Declaration of Independence Banned at Calif School

[GoldenSt8r]

As many others have pointed out, the article provides too few specifics to know why the teacher was singled out for lesson plan review.  Some have suggested that the supplemental handouts given to students may have been inappropriate for the classroom or may have been proselytizing in nature.  I searched for more information and finally found Complaint filed by the attorneys on behalf of Stephen Williams, the 5th grade teacher.  Included is a list of the supplemental teacher material which Mr. Williams used to teach his students.  Note, this is a .pdf document, so I couldn't cut and paste the list for this post.  http://www.alliancedefensefund.org/media/WilliamsvCupertinoComplaint.pdf

This will be an interesting case to follow.  The State of California has established content standards for each grade level for all California students.  The content standards are very specific regarding what a child must learn before being promoted to the next grade. 

One of the standards is:  ''The student must understand the political, religious, social, and economic institutions that evolved in the colonial era.''  Another is ''Describe the religious aspects of the earliest colonies (Puritanism in Massachusetts, Anglicanism in Virginia, Catholicism in Maryland, and Quakerism in Pennsylvania.''  There are several other standards which include religion in their theme.  So, Mr. Williams can claim that the State of California's standards require teaching about religion.

In addition, the social studies textbook which the Cupertino School District uses for 5th graders does not cover all of the material required by the State of California.  Therefore, supplemental teaching material is necessary in order for students to meet the State content standards.

I think I found out what caused Mr. Williams to be singled out for lesson plan review.  Evidently last year Mr. Williams taught a lesson on 'Presidential Proclamations'.  He used President Bush's (#43) Proclamation on the National Day of Prayer as an example of a Presidential Proclamation, and provided a handout.  One parent complained.... 

[danwxman]

11/24/2004
Declaration of Independence ban at public school said bogus: Teacher reportedly forced pupils to listen to Christian dogma

Declaration Of Independence banned!

The seemingly preposterous headline made major waves on the conservative Drudge Report and Fox News network Wednesday, joining Reuters and the Associated Press, in a misleading story that exhibited serious reportorial negligence, RAW STORY has learned.

The story, which reports that a California teacher has been banned from giving students documents from American history that refer to God, including the Declaration of Independence, is said a product of right-wing spin.

In fact, Cupertino public school principal Patricia Vidmar banned documents relating to God because the teacher had been forcing students to listen to what some felt was Christian propaganda, a media watchdog site reports. According to the site, the school had told him to stop but he did not comply, at which point the principal required that he submit his lesson plans to her in advance...............

www.bluelemur.com

[A18]

Er, The Vorlon posted Reuters...you posted "Blue Lemur"...

Do you have a credible source?

[danwxman]

Er, The Vorlon posted Reuters...you posted "Blue Lemur"...

Do you have a credible source?

Well, some parents have complained...makes sense the guy was probably preaching Christianity to his students and the principal just wanted to put a stop to it after some parents complained. Do you really think the teacher is totally innocent and there is not something else to the story?

[GoldenSt8r]

In fact, Cupertino public school principal Patricia Vidmar banned documents relating to God because the teacher had been forcing students to listen to what some felt was Christian propaganda, a media watchdog site reports. According to the site, the school had told him to stop but he did not comply, at which point the principal required that he submit his lesson plans to her in advance...............

www.bluelemur.com

I can't locate the article at the link you provided.  I'm curious to know what other complaints the school received, other than the one I posted in the post above yours.  (About the parent who complained that the teacher used President Bush's proclamation on the National Day of Prayer to teach his students about Presidential proclamaions. )  Is there a more specific url for the text you posted?  Thanks

[J-Mann]

Er, The Vorlon posted Reuters...you posted "Blue Lemur"...

Do you have a credible source?

Well, some parents have complained...makes sense the guy was probably preaching Christianity to his students and the principal just wanted to put a stop to it after some parents complained. Do you really think the teacher is totally innocent and there is not something else to the story?

I used to complain to the gym teacher that we played basketball all the time, and yet, the sport lives on...

The people complaining are probably just like the guy who took the Pledge to the Supreme Court: just looking for a battle.  So the Declaration mentions God?  But we want God out of our schools!  In California, I wouldn't put it past some people from interpreting a balanced teaching of history as "preaching".