School Issue Regarding Science Class/WWYD?--Update #51

[Christine]

My son just started 7th grade this week. He is attending a Catholic school and has been at this particular school since 4th grade. We are not Catholic but, obviously, don't have any issues with being in a Catholic school where religion is a major focus.

Over the past two years, there has been a big upheaval in the school's teaching staff--mainly due to a really nasty principle that we had for 3 years. A lot of good teachers left. Over the past two years, there have been new teachers coming and going. This summer, another influx of new teachers has arrived. My son has one of these for his science teacher.

On his first day of science, he was told by the teacher that she wouldn't be talking about evolution. She said that "there is no proof that any species has ever evolved" and that the stuff in their textbook was "garbage." She then went on a rant about how it's not true that we are "not needing certain body parts anymore like tonsils, appendix, or wisdom teeth." She says that this totally false and that we need our tonsils to protect us from stomach disorders. She then proceeds to say that they were going to do about 10 different experiments this year but, due to the fact that *some* children have latex allergies in the class that they would not be able to do two of the experiements. HELLO--has she NOT heard of vinyl gloves. Not to mention the poor kid who is allergic to latex feeling bad. Did the teacher even need to mention this?

So my son tells me all this it was all I could do not to spin my head around three times! But, I tried to keep myself calm and tell myself "Christine, you KNOW sometimes he exaggerates, let's just wait it out."

Last night my son comes home as says that the teacher started class yet made it a point to say "We are skipping the first three chapters of the book which deal with evolution. It is garbage."

My son is a wreck that I am going to go marching up to the school. He's saying "Mom just leave it alone, I know all about evolution and I can get by this year without hearing about it."

On the other hand, this woman's attitude ticks me off. The Catholic Church BELIEVES and SUPPORTS evolution. The previous science teacher taught it. It is part of the Catholic school curriculum. Where does she get off?

The worst part is that many of the kids there believe her and support her--probably because their parents, while Catholic, are big supporters of creationism. One of the girls in my DS's class totally believes in this. And guess what? Her father is the Vice Principal and the person I would probably have to contact about this matter.

My friend, who is more involved with the school staff than I am is going to do some "quiet checking" into this and see if this issue is, in fact, true (as I said, my son can hear things incorrectly) and she said if it is SHE is going to be ticked (her DD is a year behind my son).

I am wondering though, if this all is true, should I just let it go. I have no other recourse for my son. There is no other science teacher, there is no other school to send him to, and it is just a year of his educational life. He knows all about evolution and it really doesn't matter to him. Would you let this go?

 

[Pigeon]

I'd go marching in and make a big deal about it. I'd take it as high (above this Vice Principal) as it needs to go. Science is science. Even the catholic church has no problem with evolution, so this twit shouldn't be taking it into her head to teach garbage. You are paying tuition to have your child taught--the least the school can do is make sure he's being taught accurately.

 

[Kath2003]

I'd sure be saying something. As a teacher, it's her job to introduce the children to scientific theories (and to teach them to be critical) AND to teach the curriculum. If her own beliefs are getting in the way of that, she shouldn't have gone into the teaching profession.

I'd be mentioning the lack of practical time too since this is an essential component of the course.

Belief doesn't really come into this. You expect your son to be taught the curriculum. That curriculum includes the theory of evolution and practical work.

Besides, at the end of the day, intelligent design and evolution are both theories. How can you choose which one you support if you only hear the evidence for one?

 

[KariC]

You know, it's a tough call. You are choosing to send him to a parochial school, and not a public school. So he is going to get the viewpoint of creationism (one I share, for full disclosure). But, you are "paying customers" at a private school. Personally, I think I'd let it go. Especially if he's had it other years, and will see it again (and again and again).

Now the lack of labs, and making comments about allergies...I'd be all over that. I'm an engineer (I like to say I'm retired now) who is allergic to latex. Guess what, you can still do labwork.

I was actually unaware that the Catholic church supported evolution, as I am not Catholic. Are we talking full Darwin evolution between species or evolution w/in a species, ie. adaption to environmental changes, etc.? Just curious....

 

[RitaZ.]

I know what you mean about kids sometimes hearing things incorrectly. We looked into private schools at one point, one was a Catholic school. One of the first questions that we asked was if and how the school's curriculum addressed evolutionism and creationism.

Anyway, if things have happened as your son has said, I'd take as a sign of things to come. Again, if the teacher said those things, she certainly sounds like a flake. I would look into it further. How did previous teachers teach this course? Are there some guidelines/curriculum that the teacher must follow for science or are they allowed to teach whatever theories they please? If there are guidelines, then I'd approach it from that angle. Since you said that the choice in schools is limited, then you have to decide what you can and can't live with.

Good luck.

 

[hiwaygal]

Regardless of whether it is a public or private/parochial school, aren't there certain "standards" they have to teach in order to be accredited? If a child receives a diploma from an unaccredited school it's useless. THAT would be the bigger issue to me.

 

[Camicar]

Given that this school and its originating denomination believes in and teaches evolution, I would think that they would want their employees to do the same.

I would:
1. Confirm with the teacher that she indeed said these things.
2. If so, I would be making an appointment with the principal asap.

For me, personally, there is no way my son would be in a school in which science is not taught properly. Period. But you have to decide for yourself.

 

[MAKmom]

I think she is right about the tonsils to a point. I know they do not want to remove them like they did when we were kids.

Doesn't the state mandate what is taught in each grade?

 

[Christine]

To address a few points:

KariC--yes, the Catholic Church support the theory of evolution as it stands in the scientific community. They believe that a creator started things off and that evolution is a part of the creation (very, very summarized here).

In the past evolution has been taught. Creationism is addressed in the religious courses as well as "lightly" discussed in the science class along with evolution. To the Catholic Church, they go hand in hand.

I don't know this for a fact, but I believe that our diocese has a curriculum that ALL the schools under them must follow. They choose what curriculum will be taught in all the Catholic schools and which textbooks the schools have a choice in using. Each individual Catholic school cannot go off on it's own and teach what they want. There are some smaller Catholic schools in the area that do this; however, they are not associated with the larger diocese.

 

[Christine]

For me, personally, there is no way my son would be in a school in which science is not taught properly. Period. But you have to decide for yourself.

I have no other options for him.

 

[Christine]

I think she is right about the tonsils to a point. I know they do not want to remove them like they did when we were kids.

Doesn't the state mandate what is taught in each grade?

Yes, I get that about the tonsils but she also said it about the appendix and wisdom teeth and used to point out why the "theory" of evolution is wrong.

 

[Buckalew11]

My DD attends a private Christian school and they learn all about both. I'd be upset if she did not. I just think it is better to be informed. Skipping parts of the book should not be an option. I'd probably try to find out what the deal is.

 

[The Mystery Machine]

I have no other options for him.

If you have no other options then keep your mouth shut and have your son read the first 3 chapters on his own and then quiz him over it.

My dd would be expelled from the school while in a screaming match with the teacher.

 

[Disney Doll]

Given that this school and its originating denomination believes in and teaches evolution, I would think that they would want their employees to do the same.

I would:
1. Confirm with the teacher that she indeed said these things.
2. If so, I would be making an appointment with the principal asap.

For me, personally, there is no way my son would be in a school in which science is not taught properly. Period. But you have to decide for yourself.

This is probably what I would do.

I'd make an appointment with the teacher, telling her you have some questions about the science course. Then I'd ask her to explain what she intends to teach this year. I think I'd do it from the perspective of an interested parent, rather than "My son told me you are not planning on teaching evolution because it's bunk". Take notes with regard to what she says, so you are both very clear with regard to her thoughts and intentions. It would be helpful if you had another parent in the class go in with you, so you had a "witness" of sorts in case it becomes necessary later on.

If you have concerns, then I would tell her that. Tell her you have concerns and you are going to need to speak with the principal. If you get no satisfaction from the principal, then go to the pastor of the church. if you get no satisfaction from the pastor of the church, then go to the diocesan board of ed. If you get no satisfaction from the diocesan board of ed, then go to the state education association. There are requirements as to what schools are supposed to teach, regardless of their belief basis, and if the school isn't meeting these requirements, then it needs to be addressed.

As RitaZ.said though...if your choices in schools are limited, how far you want to push this becomes a matter of what you can and cannot live with. There is the "big picture" to think about, and if this school is great for your son in every other way than this, and you don't have a lot of other appropriate choices for school for him, then you have to tread carefully. You may want to take another road for him to learn about evolution, such as some online stuff or a workbook or a field trip to a museum or soemthing.

 

[delilah]

I am Catholic and a scientist. I can assure you that in the years I spent in Catholic schools, we were never taught Creationism. Not in the science classroom. That's some Protestant construct, so I am concerned about parents in a Catholic school openly supporting Creationism. (I would question whether they were really Catholic). Furthermore, speaking as a member of my son's Catholic school commission, I recommend finding out who is on your school commission, and bringing this to their attention. The school commission is a group of parents and other members of the community set up to support and advise the principal and pastor of the school with respect to concerns. If something like this were going on at my son's school, I would be raising holy @@@@, if you get my drift. That is totally unacceptable. If I didn't get satisfaction from the school commission and pastor, I would complain to the Office of Catholic Education in your diocese.

 

[Christine]

As RitaZ.said though...if your choices in schools are limited, how far you want to push this becomes a matter of what you can and cannot live with. There is the "big picture" to think about, and if this school is great for your son in every other way than this, and you don't have a lot of other appropriate choices for school for him, then you have to tread carefully. You may want to take another road for him to learn about evolution, such as some online stuff or a workbook or a field trip to a museum or soemthing.

Yes, the big picture is what I'm thinking of. It is just one class. He has been exposed to evolution before and believes in it. It is not a big deal to him. This is more of an issue with me as I cannot believe the absolute "gall" of this teacher. I don't want to ruin my son's school year but I also have to wonder if the school admin even knows she's doing this in class.

Hopefully, but this weekend I will have more information from another parent of a child in this classroom. I want to see what the other kids are perceiving. Also, back to school night is coming up in another 2 weeks and I will be RIGHT UP FRONT in the science class that evening.

 

[addicted_to_WDW]

For me, personally, there is no way my son would be in a school in which science is not taught properly. Period. But you have to decide for yourself.

I agree. A private education is not always better than a public one, and often it is inferior due to issues just like this one.

 

[Christine]

I am Catholic and a scientist. I can assure you that in the years I spent in Catholic schools, we were never taught Creationism. Not in the science classroom. That's some Protestant construct, so I am concerned about parents in a Catholic school openly supporting Creationism. (I would question whether they were really Catholic).

I may have been using the term "Creationism" incorrectly in my previous posts.

What I mean to say is that my son is taught that God kicked off everything and that evolution is just a further process of what God started. There was/is a Creator. Probably used Creationism wrong here as I'm not even sure what it really means.

Anyway, there are kids in his class who believe the bible stories literally (Adam and Eve) and do NOT believe in Evolution. These are 7th graders too, not 1st graders. I can only assume they get it at home because evolution has been taught in previous years. My DD was in this same school many years ago--never an issue. She is in Catholic High School now and their science courses are just like a public school's science course.

 

[littleteapot]

www.answersingenesis.org/tj/v14/i2/vestigial.asp

Vestigial organs have been used to support evolution in the past. It seems reasonable that she would use them to support evidence for a creator.

I'd take her a box of gloves for experiments.

Your son can read the first three chapters on his own and discuss them with you. Just like a government school student learns about creation from other sources, you child is free to learn anything he wants outside her classroom.

 

[Christine]

I agree. A private education is not always better than a public one, and often it is inferior due to issues just like this one.

Don't want to get into a debate about public vs. private. That varies by area. Suffice it to say, I've had two kids who have done a mix of both public and private and, in our area/county/region, the private school wins everytime much to my bank account's chagrin!