncomfortable for some.'

The school told Fox News that it did not want to violate the Constitutional rights of staff or stifle respectful debate noting how they will 'not censor professors for exercising their free speech and for sharing their perspectives and the expertise determined by their own research and scholarship' because it would violate their Constitutional rights and stifle respectful debate.

'We support the free expression of our faculty, students and staff and maintain an environment that is supportive of different perspectives and experiences,' the school 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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Thursday, December 23, 2021



MI school district suggests joining BLM protests, warns calling US 'land of opportunity' is 'microaggression'

A public school system in Michigan spent 21 days teaching adults in the district how to be good "equity" allies, capped with a direct call for them to join a Black Lives Matter political protest.

Farmington Public Schools in Michigan released a "21 Day Equity Challenge" for interested parties in the district, aiming to help individuals "learn how to more effectively understand and celebrate our differences"

"Our Mission Statement is ‘Farmington Public Schools, together with our community, will engage every student in a quality experience, empowering each student to become a thoughtful, contributing citizen in a changing world,’" the school district wrote. "With this in mind, we, together with you, hope to deepen our understanding about the members of our community and to use this knowledge to confront bigotry, hatred, and discrimination against any individual or group."

Day 18 of the "equity challenge" includes a link to a list of "microaggressions" to avoid, such as calling America "the land of opportunity."

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Lecturer becomes symbol of France's battle against wokeism as he is suspended by university because he said it had surrendered to 'Islamo-leftist' students and academics

A lecturer has become a symbol of France's battle against wokeism after he was suspended by his university because he said it had surrendered to 'Islamo-leftist' students academics.

Klaus Kinzler was suspended for four months by Sciences Po Grenoble after the institute ruled his remarks were defamatory.

The German professor accused the university of 'explicitly encouraging students to insult, abuse and defame teachers who have the audacity not to share their extremist opinions'.

The row erupted in March after Kinzler blocked a one-day conference on 'Racism, antisemitism and Islamophobia' claiming it was a politically charged subject rather than academic.

In response a left-wing students' union accused him and a fellow professor of 'fascism' and Islamophobia in a targeted campaign on social media and signs around the Grenoble campus.

In the wake of the case, President Macron's government condemned 'Islamo-leftism' - known as Islamo-gauchisme in French - which points to the alleged political alliance between leftists and Islamists, the Times reported.

But academics have pushed back, with 40 writing an open letter to the Minister of Higher Education Frédérique Vidal warning 'the freedom of expression of academics, as well as their academic freedom within the framework of their teaching and their research, freedoms of which you are the first guarantor, are in danger in our country.'

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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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Wednesday, December 22, 2021



Jumaane Williams calls for return to remote learning as COVID surges in NYC

New York City’s Public Advocate says schools should immediate return to remote learning as the Omicron coronavirus variant sweeps across the city.

“NYC schools should go remote starting Mon (should’ve been last week). A no-brainer as we near recess,” Jumaane Williams said in a tweet Saturday.

Even as city schools report record numbers of COVID-19 cases, Mayor Bill de Blasio has resisted a return to lockdowns.

“No no no,” he told WNYC’s Brian Lehrer on Friday when asked if he supported closing schools. “Don’t fight yesterday’s war … This is not March of 2020. We’re one of the most highly vaccinated places in the United States of America.”

Williams, who may soon be facing de Blasio in a Democratic primary for governor, also took a swipe at the outgoing mayor — and Gov. Kathy Hochul.

“My guess is that even with all of the recommendations and insistence that we prepare a viable remote school option for just this type of scenario the Mayor stubbornly still has not. Likely the same across the state. Almost 2 years in there is simply no excuse for that.”

Though schools are staying open for now, individual shutdowns have occurred in isolated pockets of the city. Three schools were closed Thursday by the Department of Education over local outbreaks

De Blasio will leave office at the end of the year when he is replaced by mayor-elect Eric Adams. As Public Advocate, Williams is automatically next in line for the city’s top job should the sitting mayor leave office.

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Schools Chancellor-to-be David Banks continues to offer good sense on what NYC schools need

Schools-chancellor-to-be David Banks continues to impress with his sterling vision for advancing city public schools: accountability, innovation and results.

Banks’ push for accountability began the day Mayor-elect Eric Adams introduced him as the next chief of the city Department of Education: “Any agency that has a $38 billion annual budget . . . and yet we have 65 percent of black and brown children who never achieve proficiency,” he said. “That should be outrageous, it’s a betrayal.”

Certainly, the career educrats at the DOE’s Tweed headquarters started to squirm in their seats. Rightly so, as their incoming boss believes the school system is flawed — and needs fixing from the bottom up. That is, the voices to guide that change are principals and parents, not bureaucrats.

And where recent chancellors have sought to basically destroy the city’s specialized high schools, Banks would rather expand these academic jewels. He told PIX 11 News that he’s open to creating new ones, with their own admissions criteria.

His approach to Gifted & Talented programs is similar. Instead of gutting the programs, as Mayor Bill de Blasio ordered, Banks will look to enlarge G&T so more students of all races can benefit — and, not incidentally, get on the track to win admission to the elite high schools.

Among the deep experience Banks brings to his new job is time working as a school safety officer: With that perspective, he wants the NYPD to continue to handle school safety. But he’s also sensitive to students’ concerns about the airport-style metal detectors deployed at schools where weapons have been seized. He has vowed to bring in newer, less obtrusive detection systems.

And his years as a hands-on educator have led him to endorse relying on phonics to teach reading, rather than the “blended” and/or “balanced literacy” approaches pushed by theorists and (naturally) embraced by the bureaucracy.

“They’re teaching wrong,” Banks told CBS2’s Marcia Kramer. And abandoning the “phonetic approach” has “been a huge part of the dysfunction.”

In his media rounds, Banks also talked of changing how teachers, parents and students view the academic year. To teachers unwilling to work a longer school year, he said: “If we continue to do things the way we’ve been doing them, we’ll continue to get the same results.”

Bottom line: Banks is intent on bringing sanity as well as accountability to the school system. Increase opportunity by expanding it, not by dropping standards to allow for race-obsessed social engineering. Empower the people who care most about kids. Focus on what works, not what’s trendy among academics or favored by agenda-driven politicians.

After eight years of chancellors appeasing the system’s vested interests and playing divisive race-baiting games, Banks’ focus on what’s actually best for students is a welcome relief.

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Academics seeking promotion at UCL told to overhaul courses to limit the number of 'dead white men'

Academics seeking promotion at one of the country’s leading universities have been told they should overhaul courses to limit the number of “dead white men”.

Researchers applying for any teaching roles at University College London (UCL) should “engage” with the institution’s Liberating the Curriculum initiative and be prepared to "demonstrate the impact" of this.

According to an internal university guidance document, titled UCL Academic Careers Framework, this is listed as a core requirement for those applying for lecturer roles.

It says that all academic, research and teaching staff are expected to demonstrate “at least some core activities” when applying for a promotion.

The document explains that an "indicator of impact" could be either introducing new or making “substantial” revisions to old modules in response to student feedback.

UCL describes its Liberating the Curriculum initiative as a policy aimed at “challenging traditional Eurocentric, male-dominated curricula and ensuring the work of marginalised scholars on race, sexuality, gender and disability are fairly represented in curricula”.

Many disciplines 'deeply exclusive and unfair'
The initiative also encourages academics to “be the change” and “acknowledge the prejudices baked into a field” as well as “check their privilege”.

It claims that many academic disciplines are “deeply exclusive and unfair” in their current form as they are overly represented by “dead white (able-bodied European) men”.

One academic told The Telegraph they are deeply troubled about this initiative. “I think this whole woke avalanche is really concerning because it is like a religious fervour," he said. "Instead of looking at the evidence, it says some answers have got to be accepted and others cannot be accepted. That is poisonous - it is the wrong direction for a university to go in”.

The Free Speech Union (FSU) has written to UCL’s vice-chancellor, Dr Michael Spence, urging him to remove this stipulation immediately from its guidance.

Toby Young, general secretary of the FSU, said: "Insisting that anyone in a grade 8 job at UCL, or applying for one, has to remove 'dead white able-bodied European men' from reading lists, 'check their privilege' and 'acknowledge the prejudice baked into their field' is an infringement of their right to free speech and almost certainly unlawful.”

The Telegraph last week revealed how Oxford dons are furious that a candidate’s “woke score” could be part of the criteria for hiring academics, under new proposals aimed at boosting staff diversity.

Hiring from ethnic minority backgrounds
The university’s race equality task force has published a series of recommendations aimed at increasing the number of people it hires from ethnic minority backgrounds.

In a consultation document, the task force said it was “important to embed EDI” - which stands for equality, diversity and inclusion - into “all recruitment”.

One Oxford academic questioned whether this would mean academics need to have a “minimum woke score” to get a job at the university.

A UCL spokesperson said that their Academic Careers Framework document gives “illustrative examples of activity undertaken by some people at a specific job grade and these are categorically not a checklist for promotion".

They added: “The descriptions are not exhaustive and no individual would be expected to meet all of the criteria highlighted. They offer broad and varied indicators of different types of activity and ‘Liberating the Curriculum’ is just one example of how staff can demonstrate their work on the curriculum.

“Irrespective of the activity, the evidenced impact and reach of a person’s work is the vital aspect for promotion and contribution will be considered in the round.

“We have a long tradition of safeguarding freedom of speech and are strongly committed to upholding academic freedom of enquiry in our teaching and research."

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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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Tuesday, December 21, 2021



Private preschools are teaching the future elite to be racist (anti-white)

A few weeks ago, teachers at Manhattan’s Brick Church School read “Our Skin: A First Conversation About Race” to several classes. In its lessons on racism, all the racists are, of course, white.

One typical line: “A long time ago, way before you were born, a group of white people made up an idea called race.” The idea that people didn’t notice each other’s skin color or features until white people made them is, of course, absurd.

“Our Skin” aims to “empower activism in young children” and encourages them to attend protests. This is really the point of such books: to turn kids into little soldiers in the war to implement leftism.

This type of woke nonsense has been prevalent at New York elite schools for the last year. After the atrocious killing of George Floyd by a police officer, schools threw money at consultants and lesson plans to insulate them from accusations of racism.

By the way: Brick Church is a preschool. Parents report that teachers read the book to children as young as 3.

Founded in 1940, Brick Church charges $26,700. Getting admitted is is difficult. Two-year-olds compete for spots.

Parents told me they chose Brick for the preparatory academic experience that would get their child ready for school and this veering into woke philosophy has them worried.

The school tried to address their concerns in a letter to parents: “As you may know, last week teachers in two classrooms read students a portion of a book, ‘Our Skin: A First Conversation About Race.’ The first part of the book reflects on skin color and supports the school’s goal to celebrate our differences, including the beautiful spectrum of skin colors represented at our school. The teachers did not read (and so the students did not hear) the second part of the book, which delves into the history of race and racism.”

Parents say this is a lie and, anyway, even the first part of the book isn’t appropriate for small children.

The woke wave has submerged private schools.

As Jon Levine reported in The Post, Ethical Culture Fieldston School sought to hire a ballet instructor “committed to challenging Western dance forms” and a science teacher with “an understanding of and commitment to cultural competency.” Grace Church School wants math and science consultants who show a “commitment to antiracism and accessibility of student education for diverse learners.”

The Spence School issued an “Anti-Racism Task Force Report” and asked the entire school community to read the racist book “How to Be an Antiracist” by Ibram X. Kendi.

Why should we care if elite private schools fall to wokeness? After all, only a small segment of the population attends them in the first place, and most Americans will never even meet one of these people.

But while private schools have limited reach in how many kids they can ultimately indoctrinate, these are the kids of titans of industry, the wealthiest and most influential people in our society.

Called “Baby Ivies,” these preschools groom children for the elite private schools that prepare them for top colleges. If these kids become a cohort of woke automatons, we’ll feel it throughout a variety of industries. As we watch corporations parrot the same “We believe” woke ideology, remember it begins at places like Brick Church School when the child is just 2. When every single magazine, TV show and movie has the identical conformist ideology, it begins at places like Brick.

So don’t brush off little rich kids being told their race is bad and has always been bad. These scam ideas, always accompanied by scam consultants and scam books, won’t stay among the richest segment of the population. Those kids will be raised to push those insane ideas into the world. We can’t let them.

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What does it take to get into an Ivy League? Admission is more competitive than ever before

This past week, every Ivy League school released their Early Action and Early Decision results. As expected, the acceptance rates were crazy low. At Yale, for example, 800 students out of a pool of 7,288 were offered admission, while 31% of early applicants were deferred and 57% were rejected, according to the Yale Daily News.

In Yale’s case, the 2021 Early Action application pool was the second largest in its history, after last year’s record-breaking number of 7,939 applicants when it adopted a test-optional policy due to the Covid-19 pandemic.

Most students think that applying early is a surefire way to increase their chances of admission.

But it doesn’t necessarily equate to higher chances of admission. If a student has below average grades or test scores for their intended school, they shouldn’t fall for the trap that applying early will help negate a weaker profile. In fact, they will most likely stand out less in the early round, given that it tends to be a more qualified pool of applicants than the Regular Decision round.

Highly qualified applicants are rejected by the thousands every year at top schools. If students with high GPAs and perfect test scores are being rejected, then what exactly are Ivy League schools looking for?

The answer is anything but straightforward. To get your foot in the door for top schools, competitive GPAs and test scores are the “foundation” of a strong application. But the less concrete, more qualitative aspects of an application – what an applicant has done outside of school – often mean the difference between acceptance and rejection.

Extracurricular profiles are made up of qualitative elements including intellectual curiosity and exploration, authentic and demonstrated passions, community leadership, and how a student has made the most of the resources available to them. Has a student demonstrated an authentic passion for a subject or cause? Have they put time and energy into building something impactful out of their passions? Have they made a difference in their communities? These are the questions that admissions officers at top schools consider when filtering through thousands of qualified applicants.

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British Schools BAN crackers and glitter for a GREENER Christmas: Teachers opt for knitted alternatives to traditional table decoration

Schools are banning non-biodegradable glitter and looking to ditch Christmas crackers amid calls to introduce more eco-friendly festive initiatives.

One school asked pupils bringing in Christmas jumpers to swap them instead of buying them new, and in another school the nativity scenery and costumes were all reused or recycled.

Eco-conscious pupils, parents and teachers are demanding more action on the climate crisis in schools - and Christmas time is no exception.

It comes after youth activists took to the streets of Glasgow during school time last month alongside campaigner Greta Thunberg to demand action on climate change during the global Cop26 summit.

Jane Prescott, head of Portsmouth High School and former president of the Girls' Schools Association (GSA), said students' interest in sustainability has been 'gaining even greater momentum'.

She told the PA news agency: 'What Greta has done I think is galvanise their opinions and make them realise that, yes, it is worth making a stand about.'

This year, for the first time, Portsmouth High School ran a festive jumper swap among its pupils to reduce the purchasing of new seasonal clothes every year.

Mrs Prescott told PA: 'It was really welcomed by the parents, but also by the girls. They're quite environmentally conscious and they're very into sustainability and they like the idea that something that isn't worn out they can recycle and pass on to somebody else who can use it the following year.'

Glitter is not allowed at the private girls' school due to its impact on the environment. 'At one time prep schools and primary schools were full of glitter, at this time of year we have banned it,' the head added.

Some schools also tried to reduce the amount of festive decorations - such as Christmas crackers and table cloths - they use to reduce waste.

'I think crackers in schools probably have had their day and we probably won't have crackers at all next year,' Mrs Prescott added.

Graham Frost, head of Robert Ferguson Primary School in Carlisle, has banned non-biodegradable glitter from this year due to environmental concerns.

He told PA: 'I have outlawed the plastic glitter for craft activities so essentially anyone who puts an order through the school office they will be vetted and turned back if they try and order regular plastic glitter.

'My hope is that if more schools take that line then the suppliers that supply schools will think very carefully about sourcing things which are more in keeping with our environmental sensitivities.'

Mr Frost added: 'I think there is a growing feeling that if we're in the business, as we are, of preparing children for the future, with that future being imperilled by climate change, it is therefore imperative that we as schools do all we can to be a force for change and, to some extent, a force for influence.

'So enabling young people to write, to speak out, to express their response to their learning in environmental education is becoming much more important.'

At Canary Worth College Glenworth, a primary school in London, old boxes were used for the scenery, and old clothes and rags for the costumes, in the nativity production in order to be more sustainable.

Martin Blain, head of the school, said: 'This year the environment has become our main agenda item and they [staff and pupils] were very keen that we weren't using new things to do that.'

At the school's Christmas lunch, festive decorations were also scaled back.

On the environment, Mr Blain said: 'The fact is it is very much on the agenda. People are concerned about it and I think this is driven by young people.'

James Bowen, director of policy for school leaders' union NAHT, said: 'Young people are especially passionate about doing more to protect the environment and schools are responding to that.

'Figures like Greta Thunberg are inspiring to young people who see that they can make a difference and make their voices heard.

'Christmas can be a time of excess and it is more and more causing people to think about how that impact can be mitigated.

'We know that pupils are so much more aware of their environmental impact these days and at this time of year in particular it is they who are asking questions about how they can enjoy a more environmentally friendly Christmas.

'Whether it's recyclable wrapping paper and Christmas cards, or the reduction of plastics in presents, many are thinking about how they can make a difference.'

He added: 'The move towards more eco-friendly practices is something schools consider year-round, and they are introducing innovative new ways of working all the time - often at the suggestion of their own students.'

Geoff Barton, general secretary of the Association of School and College Leaders, said: 'Schools put a great deal of focus on the environment in all that they do because of the vital importance of this issue in general and particularly for their pupils who rightly feel very strongly about the need for a greener world.

'The recent Cop26 climate change conference may well have intensified that interest and Christmas provides a great opportunity to channel this enthusiasm into practical activities.'

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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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Monday, December 20, 2021



UK: Fury over Oxford University plan to hire academics based on how woke they are

Oxford dons are furious that a candidate’s “woke score” could be part of the criteria for hiring academics, under new proposals aimed at boosting staff diversity.

The university’s race equality task force has published a series of recommendations aimed at increasing the number of people it hires from ethnic minority backgrounds.

In a consultation document, seen by The Telegraph, the task force said it was “important to embed EDI” - which stands for equality, diversity and inclusion - into “all recruitment”.

They went on to recommend that “good citizenship and/or commitment to EDI work” should be an “essential criteria” for applicants in all reward and recognition processes.

This proposal has prompted a backlash from Oxford dons, who fear this would mean they have to give researchers a “woke score” when they apply for a job.

“One of the big issues that may well upset dons is that EDI is meant to be embedded as a criteria when making academic appointments,” a senior don said.

"If we are supposed to pay attention to their EDI - their woke score - does this mean it doesn't matter if they are useless at teaching and research? Or do you now have to get a minimum woke score to get a job?”

The academic explained one of the questions that was suggested as a way to “tease out” a candidate’s views on diversity was: “Can you give me examples on how you have called out these kinds of issues in your previous appointment?”

He said: “So you are being interviewed for a job in alchemy, yet you have to go out your way to show you have tried to virtue signal - to an old codger like me it just seems crazy. Do you mark someone down because they haven’t jumped on the woke bandwagon?”

Staff and students asked how to increase diversity
The document also says that a “centrally funded pool of trained EDI observers” should be set up to “provide support” to recruitment panels on request.

The task force which published the consultation is co-chaired by Anne Trefethen and Martin Williams, two of the university’s pro vice-Chancellors, as well as Prof Patricia Daley, an expert in the human geography of Africa.

Students and staff have been invited to submit their responses to the consultation by Wednesday. The task force will then draw up a university-wide strategy on equality and diversity which they will need to submit to Council - Oxford’s governing body - for approval before it can become official university policy.

The document also includes a series of recommendations about how to increase the diversity of its student body.

This includes funding a programme of inclusive teaching, curriculum diversification and decolonising activities” across university departments and faculties.

It also says the university should come up with a strategy on how to raise awareness about and reduce the incidence of “microaggressions”.

This could include “encouraging individuals to educate themselves on the experiences of others and empowering everyone to become active bystanders when they witness harassment or abuse”.

The document also recommends that a programme of training and awareness activities should be rolled out that “go beyond online training”.

The training would be aimed at ensuring students and academics “continuously learn and better understand microaggressions and stereotypes”.

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Schools Across US Tighten Security, Increase Police Presence After TikTok Shooting Threats

School officials and authorities across the United States said they were amping up security on Thursday after threats were made on TikTok and other social media suggesting that shootings would take place on Dec. 17.

It is unclear where the anonymous and vague school threat first originated from but the posts warn of shootings and bomb threats at schools around the country on Friday.

Authorities have said they have received no evidence suggesting that the posts were credible but school officials across states including Arizona, Washington, Connecticut, Illinois, Montana, New York, and Pennsylvania said they have amped up security across education facilities as a precautionary measure.

The Naugatuck Police Department in Connecticut issued a statement telling parents they would increase their presence and patrols at Borough Schools in the “coming days” due to an “uptick in unrelated threats at schools in the region.”

“While there has been NO threat against Naugatuck Schools, students, or staff, the public can anticipate our presence to increase the community’s sense of safety during the coming school days,” police said.

Police in Seattle said they have opened investigations into threats at two schools, “which led to the closure of one high school campus,” per a statement issued Wednesday.

“This morning, police received calls from Seattle Public Schools staff, reporting a social media threat involving students at Franklin High School and a potential threat at Rainier Beach High School,” police said. “The nature of the specific threat at Franklin led school officials to close the campus for the day.”

“Rainier Beach did not receive any specific threats and continued the school day sheltered in place,” officials added. “The Seattle Police Department is working closely with Seattle Public Schools to address campus safety and will provide additional patrols as needed.”

In Arizona, the Scottsdale Unified School District, in a letter to parents, said the threats appear to be “generic and are being posted nationwide” but noted that there would be an increased police presence on and around its on Thursday and Friday.

In New York, Oneida County Sheriff Robert Maciol said area schools will have an increased police presence Friday, Syracuse reported.

Elsewhere, Michigan’s Charlton Police Department issued a statement Thursday saying it’s “aware of a Snap Chat message about a threat to Charlton Middle School” and the agency is “actively working with other agencies and the school.”

“We believe this threat may be related to [a] Tik Tok challenge and not a credible threat. We have patrols concentrated in certain areas as a precaution,” officials said.

According to the Baltimore Public School District, law enforcement agencies investigated the threat “and determined that it originated in Arizona and is not credible.

“BCPS has been made aware of an anonymous threat posted on TikTok targeting all schools in the United States. The post alleges that there are planned school shootings that will take place on Friday, December 17,” the school district wrote on Twitter.

“Law enforcement agencies have investigated this threat and determined that it originated in Arizona and is not credible. We want to continue to encourage members of Team BCPS to report suspicious or threatening activities or postings,” they added.

TikTok in a statement Thursday said, “We handle even rumored threats with utmost seriousness, which is why we’re working with law enforcement to look into warnings about potential violence at schools even though we have not found evidence of such threats originating or spreading via TikTok.”

Under U.S. law, internet companies such as TikTok are generally exempt from liability for the material users post on their networks, owing to a provision in Section 230 of the 1996 Communications Decency Act

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Parents Erupt at California School Board Meeting Over Alleged ‘Coaching’ of Students Into LGBTQ Club

A mixed crowd of more than 150 people packed a school board meeting in Salinas, Calif., on Dec. 15 as frustrated parents clashed with supporters of two teachers accused of subverting parents and recruiting middle school students into a Gay-Straight Alliance (GSA) club.

Jessica Konen, one of about 30 people who spoke during an extended public comment period, told the board that school staff indoctrinated her child and usurped her parental authority.

Konen blasted the board and accused teachers and staff of coaching her gender dysphoric daughter through the Equality Club, an LGBTQ+ support group now called the You Be You (UBU) Club at Buena Vista Middle School.

“I stand here today in front of all of you because I am outraged. Is this really barely coming to light? Are you guys serious?” she said. “How could you even allow this? How could you even have this meeting to question it? How dare you let these teachers come in and act as if they have done nothing wrong? A mistake? How long of a mistake?”

Konen went public with her story after controversy erupted over an audio recording leaked to “Irreversible Damage” author Abigail Shrier and The Epoch Times that revealed two teachers at a California Teachers Association (CTA) conference dismissing parents’ concerns about homosexual and transgender indoctrination at school.

The two seventh-grade teachers from Buena Vista Middle School in Salinas, Calif., were recorded coaching other teachers how to hide the nature of Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Queer, or Questioning (LGBTQ+) Clubs, also known as GSA clubs, from parents. They led a workshop called “How we run a ‘GSA’ in Conservative Communities” at the CTA’s “2021 LGBTQ+ Issues Conference, Beyond the Binary: Identity & Imagining Possibilities” in Palm Springs, Calif., from Oct. 29 to 31.

Spreckels Union School District (SUSD) has since suspended the teachers with pay pending the outcome of an independent third-party investigation.

At the Dec. 15 Spreckels Union School District (SUSD) meeting, Konen accused Buena Vista Middle School staff of failing to tell her that her child might be having suicidal thoughts based on internet searches, while some school staff allegedly knew about them.

“They didn’t tell me that my child was suicidal,” she said. “You allow these teachers to open their classrooms, teaching predatorial information to a young child, a mindful child that doesn’t even know how to comprehend it all. How do you not know what’s going on your own campuses? Did you think that no parent would ever come forward? You will not quiet me today. I will stand here today and protect my child along with every other child who has not come forward yet.”

“Do they have psychiatry degrees that I was unaware of, because I didn’t hire them? I did not hire them to sit there and nitpick my child’s brain. You took away my ability to parent my child,” Konen added.

She accused Buena Vista Middle School teachers and administrators of contributing to her daughter’s gender confusion.

“You planted seeds,” she said. “Your job was to educate my child in math, science, English, etc. Do your job and let me do mine!”

Parents cheered and applauded her speech.

Preceding Konen’s comments, her father, Gunter Konen, told the board he was infuriated when he found out how Konen and his granddaughter had been treated. He said his granddaughter was a straight-A student before she was “coached” by staff on gender issues.

“She’s the one that’s confused, because she was coached,” he said.

“[Child Protective Services] was called on my daughter because she went to school to have a discussion with the teacher for hiding the fact that [her daughter] was given a new name—a boy’s name,” he said.

Suggesting to a girl that she may be a boy or to a boy he may be a girl is wrong, he said.

“That’s just vile nonsense,” he said.

“I think education needs to be grounded on truth,” Gunter Konen said. “I just feel that our kids are impressionable at that age, and we should keep the parents informed. I say resign or repent.”

Cheryl Duffus, a parent of two boys who attended Buena Vista Middle School said she has complained to administration multiple times about how one of the teachers had taken pushed LGBTQ activism to “unacceptable” levels.

“On one occasion, I picked my youngest one up from school during an all-school assembly, where he and other students were supposed to walk under a rainbow arch in the inner court to support the club. This was an all-school event, not just for members of the GSA club,” Duffus said.

After the incident, the principal assured Duffus he would talk to one of the teachers about the activism and ask her to “tone it down.”

Duffus said four other parents made similar complaints to Tarallo the same year: 2015.

“This issue is not about a GSA club on campus. It has nothing to do with that. This issue is about deceiving parents, stalking children, and these are children. They’re 12 years old,” she said.

What happened to Jessica Konen and her family was “horrific,” she said.

Trustee Michael Scott said he supports the decision to conduct a third-party investigation surrounding the UBU Club in light of the leaked audio.

However, he accused Shrier of framing what’s happening with transgender youth “in terms of a war.”

“We are not at war here. Everyone loses in a war,” Scott said. “War is completely contrary to our core values of compassion, kindness, and respect. I believe we should do everything we can to support and be inclusive,” Scott said.

“I am hopeful the third-party investigation will provide a clearer picture of the circumstances surrounding the UBU Club,” he said.

Any subsequent action should be responsive to the values, beliefs, and priorities of the community which are to be inclusive and “social emotionally” supportive.

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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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Sunday, December 19, 2021




EdTech surging

Between January and September of 2021, the EdTech sector saw mergers and acquisitions worth more than $3.35 billion, more than three times the consolidated amounts raised in the last two years — $416 million in 2020 and $783 million in 2019. Similarly, PE-VC fundraises by EdTech firms totaled $3.77 billion in the exact same time period, far exceeding the cumulative $2.22 billion and $968 million raised in 2020 and 2019 respectively, according to data provided by Venture Intelligence.

One of the breakout companies in this sector is Roblox (RBLX). Get Roblox Report debuted in the market last March at $64.50 per share, nearly $20 above the reference price of $45. Shares rose 54.3% to close at $69.47 at the end of its first official day of trading. Roblox is valued at about $42 billion, based on its opening trade, according to The Wall Street Journal. The company posted a stellar third-quarter and is now making strides in the metaverse and EdTech, bringing gamification to education.

In January, the company raised $520 million and now maintains a $40 billion-plus valuation. The primary function of the company is to teach students how to design and code their own educational games. More importantly, the company’s learners ate up 8.7 billion hours of user engagement on the platform in Q3 2020, more than four times the 2.1 billion hours they logged in 2018, based on data from backlinko.com. That pushed revenue up to $587 million for the first nine months of 2020. Roblox is now the highest valued content-based EdTech company in the $10 trillion global edtech industry.

And while Roblox dominates the high end of the spectrum, the more than 1,000 companies in the space continue to chalk up wins in the investment column. Education services platform College Dekho, owned by Girnarsoft Education Services Pvt. Ltd, raised $35 million (Rs 260 crore) in its Series B round of funding, the company said in a Nov 30th statement. The company said it would use the funding to expand their team and platforms to serve a larger number of students and colleges, while also fueling growth in new verticals such as education loans, student accommodation, and coaching for higher education.

EdTech startup NxtWave, which was launched in September 2020 — the heart of the COVID pandemic — has continued to gain steam this past November, raising $2.8 million pre-Series A funding, bootstrapping the company and making it cash-flow positive. The company has grown by 9X in the previous 10 months to $7.5 million ARR, the company said in a statement.

The startup specializes in vernacular, asynchronous, and online cohort-based training programs in Industry 4.0 Tech careers, with a focus on college students, graduates, and early professionals. Over the last two quarters, more than 250 companies have tapped NxtWave graduates, including giants like Google and Jio, according to the company’s statement.

Another company working its own angle in EdTech is the Genius Group, headed by futurist and New York Times best-selling author Roger James Hamilton. Genius Group is a global entrepreneur education company, serving over 2 million students in 200 countries with hands-on, live, interactive, entrepreneur-based content where students and professionals learn about the trends shaping the digital decade, artificial intelligence, digital currencies, decentralized finance, and the metaverse through its EdTech arm, GeniusU.

Moreover, Genius Group is growing through investment and acquisitions, like their pick-up of Entrepreneur Resorts Ltd, comprising luxury resorts and lodges, beach clubs and city co-working hubs, for $32.6m last July. Entrepreneur Resorts is a group of entrepreneur-focused locations offering business leaders professional educational retreats in exotic destinations around the world, including Singapore, Bali, South Africa, and soon to launch in the U.S. They also have a license model with 5 new locations opening up in 2022 across the world.

The move combines old school and new school, adding the brick and mortar campuses provided by Entrepreneur Resorts to deliver the curriculum, while online learning will continue to be offered through the EdTech platform GeniusU.

As the last quarter of 2021 closes, growth in the now $10 trillion EdTech market shows no sign of slowing.

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Ethnic Studies is Anti-American Racist Nonsense

Once, I accidentally discovered a black history book in my school’s library. It must have been a “God-thang”, as we say in the vernacular.

As I thumbed through that book, I was overwhelmed at the things blacks accomplished. But as I read, I never felt slighted that my school wasn’t teaching me “black history”. I already felt empowered as an American; yes, a black American. And to see things specific to how blacks helped form America made me even more proud.

I would have loved to learn more specifically about the history of blacks in America. Nevertheless, I understood that my history classes were glimpses of history. Perhaps these stories were told from a particular perspective that favored whites. But such is history.

It was white men who discovered what would become America. And while their tactics were questionable by today’s standards, their actions built the best country in the world.

These days however, Leftists look at history in retrospect. They teach about an oppressive America, created by colonializing indigenous peoples. To this I say, “Who gives a sh*t! America is the best country in the world…period.”

Whatever got America to this point is ok by me. All countries have their bugaboos.

In a few hundred years, America has demonstrated its ability to overcome all our ills. Regardless, Leftists want to focus on America’s supposed ills, while wholly ignoring all the great things this country has given the world; like the mosaic of our people.

As Politico reported:, school districts have been attempting to divide America along racial lines.

In 2006, Tucson Unified School District’s Mexican American studies curriculum was relatively unknown. The program — a series of middle and high school classes highlighting Mexican American contributions to U.S. history and culture — had shown promise in lifting Latino students out of lower test score brackets and boosting graduation rates. Only a handful of detractors had shown up at school board meetings to grouse about the curriculum’s race-focused teachings.

Again, I have no problem with having Mexican kids learn about their historic contribution to America. The problem is the indoctrination these ethnic studies programs teach.
The article showcases the real agenda of these programs:

Then, Jonathan Paton, a Republican lawmaker representing Tucson at the time, got ahold of a recording of labor organizer and Chicano rights icon Dolores Huerta telling an auditorium of Tucson High School students, “Republicans hate Latinos.”

Suddenly, GOP lawmakers in Phoenix were decrying “Raza Studies,” as the program was known, as a plot to indoctrinate children with ideas about white people as racists and people of color as their victims. (“Raza” is Spanish for “race,” though the teachers who adopted the name said the intended translation was more akin to “the people.”)

A legislative panel ordered school administrators to defend the program at the state capitol in Phoenix, with one lawmaker accusing the district of running a “sweatshop for liberalism.” By 2008, lawmakers were setting their sights on banning TUSD’s Mexican American studies program altogether with a bill to prohibit classes from teaching beliefs that “denigrate American values.”

“Organizations that spew anti-American or race-based rhetoric have no place,” Russell Pearce, a Republican representative who sponsored the first attempt to outlaw the classes, said at a 2008 hearing. “We ought to be celebrating unity as Americans and not allowing, with taxpayer dollars, these organizations.”

Thank God Russell Pearce noticed what Leftists have been trying to hide for some time. Leftists are divisive racists. And like a wolf in sheep’s clothing, they do it all in the name of unity. As if we’re too dumb to catch on.

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Australia: Country kids are falling behind in key national tests

Country kids tend to have lower IQs worldwide so this gap is to be expected

Queensland kids in the bush are falling behind in basic literacy and numeracy levels, with less than half of students in remote locations meeting the national minimum standard in key areas.

Alarming 2021 NAPLAN data released today has revealed the performance gap between students in country and city areas is widening, with experts blaming a lack of extra resources and qualified teacher shortages.

Meanwhile girls are surging ahead of boys in reading levels, though boys continue to outperform their female classmates in numeracy.

Just 39 per cent of Year 9 Queensland kids in very remote locations were recorded as meeting the national minimum standard in writing in 2021, and only 54 per cent in remote areas. By comparison, 80 per cent of kids in metropolitan areas met the standard.

In Year 7 writing just 45 per cent of students met the standard in very remote locations and 67 per cent in remote, compared with almost 90 per cent of city kids.

Year 5 bush kids were also well behind their peers, with less than two-thirds meeting the national minimum standard in reading, writing, grammar and punctuation, and numeracy compared with about 95 per cent of students located in metropolitan areas.

Australian Curriculum, Assessment and Reporting Authority chief executive David de Carvalho said the gap between remote and metro areas was “disappointing”, and it was one of the reasons why a national standardised testing regime was important.

“(NAPLAN) does actually provide this kind of information and shine a light on these kinds of issues,” he said.

“And it does provide the opportunity to do a deeper dive, particularly in the school level practices or jurisdictional practices, to find out what’s working.”

ACARA’S general manager of assessment and reporting Peter Titmanis said the gap between remote areas and metropolitan areas in particular was “really significant”, and in some cases was close to about three years of learning.

Across the country, students from major cities outperformed students from regional areas in numeracy, reading and writing, with the gap in numeracy and reading gradually widening between 2016 and 2021 for most year levels.

The gap between boys and girls in primary school was also widening, with the gender divide larger in high school than in primary school.

UNSW Professor of Education Policy Pasi Sahlberg said there were a “cocktail of reasons” why kids in the bush were falling behind their city peers, including access to extra assistance like private tutoring, and a shortage of qualified teachers in key subjects.

“There’s big issues in the number of out of field teachers in rural and remote locations teaching out of field – it’s much higher than in the cities,” he said. “For many kids, they have had these teachers for a long time.”

Professor Sahlberg said while the location divide was “nothing to be happy about”, what was occurring in Queensland was also happening in the rest of the country, and across the globe.

“Australia is becoming more unequal, including in education,” he said. “I hope more policy makers would wake up and realise how important it is to address these inequalities, it’s the No. 1 education issue to try and fix.”

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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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