A Eureka High School teacher has been suspended until Nov. 28 for showing three segments of “The Daily Show” in his government and law class and warning students against an Internet search that yields results deemed to be pornographic.
School Superintendent Randy Crump suspended first-year teacher Rhett Felix on Tuesday morning following a two-hour executive session of the Eureka-based District 140 school board Monday night. During the public portion of the meeting, parents complained about bleeped obscenities and some sexual content of the segments and about a perception that Felix appears to have a liberal political bias.
“Mr. Felix has been suspended,” Crump said. “When he returns, he will be reassigned to another teaching assignment. That’s all I can share at this time.”
Felix, who lives in Bloomington, could not be reached for comment Tuesday. His salary of $40,189 will continue through his suspension.
Mr. Stone was my 9th Grade math teacher at Hanover High School. As I think I’ve told you before, Mr. Stone canceled class one day so he could play a videotape of a Bob Dylan TV special, “Hard Rain.” That video did more to change my life than any other high school math class I ever took. But if we’d been in Eureka, Mr. Stone would’ve probably been vilified as a flaming liberal and suspended.
Also - he was suspended because he told people not to google the name of a candidate for President of the United States. I don’t want to get banned, so I won’t post that name here…
My favorite parts are here:
===
“I believe when a serious accusation or complaint has been made against any individual in the school district, that measures should have been taken to place the individual on administrative leave pending the investigation,” Punke said. “That has not been done.
“The individual has been allowed to teach all last week and today even given all the complaints that you’re obviously aware of. I think that doesn’t put the children first.”
===
Serious? This seems at best to be a situation where a principal tells the teacher to not do it again–not suspend him.
===
Parent Thomas Enterline of Goodfield said he found the material “deplorable.”
“I didn’t find any humor in what I saw,” he said. “I look at what happened out at Penn State. Even though this doesn’t rise to that particular level, I would ask that this board look at these allegations and respond with appropriate resolve.”
===
Doesn’t rise to that particular level–similar to a firecracker doesn’t rise to a nuclear explosion.
I don’t see why anyone would defend this teacher. As an occasional sub, I fail to see where the Daily Show, House, The Office, The Lion King videos, etc., somehow add to learning. (the last three are local examples). For students it’s just a day off from real work.
–”I look at what happened out at Penn State. Even though this doesn’t rise to that particular level, I would ask that this board look at these allegations and respond with appropriate resolve.”–
What kind of mind makes any sort of connection between the rape of children and its coverup and the Daily Show?
- Way Way Down Here - Wednesday, Nov 16, 11 @ 11:21 am:
Am I safe to assume he was cautioning against this internet search on “school” computers?
- Way Way Down Here - Wednesday, Nov 16, 11 @ 11:24 am:
===What kind of mind makes any sort of connection between the rape of children and its coverup and the Daily Show?===
===For students it’s just a day off from real work.
There’s a difference between defending him from incredible overreach and defending a specific choice–in this case, it’s stupid to suspend him and at best it requires a knock it off from the principal.
That said, I’ve used popular shows in college classrooms. Not a lot, but there’s a particularly good episode of Homicide in which Pembleton talks about what his job is compared to an individual interests and rights if they are being interrogated. It fit as a good example for the theoretical point I was making and seemed to increase interest and provide a concrete point.
Is that what this guy did? It’s hard to tell, but I’m guessing not though he was almost certainly trying to get students to relate to some material. It probably wasn’t the best way to do so given what I know of that episode, but also not a suspension worthy event.
The Daily show is the best satire arround, a must watch for the growing curious mind. Or, they can let America’s version of T.A.S.S. give them a slanted and untrue picture of the world which is where, IMO, those parents were coming from.
jaded-thechampion.org posts teacher salaries. Some gym teachers on the north shore make $115k+.
To those who say this stuff ruins kids minds, you look at a college syllabus from U of I, Northwestern Harvard any other school you’re going to find stuff that might not pass the test of certain kinds of parents or ideologues. Those kids turn out ok.
Remember: this was high school, and a class on government and law.
A few parents allowed unrealistic fears and political partisanship to cloud their judgment, and administrators should know better than to overreact to such childishness from parents. Agree completely that the teacher should not have been suspended.
look, we’ve long had an anti-intellectual bias in this country. now it’s become anti-education. the irony, of course, is that the same people who are so afraid of public education are the very same ones who think that the market will solve all their problems. their horatio alger pipedream (fitting, perhaps, when we were a manufacturing based economy, but utterly stupid as we move to a high-tech, intellectual property based economy) only feeds their addiction to the belief that education and government doesn’t matter…
===$40K for a first year teacher?! Not a bad gig if you can get it. I don’t wonder why teachers demand tenure, I’d demand it too if I could… but I can’t.
You can get a job just like that. In his case he has a MS and several years as a working anthropologist and be qualified to teach AP courses throughout the social sciences. Those are the credentials of a professional and reasonably we pay professionals as such.
a history teacher in high school plugged in the tv and had us watch the Watergate hearings. life changing and history before us. he got flack for that. stupid critics.
The Daily Show and the Colbert Report are the smartest things on tv right now. they actually look from both a close lens and a long lens at what things have been said and whether pols are actually consistent. mandatory watching for anyone in government and politics so why not for kids? besides, the writing is excellent. If I were a teacher, I would show Stephen Colbert’s testimony to a Congressional committee on migrant workers. the most brilliant piece of satire since Swift’s A Modest Proposal, in my opinion. Stewart and Colbert actually care about people. Their rally was awesome!
- lake county democrat - Wednesday, Nov 16, 11 @ 11:45 am:
“Hard Rain” also has a fantastic electric version of “Shelter from the Storm.”
Thanks Shore. Interesting web site. I had a relative that told me for years I should go into the school administration field. Now I know why. Of course I am sure the guy from New Trier earns his $357k per year.
Arch Pundit, you can’t compare viewing popular TV shows in a college classroom to viewing the same shows in a high school classroom. You just can’t. Obviously the university atmosphere (and mainly the fact that students choose–and pay–to attend there) is more allowing of that sort of thing.
While I don’t necessarily agree with all the viewpoints of Jon Stewart and the Daily Show, I think some of their criticisms are spot-on and insightful. But it’s still a very bad judgement call to show those particularly profane insights to a group of high school students. I feel like this was a first-year mistake that would have been better solved with a reprimand and an apology to the class and their parents.
- Senator Clay Davis - Wednesday, Nov 16, 11 @ 11:47 am:
“I fail to see where the Daily Show… somehow add to learning.”
Downstate Illinois, apparently you haven’t seen the program. The Daily Show is the most important political satire of our times. Jon Stewart’s advocacy is the largest single reason 9/11 First Responders health care is covered by the federal government. The “Rally for Sanity” brought 250,000 people to the National Mall. The show is extraordinarily relevant to the national political dialogue.
Do you believe school children should also not read Mark Twain? His works are filled with cutting political satire as well? Jonathan Swift? Aristophanes? Nietzsche?
To be clear, Public School teachers DO NOT HAVE TENURE. What they have is a continued service contract (that people call tenure but it is not), but EVERY teacher can be fired for cause. College professors HAVE TENURE. All that K-12 teachers have is a right to a hearing before being fired. Just like we all have a right to a trial before being taken to jail.
Every single “bad” teacher can be fired. But there is a process to the firing, a process due to every teacher, to make sure they are being fired for cause and not because a board member’s child earned an “F” in the class, like we have due process before going to jail.
In an age where tag, keeping score and recess are essentially banned for kids, this should hardly be a shock. Personally, I disagree with most of the Daily Show’s points, but it’s always hilarious. Suspension is WAY too harsh of a punishment for an incident that, let’s face it, is hardly even something that could be considered “wrong”. Ill-advised? Maybe. But hardly something that requires suspension.
- Seriously??? - Wednesday, Nov 16, 11 @ 11:56 am:
Was there a discussion in the class about what they watched? Did showing that video prompt the students to pay attention to what is going on in the world around them that maybe they didn’t pay attention to before? There are a lot of benefits to using non-traditional methods in a classroom that get things moving in a direction that a regular “let’s just sit and read the textbook” type class don’t have.
Besides, the Daily Show is shown in prime time on cable..It’s not as if this teacher was showing them something that they probably didn’t already have access to…Really?? Parents were offended by “bleeped obscenities”? What do you think they hear all day everyday anyway. Short sighted at best.
Poor administrator judgment and fear of politically correct base lawsuits against the district are the driving matters in this case. Even if this were a tenured teacher, he would be under the same scrutiny, with the same suspension. Tenure needs to be decoupled from this debate.
I have little doubt that tenure should be part of the higher ed environment, but I question whether or not it is appropriate at the K-12 level, where curricula are more defined, and choice for the parents (to attend other schools) is effectively limited by a near government monopoly of the schools. Very little (read none) research is done in K-12 that may be controversial.
How times have changed! I grew up not too far from Eureka and, many moons ago when I was in middle school, our history teacher showed us Gone With The Wind as our civil war unit (yes, we were tested on it to ensure we learned from it!). No suspensions, no reprimands, nothing, even after repeated parental complaints. This is not even in the same league! Administration doesn’t like the lesson plan? Fine, have him take it out. But suspension??
I can see the value in Daily Show for a political science course. Instead of doing a dry lecture on PACs and campaign financing I just pulled togetehr clips of Colbert’s explanations because it is a succinct and interesting way to convey the information the students need. Admittedly, it was a college level class in my case, but I can’t see how suspension is appropriate for this guy.
- tangled up in blue - Wednesday, Nov 16, 11 @ 12:23 pm:
curse you Miller-now I’ve got stuck inside of Mobile stuck in my head for the rest of the day!!!
Have to agree with those who feel the principal or a department head should have said that might not have been the best choice and to avoid the segments with that much ‘bleeping’ or the pizza as porn stuff.
But suspend the dude, seriously?
I wish I lived in a world where people would complain more about teachers actually sucking at their jobs and less about little Timmy hearing bleeped out words.
Actually had something like this happen when my daughters 4th or 5th grade teacher showed them An Inconvenient Truth without a heads up and permission slips since it was a PG film. Wasn’t thrilled about it and I didn’t complain, some parents did and the teacher was told not to do that again and everything was cool.
Heck I got to see the The Hellstrom Chronicle in 6th grade and it was way worse than The Daily Show even got to see Nanook of the North about a dude with multiple wives and some brief frontal nudity and I wasn’t scared for life.
Oh the poor conservative fee fees are hurt again! Just in time for the War on Christmas and latest Republican candidate for President to be “misunderstood” and “vilified” by the “liberal media.”
At my Catholic all-boys high school in 1985, we read Catch 22 (anti-war, violent imagery, swearing, sex) in English class, watched the R-rated 1968 version of Romeo & Juliet in Latin class (I’m still not sure why), and watched Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf in another literature class (yikes). Our morals class was a series of hit movies about nuclear war, sex, alcohol abuse, and religion.
High schoolers today are more aware of adult themes than ever. They get it. Too bad parents don’t these days.
==I fail to see where the Daily Show, House, The Office, The Lion King videos, etc., somehow add to learning. (the last three are local examples)==
With that attitude the students are fortunate that you are only an occasional substitute.
- Yellow Dog Democrat - Wednesday, Nov 16, 11 @ 12:51 pm:
I had a teacher in high school who built an entire course around regular viewings of Crossfire.
And I think its hilarious that while Republicans complain about teachers unions, it is exactly this kind of Freedom to Teach that is trumpeted by charter schools as the cornerstone of their success.
I had a teacher that let us watch the original Muppet Movie in class as long as we wrote a paper explaining how it fell into the genre of “epic”.
- RetiredStateEmployee - Wednesday, Nov 16, 11 @ 1:16 pm:
I wished more people actually “watched” The Daily Show. They would also need to watch it objectively instead of with their “liberal media” biases. It always hurts the most when our weaknesses are pointed out to us. Instead of learning from our mistakes, we pretend they don’t exist. The main media news sources seldom point out the hypocrisies of our news makers. The Daily Show piece on Jon Corzine’s statements as a politician and coporate CEO need more coverage. It’s time the public got more educated about our government instead of more emotional.
While I think the superintendent over-reacted, I believe the teacher was foolish in showing film that included clear liberal bias and profanity. The high school environment is sooo politically correct these days you have to be very careful what you teach, write and show to your students.
That is categorily false. The remediation measures for firing “bad” teachers takes years of documentation and costs tens of thousands if not hundreds of thousands of dollars. This is because the Union will support bad teachers and fight to keep them from losing their jobs.
To the issue, Eureka is a very conservative town. People in a local town still have the right to run their schools and their homes in a manner consistent with their beliefs. Agree with their beliefs or not, you should respect their right to raise their children how they like.
Even if you don’trespect that right, be smart enough not to thumb your nose at the beliefs of people who pay your salary.
–I believe the teacher was foolish in showing film that included clear liberal bias and profanity.–
Believe me, they can handle it. They should show Fox programs and listen to Rush, too. Like it or not, they’re all powerful ingredients in the political stew right now.
===That is categorily false. The remediation measures for firing “bad” teachers takes years of documentation and costs tens of thousands if not hundreds of thousands of dollars. This is because the Union will support bad teachers and fight to keep them from losing their jobs.
Not if you do the documentation. In other words, administrators have to do their jobs. I’m always amazed at how people grab on to this excuse by administrators instead of questioning whether they are doing their jobs.
- Senator Clay Davis - Wednesday, Nov 16, 11 @ 1:39 pm:
Great work posting the Hard Rain clip, Rich. Reminded me that it’d been too long since I listened to that album. That was definitely his best period
- GoldCoastConservative - Wednesday, Nov 16, 11 @ 2:28 pm:
Would those supporting the teacher feel the same way if he had subjected his students to episeodes of O’Reilly? Hannity? Or, heaven forbid, Glenn Beck?
- Pot calling kettle - Wednesday, Nov 16, 11 @ 2:34 pm:
==The remediation measures for firing “bad” teachers takes years of documentation and costs tens of thousands if not hundreds of thousands of dollars. This is because the Union will support bad teachers and fight to keep them from losing their jobs. ==
Read the law, please. ArchPundit is spot on. When administrators take the time to follow the process, it take neither “years” nor “tens of thousands of dollars.” Many, if not most, teachers faced with poor reviews will resign, and their union will recommend they do so. What allows a case to become drawn out is a lack of documentation and/or an unwillingness to follow due process.
- Pot calling kettle - Wednesday, Nov 16, 11 @ 2:40 pm:
It is unfortunate that this article provides no context. What was the context in the classroom? Did the teacher play other shows as well? Was there a discussion during and after the clips were played? How did this fit into the subject?
Also, if the Board did not take action, I am not sure it was appropriate for the supt. to indicate what disciplinary action was taken.
- Yellow Dog Democrat - Wednesday, Nov 16, 11 @ 3:02 pm:
Considering the anti-Intellectualism of the Republican Party, all classroom learning is liberally-biased by definition, because its based on the left-wing notion that we have the ability to think critically for ourselves and that advancing our understanding of the world around us is a good thing.
===Would those supporting the teacher feel the same way if he had subjected his students to episeodes of O’Reilly? Hannity? Or, heaven forbid, Glenn Beck?
Yes. Exposing students to different ideas is kind of integral to that whole education thing. Not knowing the context of his use, I can see a Principal telling him to knock it off with the Daily Show, but I don’t think we should be sheltering students from different views. We should be exposing them to different views.
the board should give high school students a little more credit - they certainly can handle curse words and different political viewpoints of teachers.
oh, the irony! first conservatives undermine the teaching of critical thinking skills, whether it’s to teach to the test or challenging science, and then they get mad when they might be exposed to an ideology they don’t like.
GoldCoastConservative, your question just shows how stupid conservatives really are. if we teach kids how to think critically, not only could they compete in a global economy, but they’d be able to see through all the crap, whether it came from the left or the right. but, noooooooooo! better to destroy a great nation than to allow some kids freedom to think for themselves…
I read this in the Sun-Times this morning, and I was shocked. This teacher didn’t deserve to be vilified, let alone suspended and then reassigned when he returns to work.
Most likely the majority of his students already watch Jon Stewart on a regular basis in their own homes right under their parents noses, and their parents don’t even know.
The man teaches a Government and Law class in high school. In this day and age, teachers have to keep class interesting and provacative. I’m glad my son had a teacher who did things like this; we need more willing to go out on a limb a little bit, get them interested in something other than mind numbing video games.
Yes, I agree that the principal should have talked to the teacher about possibly putting a little more thought into the tv shows he might play, or the clips he shows, but heaven forbid we stop the children for taking an interest in government at a young age.
The point is, you can’t impose your personal political views on students, any more than you can impose your religious views.
If this had been an assignment comparing political reporting styles, it might be different. But opposing views were not presented.
I wouldn’t want my child to be forced to listen to only Rush Limbaugh rants; why shouldn’t conservative parents be offended by The Daily Show’s often profane displays?
==Wensicia, the point is what they did to the teacher. Complete overreaction.==
I agree, as pointed out in my 1:24 PM comment.
One of the results of the anti-teacher movement is more write-ups for what is considered inappropriate speech/behavior by teachers. We recently had a case where a teacher was written up for sticky note comments she wrote about a workshop speaker’s presentation? I mean, really?!
Wensicia: There isn’t any evidence that the teacher didn’t provide contrary opinions. I don’t think we should assume they didn’t exist because they weren’t reported.
As for the issue as a whole, students can pick up on bias rather quickly. Were students the ones reporting this behavior or were parents reacting to what their children told them they did at school? It sounds like it is the latter.
I think students are quick to pick up on bias. Students are just as varied in ideology as adults. A biased teacher has very little chance of “brainwashing” a child. Students pick up on it. Students complain to each other about it. If anything, the greater evil of biased teachers is that they demoralize students by destroying their own legitimacy. Nobody wants to go to a class where someone tries to impose their ideas upon them. When we had a biased professor, we took the actions that were given to us: we told the head of the department and gave the teacher a poor evaluation. The real problem is that High School students don’t have these abilities given to them. High School students need to be able to evaluate their teachers confidentially and have the ability to complain to a higher authority.
I had a calculus II teacher that decided we were learning plenty of math in high school and taught art, his hobby, for a few days to this advanced class. This was ages ago but he was definitely my most influential high school teacher. He liked we students enough to want to share more about life and broaden our horizons.
Midwestern closed/narrow-mindedness is astounding in this modern age. Just when I think people have embraced tolerance, Midwesterners remind me that ignorance still runs rampant.
The Daily Show is so spot on about making political points that it is educational. Stewart has won all of his Emmy awards because he is so perfect in expressing views. And they aren’t all just democratic or liberal views. I would think a Law and Government class full of students would be old enough to cope with the loose language and sexual references in order to learn something from Daily clips. Does the school and do the parents really think their kids at that age aren’t exposed to much more graphic material everyday? Jon Stewart makes learning about current events fun while making very serious commentaries.
I agree with others here … “tone it down” is a much more suitable suggestion than “suspension” and losing his position. This type of heavy handed approach to school administration will keep potentially good teachers from the private sector from making the leap into education. What a shame.
I’m out of HS @25 years, and kids then were drinking, drugging, and copulating. Today’s little darlin’s ought to be able to handle bleeped expletives.
- Pot calling kettle - Wednesday, Nov 16, 11 @ 9:33 pm:
==the average NT teacher makes like $101,000. Of course, they have a masters, etc. No gym teacher makes that kind of money.==
What? There is no separate salary schedule for gym teachers. Their salaries are based on degree and experience, the same as any other teacher. And yes, a PE teacher could get a master’s and then some.
Considering the anti-Intellectualism of the Republican Party, all classroom learning is liberally-biased by definition, because its based on the left-wing notion that we have the ability to think critically for ourselves and that advancing our understanding of the world around us is a good thing.
You are completely wrong and really need to open your mind.
The Daily Show is so spot on about making political points that it is educational. Stewart has won all of his Emmy awards because he is so perfect in expressing views.
It is a comedy show that won Emmy awards for Best Variety Show - the same as the old Carol Burnett Show used to win 40 years ago.
It is a comedy show. If you think it is spot on - you should check out the political genius of other comedy shows, like Gilligan’s Island.
- George - Wednesday, Nov 16, 11 @ 11:07 am:
Apparently Herman Cain is too pornographic for middle America.
- George - Wednesday, Nov 16, 11 @ 11:10 am:
Also - he was suspended because he told people not to google the name of a candidate for President of the United States. I don’t want to get banned, so I won’t post that name here…
- Shore - Wednesday, Nov 16, 11 @ 11:12 am:
Alex, I’ll take overreaction for $800.
- wordslinger - Wednesday, Nov 16, 11 @ 11:12 am:
From Websters:
–Eureka, adjective, marked by usually sudden triumphant discovery –
Or not.
- ArchPundit - Wednesday, Nov 16, 11 @ 11:12 am:
My favorite parts are here:
===
“I believe when a serious accusation or complaint has been made against any individual in the school district, that measures should have been taken to place the individual on administrative leave pending the investigation,” Punke said. “That has not been done.
“The individual has been allowed to teach all last week and today even given all the complaints that you’re obviously aware of. I think that doesn’t put the children first.”
===
Serious? This seems at best to be a situation where a principal tells the teacher to not do it again–not suspend him.
===
Parent Thomas Enterline of Goodfield said he found the material “deplorable.”
“I didn’t find any humor in what I saw,” he said. “I look at what happened out at Penn State. Even though this doesn’t rise to that particular level, I would ask that this board look at these allegations and respond with appropriate resolve.”
===
Doesn’t rise to that particular level–similar to a firecracker doesn’t rise to a nuclear explosion.
- Downstate Illinois - Wednesday, Nov 16, 11 @ 11:17 am:
I don’t see why anyone would defend this teacher. As an occasional sub, I fail to see where the Daily Show, House, The Office, The Lion King videos, etc., somehow add to learning. (the last three are local examples). For students it’s just a day off from real work.
- wordslinger - Wednesday, Nov 16, 11 @ 11:17 am:
–”I look at what happened out at Penn State. Even though this doesn’t rise to that particular level, I would ask that this board look at these allegations and respond with appropriate resolve.”–
What kind of mind makes any sort of connection between the rape of children and its coverup and the Daily Show?
- Way Way Down Here - Wednesday, Nov 16, 11 @ 11:21 am:
Am I safe to assume he was cautioning against this internet search on “school” computers?
- Way Way Down Here - Wednesday, Nov 16, 11 @ 11:24 am:
===What kind of mind makes any sort of connection between the rape of children and its coverup and the Daily Show?===
Really, really, narrow ones.
- ArchPundit - Wednesday, Nov 16, 11 @ 11:25 am:
===For students it’s just a day off from real work.
There’s a difference between defending him from incredible overreach and defending a specific choice–in this case, it’s stupid to suspend him and at best it requires a knock it off from the principal.
That said, I’ve used popular shows in college classrooms. Not a lot, but there’s a particularly good episode of Homicide in which Pembleton talks about what his job is compared to an individual interests and rights if they are being interrogated. It fit as a good example for the theoretical point I was making and seemed to increase interest and provide a concrete point.
Is that what this guy did? It’s hard to tell, but I’m guessing not though he was almost certainly trying to get students to relate to some material. It probably wasn’t the best way to do so given what I know of that episode, but also not a suspension worthy event.
- Jaded - Wednesday, Nov 16, 11 @ 11:26 am:
$40K for a first year teacher?! Not a bad gig if you can get it. I don’t wonder why teachers demand tenure, I’d demand it too if I could… but I can’t.
- mouthy - Wednesday, Nov 16, 11 @ 11:30 am:
The Daily show is the best satire arround, a must watch for the growing curious mind. Or, they can let America’s version of T.A.S.S. give them a slanted and untrue picture of the world which is where, IMO, those parents were coming from.
- Shore - Wednesday, Nov 16, 11 @ 11:32 am:
jaded-thechampion.org posts teacher salaries. Some gym teachers on the north shore make $115k+.
To those who say this stuff ruins kids minds, you look at a college syllabus from U of I, Northwestern Harvard any other school you’re going to find stuff that might not pass the test of certain kinds of parents or ideologues. Those kids turn out ok.
- walkinfool - Wednesday, Nov 16, 11 @ 11:35 am:
Remember: this was high school, and a class on government and law.
A few parents allowed unrealistic fears and political partisanship to cloud their judgment, and administrators should know better than to overreact to such childishness from parents. Agree completely that the teacher should not have been suspended.
- bored now - Wednesday, Nov 16, 11 @ 11:38 am:
look, we’ve long had an anti-intellectual bias in this country. now it’s become anti-education. the irony, of course, is that the same people who are so afraid of public education are the very same ones who think that the market will solve all their problems. their horatio alger pipedream (fitting, perhaps, when we were a manufacturing based economy, but utterly stupid as we move to a high-tech, intellectual property based economy) only feeds their addiction to the belief that education and government doesn’t matter…
- ArchPundit - Wednesday, Nov 16, 11 @ 11:40 am:
===$40K for a first year teacher?! Not a bad gig if you can get it. I don’t wonder why teachers demand tenure, I’d demand it too if I could… but I can’t.
You can get a job just like that. In his case he has a MS and several years as a working anthropologist and be qualified to teach AP courses throughout the social sciences. Those are the credentials of a professional and reasonably we pay professionals as such.
- amalia - Wednesday, Nov 16, 11 @ 11:40 am:
a history teacher in high school plugged in the tv and had us watch the Watergate hearings. life changing and history before us. he got flack for that. stupid critics.
The Daily Show and the Colbert Report are the smartest things on tv right now. they actually look from both a close lens and a long lens at what things have been said and whether pols are actually consistent. mandatory watching for anyone in government and politics so why not for kids? besides, the writing is excellent. If I were a teacher, I would show Stephen Colbert’s testimony to a Congressional committee on migrant workers. the most brilliant piece of satire since Swift’s A Modest Proposal, in my opinion. Stewart and Colbert actually care about people. Their rally was awesome!
- lake county democrat - Wednesday, Nov 16, 11 @ 11:45 am:
“Hard Rain” also has a fantastic electric version of “Shelter from the Storm.”
- Jaded - Wednesday, Nov 16, 11 @ 11:45 am:
Thanks Shore. Interesting web site. I had a relative that told me for years I should go into the school administration field. Now I know why. Of course I am sure the guy from New Trier earns his $357k per year.
- LN - Wednesday, Nov 16, 11 @ 11:45 am:
Arch Pundit, you can’t compare viewing popular TV shows in a college classroom to viewing the same shows in a high school classroom. You just can’t. Obviously the university atmosphere (and mainly the fact that students choose–and pay–to attend there) is more allowing of that sort of thing.
While I don’t necessarily agree with all the viewpoints of Jon Stewart and the Daily Show, I think some of their criticisms are spot-on and insightful. But it’s still a very bad judgement call to show those particularly profane insights to a group of high school students. I feel like this was a first-year mistake that would have been better solved with a reprimand and an apology to the class and their parents.
- Senator Clay Davis - Wednesday, Nov 16, 11 @ 11:47 am:
“I fail to see where the Daily Show… somehow add to learning.”
Downstate Illinois, apparently you haven’t seen the program. The Daily Show is the most important political satire of our times. Jon Stewart’s advocacy is the largest single reason 9/11 First Responders health care is covered by the federal government. The “Rally for Sanity” brought 250,000 people to the National Mall. The show is extraordinarily relevant to the national political dialogue.
Do you believe school children should also not read Mark Twain? His works are filled with cutting political satire as well? Jonathan Swift? Aristophanes? Nietzsche?
- Jaded - Wednesday, Nov 16, 11 @ 11:48 am:
==you can get a job like that==
No thanks. I’m doing alright getting good grades the future’s so bright, I gotta wear shades.
- Union - Wednesday, Nov 16, 11 @ 11:48 am:
To be clear, Public School teachers DO NOT HAVE TENURE. What they have is a continued service contract (that people call tenure but it is not), but EVERY teacher can be fired for cause. College professors HAVE TENURE. All that K-12 teachers have is a right to a hearing before being fired. Just like we all have a right to a trial before being taken to jail.
Every single “bad” teacher can be fired. But there is a process to the firing, a process due to every teacher, to make sure they are being fired for cause and not because a board member’s child earned an “F” in the class, like we have due process before going to jail.
- Rich Miller - Wednesday, Nov 16, 11 @ 11:48 am:
===”Hard Rain” also has a fantastic electric version of “Shelter from the Storm.”===
Yep. My favorite live album of all time.
- John A Logan - Wednesday, Nov 16, 11 @ 11:49 am:
There are probably 10,000 teachers across the country that need to be suspended. However this fellow is not one of them.
- Michelle Flaherty - Wednesday, Nov 16, 11 @ 11:50 am:
Maybe Karen Lewis could come to his rescue.
- beserkr29 - Wednesday, Nov 16, 11 @ 11:52 am:
In an age where tag, keeping score and recess are essentially banned for kids, this should hardly be a shock. Personally, I disagree with most of the Daily Show’s points, but it’s always hilarious. Suspension is WAY too harsh of a punishment for an incident that, let’s face it, is hardly even something that could be considered “wrong”. Ill-advised? Maybe. But hardly something that requires suspension.
- Seriously??? - Wednesday, Nov 16, 11 @ 11:56 am:
Was there a discussion in the class about what they watched? Did showing that video prompt the students to pay attention to what is going on in the world around them that maybe they didn’t pay attention to before? There are a lot of benefits to using non-traditional methods in a classroom that get things moving in a direction that a regular “let’s just sit and read the textbook” type class don’t have.
Besides, the Daily Show is shown in prime time on cable..It’s not as if this teacher was showing them something that they probably didn’t already have access to…Really?? Parents were offended by “bleeped obscenities”? What do you think they hear all day everyday anyway. Short sighted at best.
- Cincinnatus - Wednesday, Nov 16, 11 @ 11:58 am:
Poor administrator judgment and fear of politically correct base lawsuits against the district are the driving matters in this case. Even if this were a tenured teacher, he would be under the same scrutiny, with the same suspension. Tenure needs to be decoupled from this debate.
I have little doubt that tenure should be part of the higher ed environment, but I question whether or not it is appropriate at the K-12 level, where curricula are more defined, and choice for the parents (to attend other schools) is effectively limited by a near government monopoly of the schools. Very little (read none) research is done in K-12 that may be controversial.
- ZC - Wednesday, Nov 16, 11 @ 12:06 pm:
Oh my God, he gets paid $40,000, to teach?
What is our society coming to, when our educators get paid 80% of the median household income in America?
- Katiedid - Wednesday, Nov 16, 11 @ 12:11 pm:
How times have changed! I grew up not too far from Eureka and, many moons ago when I was in middle school, our history teacher showed us Gone With The Wind as our civil war unit (yes, we were tested on it to ensure we learned from it!). No suspensions, no reprimands, nothing, even after repeated parental complaints. This is not even in the same league! Administration doesn’t like the lesson plan? Fine, have him take it out. But suspension??
- Colossus - Wednesday, Nov 16, 11 @ 12:15 pm:
I can see the value in Daily Show for a political science course. Instead of doing a dry lecture on PACs and campaign financing I just pulled togetehr clips of Colbert’s explanations because it is a succinct and interesting way to convey the information the students need. Admittedly, it was a college level class in my case, but I can’t see how suspension is appropriate for this guy.
- tangled up in blue - Wednesday, Nov 16, 11 @ 12:23 pm:
curse you Miller-now I’ve got stuck inside of Mobile stuck in my head for the rest of the day!!!
- OneMan - Wednesday, Nov 16, 11 @ 12:24 pm:
Have to agree with those who feel the principal or a department head should have said that might not have been the best choice and to avoid the segments with that much ‘bleeping’ or the pizza as porn stuff.
But suspend the dude, seriously?
I wish I lived in a world where people would complain more about teachers actually sucking at their jobs and less about little Timmy hearing bleeped out words.
Actually had something like this happen when my daughters 4th or 5th grade teacher showed them An Inconvenient Truth without a heads up and permission slips since it was a PG film. Wasn’t thrilled about it and I didn’t complain, some parents did and the teacher was told not to do that again and everything was cool.
Heck I got to see the The Hellstrom Chronicle in 6th grade and it was way worse than The Daily Show even got to see Nanook of the North about a dude with multiple wives and some brief frontal nudity and I wasn’t scared for life.
- Lefty Lefty - Wednesday, Nov 16, 11 @ 12:29 pm:
Oh the poor conservative fee fees are hurt again! Just in time for the War on Christmas and latest Republican candidate for President to be “misunderstood” and “vilified” by the “liberal media.”
At my Catholic all-boys high school in 1985, we read Catch 22 (anti-war, violent imagery, swearing, sex) in English class, watched the R-rated 1968 version of Romeo & Juliet in Latin class (I’m still not sure why), and watched Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf in another literature class (yikes). Our morals class was a series of hit movies about nuclear war, sex, alcohol abuse, and religion.
High schoolers today are more aware of adult themes than ever. They get it. Too bad parents don’t these days.
- Bill - Wednesday, Nov 16, 11 @ 12:44 pm:
==I fail to see where the Daily Show, House, The Office, The Lion King videos, etc., somehow add to learning. (the last three are local examples)==
With that attitude the students are fortunate that you are only an occasional substitute.
- Yellow Dog Democrat - Wednesday, Nov 16, 11 @ 12:51 pm:
I had a teacher in high school who built an entire course around regular viewings of Crossfire.
And I think its hilarious that while Republicans complain about teachers unions, it is exactly this kind of Freedom to Teach that is trumpeted by charter schools as the cornerstone of their success.
And the entire country of Finland.
- Seriously??? - Wednesday, Nov 16, 11 @ 1:05 pm:
I had a teacher that let us watch the original Muppet Movie in class as long as we wrote a paper explaining how it fell into the genre of “epic”.
- RetiredStateEmployee - Wednesday, Nov 16, 11 @ 1:16 pm:
I wished more people actually “watched” The Daily Show. They would also need to watch it objectively instead of with their “liberal media” biases. It always hurts the most when our weaknesses are pointed out to us. Instead of learning from our mistakes, we pretend they don’t exist. The main media news sources seldom point out the hypocrisies of our news makers. The Daily Show piece on Jon Corzine’s statements as a politician and coporate CEO need more coverage. It’s time the public got more educated about our government instead of more emotional.
- Wensicia - Wednesday, Nov 16, 11 @ 1:24 pm:
While I think the superintendent over-reacted, I believe the teacher was foolish in showing film that included clear liberal bias and profanity. The high school environment is sooo politically correct these days you have to be very careful what you teach, write and show to your students.
- the Patriot - Wednesday, Nov 16, 11 @ 1:26 pm:
==Every single “bad” teacher can be fired.==
That is categorily false. The remediation measures for firing “bad” teachers takes years of documentation and costs tens of thousands if not hundreds of thousands of dollars. This is because the Union will support bad teachers and fight to keep them from losing their jobs.
To the issue, Eureka is a very conservative town. People in a local town still have the right to run their schools and their homes in a manner consistent with their beliefs. Agree with their beliefs or not, you should respect their right to raise their children how they like.
Even if you don’trespect that right, be smart enough not to thumb your nose at the beliefs of people who pay your salary.
- wordslinger - Wednesday, Nov 16, 11 @ 1:30 pm:
–I believe the teacher was foolish in showing film that included clear liberal bias and profanity.–
Believe me, they can handle it. They should show Fox programs and listen to Rush, too. Like it or not, they’re all powerful ingredients in the political stew right now.
- Huh? - Wednesday, Nov 16, 11 @ 1:33 pm:
When I was a kid, schools held assemblies to watch the Mercury and Gemini rocket launches. I think the idea was to let us watch history in the making.
Watching tv in school has its place. It is of if a particular clip makes a point that the teacher wants to emphasize.
- ArchPundit - Wednesday, Nov 16, 11 @ 1:33 pm:
===That is categorily false. The remediation measures for firing “bad” teachers takes years of documentation and costs tens of thousands if not hundreds of thousands of dollars. This is because the Union will support bad teachers and fight to keep them from losing their jobs.
Not if you do the documentation. In other words, administrators have to do their jobs. I’m always amazed at how people grab on to this excuse by administrators instead of questioning whether they are doing their jobs.
- Senator Clay Davis - Wednesday, Nov 16, 11 @ 1:39 pm:
Great work posting the Hard Rain clip, Rich. Reminded me that it’d been too long since I listened to that album. That was definitely his best period
- GoldCoastConservative - Wednesday, Nov 16, 11 @ 2:28 pm:
Would those supporting the teacher feel the same way if he had subjected his students to episeodes of O’Reilly? Hannity? Or, heaven forbid, Glenn Beck?
- Wumpus - Wednesday, Nov 16, 11 @ 2:28 pm:
Hard Rain in math class? I bet you were better in English/literature classes.
- Michelle Flaherty - Wednesday, Nov 16, 11 @ 2:30 pm:
===As an occasional sub, I fail to see where the Daily Show, House, The Office, The Lion King videos, etc., somehow add to learning.====
Thanks for sharing your opinion Mr. Preckwinkle. Enjoy the pension while you can.
- Rich Miller - Wednesday, Nov 16, 11 @ 2:30 pm:
Oof.
- Pot calling kettle - Wednesday, Nov 16, 11 @ 2:34 pm:
==The remediation measures for firing “bad” teachers takes years of documentation and costs tens of thousands if not hundreds of thousands of dollars. This is because the Union will support bad teachers and fight to keep them from losing their jobs. ==
Read the law, please. ArchPundit is spot on. When administrators take the time to follow the process, it take neither “years” nor “tens of thousands of dollars.” Many, if not most, teachers faced with poor reviews will resign, and their union will recommend they do so. What allows a case to become drawn out is a lack of documentation and/or an unwillingness to follow due process.
- Pot calling kettle - Wednesday, Nov 16, 11 @ 2:40 pm:
It is unfortunate that this article provides no context. What was the context in the classroom? Did the teacher play other shows as well? Was there a discussion during and after the clips were played? How did this fit into the subject?
Also, if the Board did not take action, I am not sure it was appropriate for the supt. to indicate what disciplinary action was taken.
- Yellow Dog Democrat - Wednesday, Nov 16, 11 @ 3:02 pm:
Considering the anti-Intellectualism of the Republican Party, all classroom learning is liberally-biased by definition, because its based on the left-wing notion that we have the ability to think critically for ourselves and that advancing our understanding of the world around us is a good thing.
- ArchPundit - Wednesday, Nov 16, 11 @ 3:08 pm:
===Would those supporting the teacher feel the same way if he had subjected his students to episeodes of O’Reilly? Hannity? Or, heaven forbid, Glenn Beck?
Yes. Exposing students to different ideas is kind of integral to that whole education thing. Not knowing the context of his use, I can see a Principal telling him to knock it off with the Daily Show, but I don’t think we should be sheltering students from different views. We should be exposing them to different views.
- Robert - Wednesday, Nov 16, 11 @ 3:21 pm:
the board should give high school students a little more credit - they certainly can handle curse words and different political viewpoints of teachers.
- bored now - Wednesday, Nov 16, 11 @ 3:48 pm:
oh, the irony! first conservatives undermine the teaching of critical thinking skills, whether it’s to teach to the test or challenging science, and then they get mad when they might be exposed to an ideology they don’t like.
GoldCoastConservative, your question just shows how stupid conservatives really are. if we teach kids how to think critically, not only could they compete in a global economy, but they’d be able to see through all the crap, whether it came from the left or the right. but, noooooooooo! better to destroy a great nation than to allow some kids freedom to think for themselves…
- Truth Seeker - Wednesday, Nov 16, 11 @ 4:01 pm:
Rich, maybe the school as a “temporary banishment” policy.
- Wickedred - Wednesday, Nov 16, 11 @ 4:39 pm:
I read this in the Sun-Times this morning, and I was shocked. This teacher didn’t deserve to be vilified, let alone suspended and then reassigned when he returns to work.
Most likely the majority of his students already watch Jon Stewart on a regular basis in their own homes right under their parents noses, and their parents don’t even know.
The man teaches a Government and Law class in high school. In this day and age, teachers have to keep class interesting and provacative. I’m glad my son had a teacher who did things like this; we need more willing to go out on a limb a little bit, get them interested in something other than mind numbing video games.
Yes, I agree that the principal should have talked to the teacher about possibly putting a little more thought into the tv shows he might play, or the clips he shows, but heaven forbid we stop the children for taking an interest in government at a young age.
- Wensicia - Wednesday, Nov 16, 11 @ 4:56 pm:
The point is, you can’t impose your personal political views on students, any more than you can impose your religious views.
If this had been an assignment comparing political reporting styles, it might be different. But opposing views were not presented.
I wouldn’t want my child to be forced to listen to only Rush Limbaugh rants; why shouldn’t conservative parents be offended by The Daily Show’s often profane displays?
- Rich Miller - Wednesday, Nov 16, 11 @ 5:15 pm:
Wensicia, the point is what they did to the teacher. Complete overreaction.
- Wensicia - Wednesday, Nov 16, 11 @ 5:27 pm:
==Wensicia, the point is what they did to the teacher. Complete overreaction.==
I agree, as pointed out in my 1:24 PM comment.
One of the results of the anti-teacher movement is more write-ups for what is considered inappropriate speech/behavior by teachers. We recently had a case where a teacher was written up for sticky note comments she wrote about a workshop speaker’s presentation? I mean, really?!
- Timmeh - Wednesday, Nov 16, 11 @ 6:15 pm:
Wensicia: There isn’t any evidence that the teacher didn’t provide contrary opinions. I don’t think we should assume they didn’t exist because they weren’t reported.
As for the issue as a whole, students can pick up on bias rather quickly. Were students the ones reporting this behavior or were parents reacting to what their children told them they did at school? It sounds like it is the latter.
I think students are quick to pick up on bias. Students are just as varied in ideology as adults. A biased teacher has very little chance of “brainwashing” a child. Students pick up on it. Students complain to each other about it. If anything, the greater evil of biased teachers is that they demoralize students by destroying their own legitimacy. Nobody wants to go to a class where someone tries to impose their ideas upon them. When we had a biased professor, we took the actions that were given to us: we told the head of the department and gave the teacher a poor evaluation. The real problem is that High School students don’t have these abilities given to them. High School students need to be able to evaluate their teachers confidentially and have the ability to complain to a higher authority.
- Anonymous - Wednesday, Nov 16, 11 @ 6:55 pm:
the average NT teacher makes like $101,000. Of course, they have a masters, etc.
No gym teacher makes that kind of money. Please enough lies that somehow Rush Limbaugh or Judie Miller repeat as the truth.
Lastly, Eureka is where one of our former Presidents was born and even he wanted to do everything he could to get the heck out of there.
- springpatch - Wednesday, Nov 16, 11 @ 8:01 pm:
I had a calculus II teacher that decided we were learning plenty of math in high school and taught art, his hobby, for a few days to this advanced class. This was ages ago but he was definitely my most influential high school teacher. He liked we students enough to want to share more about life and broaden our horizons.
Midwestern closed/narrow-mindedness is astounding in this modern age. Just when I think people have embraced tolerance, Midwesterners remind me that ignorance still runs rampant.
The Daily Show is so spot on about making political points that it is educational. Stewart has won all of his Emmy awards because he is so perfect in expressing views. And they aren’t all just democratic or liberal views. I would think a Law and Government class full of students would be old enough to cope with the loose language and sexual references in order to learn something from Daily clips. Does the school and do the parents really think their kids at that age aren’t exposed to much more graphic material everyday? Jon Stewart makes learning about current events fun while making very serious commentaries.
I agree with others here … “tone it down” is a much more suitable suggestion than “suspension” and losing his position. This type of heavy handed approach to school administration will keep potentially good teachers from the private sector from making the leap into education. What a shame.
- Happy Returns - Wednesday, Nov 16, 11 @ 8:22 pm:
I’m out of HS @25 years, and kids then were drinking, drugging, and copulating. Today’s little darlin’s ought to be able to handle bleeped expletives.
- Pot calling kettle - Wednesday, Nov 16, 11 @ 9:33 pm:
==the average NT teacher makes like $101,000. Of course, they have a masters, etc. No gym teacher makes that kind of money.==
What? There is no separate salary schedule for gym teachers. Their salaries are based on degree and experience, the same as any other teacher. And yes, a PE teacher could get a master’s and then some.
- VanillaMan - Wednesday, Nov 16, 11 @ 10:56 pm:
Considering the anti-Intellectualism of the Republican Party, all classroom learning is liberally-biased by definition, because its based on the left-wing notion that we have the ability to think critically for ourselves and that advancing our understanding of the world around us is a good thing.
You are completely wrong and really need to open your mind.
- VanillaMan - Wednesday, Nov 16, 11 @ 11:02 pm:
The Daily Show is so spot on about making political points that it is educational. Stewart has won all of his Emmy awards because he is so perfect in expressing views.
It is a comedy show that won Emmy awards for Best Variety Show - the same as the old Carol Burnett Show used to win 40 years ago.
It is a comedy show. If you think it is spot on - you should check out the political genius of other comedy shows, like Gilligan’s Island.
- VanillaMan - Thursday, Nov 17, 11 @ 11:24 pm:
Jon Stewart would be the first person to tell you that you should not depend upon his show for any political truths.