A More Serious Problem

With all of this talk over bias at the University level, I could not help but think of a more serious problem of ideology interfering in education.

In public school systems, particularly in the South, we have witnessed the impact of “conservative values” on the educational system. Textbooks now come with warning labels for evolution; of course this absurdity is irrelevant since the subject is not even taught in most schools.

But it is not just the Deep South where this is an issue; I went to Caesar Rodney High School right here in Delaware (good old Slower Lower). In my 9th grade biology class, we ever-so-briefly went over the very basic concepts of evolution (mainly bacteria and birds) but skipped the section on human evolution entirely. I had a young teacher who was afraid of the consequences of teaching these concepts, and as a result I had to catch up in my anthropology class that assumed a basic background of the subject.

Science is not the only subject affected and influenced by the Conservative agenda; President Bush and his right-winger allies wholly support abstinence-based education. Caesar Rodney had such a curriculum. In health class, the sex ed section essentially consisted of basic physiological terms and explanations, and the repeated affirmation that the only safe sex was no sex at all. We then learned about a whole slew of STD’s and about the risk of AIDS (yeah, it’s transferred sexually and through blood contact, not sweat, saliva, and tears, Dr. Frist). Then we were told that in order to lower our risks of these, do not have sex. Period. We had a guest speaker from ARC (A Resource Center, which promotes “safer sex”); this person was forced to literally black out all information in her literature concerning condoms and other contraceptives, and was not permitted to discuss these topics.

Moreover, we had no wellness center at the school (they have finally managed to get one approved by the board) because of fears it would promote promiscuous sex and abortions. The one that finally was approved can still provide no information concerning contraceptives, condoms, etc.

Here’s the kicker; Caesar Rodney had a serious problem with teen pregnancy. Go figure.

The imposition of Conservative ideology on public schools is much more severe and is a greater risk than any individual biases that may exist at the collegiate level. These are matters that are affecting the education young Americans are receiving, at an age at which they are greatly susceptible to the information the adults in authority are providing (or in these cases, NOT providing) to them. This is not an issue of specific educators or a majority of students influencing the discourse as alleged at the University level; this is a predominant political ideology manifesting itself through the educational system with the intention of producing students who believe in and support the same ideas as the Reactionary adults in authority.

As a future teacher, this prospect terrifies me much more than concerns that my already developed and mature ideas will be changed or challenged by allegedly “biased” professors.