Rebuild trust or say 'good-bye' to students
Public schools must rebuild trust with parents -- or continue to lose students to homeschooling, private schools, microschools and other alternatives, writes Robert Pondiscio of the American Enterprise Institute.
Social conservatives aren't the only parents who suspect teachers and schools are "spending more time preaching than teaching," he writes.
Ed schools encourage teachers to see themselves as activists "committed to diminishing the inequities of American society," writes Pondiscio.
. . . the rise of increasingly assertive diversity, equity, and inclusion agendas in the aftermath of summer 2020 racial activism, exemplified in many schools’ commitment to purported anti-racist pedagogies and curricula, coincided with pandemic-driven remote education. With lessons beamed onto kitchen tables daily, the black box of classroom practice was pried open.
Many parents didn't like what they saw.
"Educators must also understand and take to heart that, legally speaking, they have limited latitude to impose their views on a captive audience of students," writes Pondiscio. He and colleague Tracey Schirra urge "schools and districts to consider adopting a code of ethics that encourages schools to teach essential yet controversial topics while valorizing viewpoint diversity."