Getting Started 
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NOTE: I have replaced some letters in the following story with *'s so my blog will not come up if someone searches for websites containing those particular words.
A questionnaire given to about 400 Port Washington, Wis., High School students about s*xual preference has prompted some parents to demand corrective measures from school officials, the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reported.
The survey, approved by two teachers but never reviewed by the principal, asked questions such as, "If you have never slept with someone of your same gender, then how do you know you wouldn't prefer it?"
The assignment was intended to accompany the h*m*s*xual-activist sponsored "Day of Silence," when g*y and l*sb**n students bring attention to their s*xual orientation under the guise of eliminating discrimination.
Principal Duane Woelfel called the survey inappropriate and said it violated school policy, which requires parental notification for such topics.
"We were extremely concerned when we found out about it," he said. "We're going to make sure that it doesn't happen again."
The incident is still under investigation, though, and officials have yet to decide if the two teachers will be disciplined.
Lisa Krier, a parent of a Port Washington High student, called the survey a form of s*xual harassment and said she expects the teachers who are responsible to be punished.
"If somebody doesn't call them on it," she said, "it will continue." |
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ST. JOSEPH, Mo. — A high school teacher has apologized for asking students to write about who they would kill and how they would do it, and officials said he will likely keep his job.
Michael Maxwell, who teaches industrial technology at Central High School, said his request that students in his beginning drafting class describe how they would carry out a murder was merely a writing prompt. It was not clear why he asked the drafting class to write fiction.
"I made a horrible mistake that I regret," Maxwell said. "I want to apologize to my students, my colleagues and to the community."
The April 21 writing request, which Maxwell said was not a formal assignment, came to the attention of administrators when a parent of one of the students filed a complaint with Principal Barton Albright.
Albright expressed regret and apologized for Maxwell's "lapse of judgment." "He's an exemplary person ... this is very out of character," the principal said. St. Joseph School District spokesman Steve Huff declined to discuss possible disciplinary measures because the matter is considered a personnel issue. But he said the incident probably isn't serious enough to cost Maxwell his job.
About 25 to 30 students from ninth through 12th grades were in the class, Albright said. |
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I received this today from Focus On The Family. Please visit their site (linked at the bottom of this article) to send your email.
The California Senate passed legislation today, by a 22-15 vote, that would force public schools to normalize h*m*s*xuality in curriculum. SB 1437 would require new textbooks to reflect the l*sb**n, g*y, b*s*xual and tr*nsg*nder community in only a positive light and highlight historical figures who may have been g*y.
"They compared s*xual orientation to a civil right and to the suffrage movement," McPherson said. "Senator (Richard) Alarcon equated it to illegal immigrants. 'We are all God's children,' he said, 'and this isn't just a choice and God doesn't make a mistake. There is a place for the g*y community where they are such a large part of the population.' "
McPherson said she was amazed at the lack of factual information.
"A large part of the population? I heard it was just 3 percent," she said. "They really are just deluded. I can't say another word."
McPherson said the bill's advocates implied that g*y-friendly curriculum would have a "marked, positive effect on the suicide and drug-use rates among g*y students."
"Where is the proof?" she asked. "They said, 'There have been studies.' Well, we have studies, too."
These studies, she said, prove thousands of people have successfully changed their s*xual orientation from h*m*s*xual to heteros*xual. In fact, Sen. Bill Morrow attempted to point out that the s*xual orientation of historical figures is irrelevant, and that textbooks should reflect known truth.
"And since we are based on accuracy, there is not one scintilla — that was (Morrow's) word — of biological proof that you're born with this, and it just doesn't belong in the curriculum," she said. "He also talked about the imposition of the mandate which makes it illegal to even have a discussion on s*xual orientation in regard to these matters."
Mona Passignano, state issues analyst for Focus on the Family Action, said even local news outlets such as the Los Angeles Times and The Sacramento Bee ran editorials condemning SB 1437.
"Even in California, this bill is not normal," she said. "And if your senator is one of the 22 that voted in favor of SB 1437, they need to feel your disappointment. You need to let them know they are not representing you at all."
The matter now moves to the Assembly for a vote, and McPherson emphasized the need for members to not only to be educated about the issue, but to hear from California residents who don't want a law that forces schools to teach about h*m*s*xuality from just one perspective.
TAKE ACTION:
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Despite the wall-to-wall coverage of the damage from Hurricane Katrina, nearly one-third of young Americans recently polled couldn't locate Louisiana on a map and nearly half were unable to identify Mississippi.
Americans between the ages of 18 and 24 fared even worse with foreign locations: six in 10 couldn't find Iraq, according to a Roper poll conducted for National Geographic.
"Geographic illiteracy impacts our economic well-being, our relationships with other nations and the environment, and isolates us from the world," National Geographic president John Fahey said in announcing a program to help remedy the problem. It's hoping to enlist businesses, nonprofit groups and educators in a bid to improve geographic literacy.
Planned is a five-year, multimedia campaign called My Wonderful World that will target children 8 to 17. The goal is to motivate parents and educators to expand geographic offerings in school, at home and in their communities.
They will have their task cut out for them, judging by the results of the survey of 510 people interviewed in December and January. Among the findings:
• One-third of respondents couldn't pinpoint Louisiana on a map and 48 percent were unable to locate Mississippi.
• Fewer than three in 10 think it important to know the locations of countries in the news and just 14 percent believe speaking another language is a necessary skill.
• Two-thirds didn't know that the earthquake that killed 70,000 people in October 2005 occurred in Pakistan.
• Six in 10 could not find Iraq on a map of the Middle East.
• While the outsourcing of jobs to India has been a major U.S. business story, 47 percent could not find the Indian subcontinent on a map of Asia.
• While Israeli-Palestinian strife has been in the news for the entire lives of the respondents, 75 percent were unable to locate Israel on a map of the Middle East.
• Nearly three-quarters incorrectly named English as the most widely spoken native language.
• Six in 10 did not know the border between North and South Korea is the most heavily fortified in the world. Thirty percent thought the most heavily fortified border was between the United States and Mexico.
Joining in the effort to improve geographic knowledge will be the 4-H, American Federation of Teachers, Asia Society, Association of American Geographers, National Basketball Association, National Council of La Raza, National PTA, Smithsonian Institution and others.
"Geography exposes children and adults to diverse cultures, different ideas and the exchange of knowledge from around the world," said Anna Marie Weselak, president of the National PTA. "This campaign will help make sure our children get their geography — so they can become familiar with other cultures during their school years and move comfortably and confidently in a global economy as adults." |
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Two families have filed suit in federal court just weeks after learning that a second-grade teacher read a story that celebrated a marriage between two men. Joseph and Robin Wirthlin, along with David and Tonia Parker, argue the school district undermined parental rights by teaching their children about a lifestyle they consider immoral, The Associated Press reported. A teacher at Estabrook Elementary in Lexington, Mass., read aloud the book, King and King, in which a prince passes up several princesses before falling in love with another prince. Included is a candid illustration of their wedding kiss. Robin Wirthlin, whose son is in second grade this year, wanted to be the one to teach her child about h*m*s*xuality. "I think there are people who have a real agenda that they're trying to promote and teach the children," she said. Just last year, Parker was arrested at Estabrook after he refused to leave the school until officials allowed him to opt his child out of lessons about h*m*s*xuality done under the guise of diversity. Paul Ash, superintendent of the school district, said since g*y marriage is legal in the state, teachers are just teaching about the world kids live in. Jeffrey Denner, attorney for the two families, said the school district violated his clients' right to privacy and freedom of religion when they discussed the topic of g*y marriage without permission. "Parents need to be the ones to determine when it is introduced," he said, "and how it is introduced."
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Posted in Reasons We Homeschool
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Academic Statistics:
-The average homeschool 8th grade student performs four grade levels above the national average (Rudner study).
-One in four homeschool students (24.5%) are enrolled one or more grades above age level.
-Students who have been home schooled their entire lives have the highest scholastic achievement.
-In every subject and at every grade level of the ITBS and TAP batteries,
-Homeschool profile: Median amount spent on home schooling per child in the US - $450
-Household incomes: 18% of home school families earn less than $25,000, 44% of households between $25,000 and $49,000.
-Religion: Over 75% attend religious services
-Television: 65.3% of 4th grade homeschoolers spend one hour or less per day watching television
Regulation:
-States with High government regulation of home schools - homeschool battery score - 86
-States with Moderate government regulation of home schools - homeschool
-States with Low government regulation of home schools - homeschool battery score - 86
Certification:
-Performance of 4th grade home schoolers where at least one parent was
-Performance of 4th grade home schoolers where neither parent was certified - Composite Percentage Score 82
For data above, reference Brian D. Ray, PhD, Home Schooling on the Threshold
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RIVERTON, Kan. — Five teenage boys accused of plotting a shooting rampage at their high school on the anniversary of the Columbine massacre were arrested Thursday after a message authorities said warned of a gun attack appeared on the Web site MySpace.com.
Sheriff's deputies found guns, ammunition, knives and coded messages in the bedroom of one suspect, Sheriff Steve Norman said. Authorities also found documents about firearms and references to Armageddon in two suspects' school lockers.
"What the resounding theme is: They were actually going to do this," Norman said.
Norman said he would ask prosecutors to bring charges of conspiracy to commit murder against the teens, ages 16 to 18. Attorney General Phill Kline said in a news release that his office was taking over the prosecution at the request of the Cherokee County attorney.
Deputies' interviews with the suspects indicated they planned to wear black trench coats and disable the school's camera system before starting the attack between noon and 1 p.m. Thursday, Norman said. The suspects apparently had been plotting since the beginning of the school year.
Officials at Riverton High School began investigating on Tuesday after learning that a threatening message had been posted on MySpace.com, he said.
The message discussed the significance of April 20, which is Adolf Hitler's birthday and the anniversary of the 1999 Columbine High School attack in Colorado, in which two students wearing trench coats killed 13 people and committed suicide, the sheriff said.
"The message, it was brief, but it stated that there was going to be a shooting at the Riverton school and that people should wear bulletproof vests and flak jackets," Norman said.
School officials identified the student who posted the message and talked to several of his friends, Norman said.
But Riverton school district Superintendent David Walters said the significance of the threat didn't become clear until Wednesday night, after a woman in North Carolina who had chatted with one of the suspects on Myspace.com received more specific information that there would be about a dozen potential victims, at least one of whom was a staff member. She notified authorities in her state, who contacted the sheriff's department, Norman said.
Norman said that the potential victims were popular students and that the suspects may have been bullied.
"I think there was probably some bullying, name calling, chastising," he said. He also said investigators had learned the suspects were computer buffs who liked violent video games.
About 900 students in all grades go to school on the campus. Riverton is an unincorporated area of about 600 people along what once was the famed Route 66 in southeast Kansas, near the Oklahoma and Missouri borders. |
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ANCHORAGE, Alaska — Police said a group of seventh-graders hatched an elaborate plan to cut off power and telephone service to their middle school, slay classmates and faculty with guns and knives, then escape from their small Alaska town.
The arrest Saturday of six students in North Pole, a town of 1,600 people about 14 miles southeast of Fairbanks, marks the nation's second breakup of an alleged Columbine-style school attack this week. Five Kansas teenagers suspected of planning a shooting rampage at their high school were arrested Thursday, the seventh anniversary of the massacre in suburban Colorado.
The Alaskan seventh-graders had been picked on by other students and wanted to seek revenge, Police Chief Paul Lindhag said. They also disliked staff and students, he said.
The students had planned to disable North Pole Middle School's power and telephone systems, allotting time to kill their victims and flee from town, Lindhag said.
A parent alerted police of rumors of an attack, Lindhag said. He would not elaborate on the case, or what kind of documented evidence led to the arrests.
"These are the ones who had major roles in this," Lindhag said. "All our information came through our interviews."
The students, who were being held at the Fairbanks Youth Facility, could face charges of first-degree conspiracy to commit murder, authorities said.
The North Pole boys, whose names were not released, were among 15 students at the school who were suspended after a parent tipped police Monday evening. A child told the parent that rumors were circulating about the alleged plot, which had been postponed from Monday until Tuesday, Lindhag said.
"We feel very thankful that a student felt they could talk to an adult, and very thankful that the adult had the wisdom to contact the North Pole Police Department," said Wayne Gerke, an assistant superintendent with the Fairbanks North Star Borough School District.
The suspended students were identified by officers working with a school safety official. Parents were advised to keep their children away from 500-student campus Tuesday. Lindhag said authorities don't believe all the suspended students were involved, but officials erred on the side of caution.
"There were a lot of rumors flying around," Lindhag said.
Locals are "shocked, saddened and heartbroken about whole situation," but area schools have policies to deal with such a crisis, Gerke said.
The other students remain suspended while the investigation continues, and police will have a presence at the school for the rest of the year, officials said.
In Riverton, Kan., school officials learned that a threatening message had been posted on the Internet, authorities said. The boys, ages 16 to 18, will stay in custody through the weekend while prosecutors decide whether to file charges, a judge ruled Saturday. |
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The Kentucky Board of Education has voted to take the first step in redefining how America dates time. The board voted to include a new secular system of dating the calendar, BCE (Before Common Era) and CE (Common Era), and added it to the BC (Before Christ) and AD (Anno Domini, Latin for "in the year of our Lord") method. |
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CAMDEN, N.J. — Four teenagers accused of plotting to kill about 25 people in a lunch-period massacre at a high school were charged Thursday under a terrorism law created after the September 11 attacks.
The boys, ages 14 to 16, were arrested Wednesday after police heard about the alleged plot from administrators at the school, where three of the teens are students. Their names were not released because of their ages.
Authorities said the teens planned to attack students, teachers and others at Winslow Township High.
The four boys appeared in family court, and a judge ordered them held for psychiatric evaluations.
The father of one of the boys said the charges were a mistake: "I think it's just kids hanging out together and having a little wild time, that's all."
Authorities said the boys did not have any weapons to carry out the alleged plot. But one law enforcement official who spoke on the condition of anonymity said they tried to buy a handgun.
The charges are serious enough that prosecutors could ask a judge to move the case to adult criminal court. Prosecutors have 30 days to consider.
No one in New Jersey has been convicted under the terrorism law, which carries a mandatory minimum of 30 years in prison without parole. |