9/11 homework assignment causing outrage by some parents

A language arts teacher in Alvin, Texas asked her 7th grader class to pretend they were in the twin towers or were on one of the planes that took down the twin towers and to think of the one person they’d want to speak to in their last moments and write a letter to them. This apparently did not sit well with some parents:

Video's at link

7th graders are about 13???
What do you think about this? Was it appropriate?

Does It makes children think outside the box and about their own mortality?
Or should they concentrate more on reading and math instead of feelings?
Did the teacher have a political agenda?

Here is the poll:
Did the teacher go too far

Yes, it was inappropriate and insensitive. 56.95% (258 votes)

No, I think the assignment is appropriate for 7th graders. 29.14% (132 votes)

I could go either way. 12.58% (57 votes)
I don't know. 1.32% (6 votes)

Total Votes: 453


Personally, I think they should be teaching them, concentrating on the basics of reading, writing, math, spelling...etc.. Since we seem to have such low scores in this country, they evidently need more work on these and leave the emotions until English 4 in High School. What do you think?

 

I'm going to file this one under Not Seeing the Problem.

 

I don't see a problem with this.

 

The way you teach reading, writing, math, spelling, etc. is by making it relevant and asking a 13 y.o. to put themselves into a assignment can be used to teach all those things. That is why math has word problems, reading uses real literature with meaning, etc. Teaching these things without a context for them is like teaching someone to play guitar cords without ever practicing them in a song.

That said the actual assignment while creative was creepy. Political agenda? What? Asking kids to write about something that involves them contemplating their own tragic death at this age, in a highly emotional situation is stupid.

 

It's not the biggest thing in the world to be upset about.

 

I can sort of see how some parents may have issues with it. But I don't see anything wrong with it.

 

I don't see a problem either.

 

Highly amusing.

 

Well, they want to re-write history, and make sure the history reflects what they want it to reflect (that being, the lies). The fairy tale, sanitized version of 9/11 (the one about cave dwelling lads swinging box cutters), as opposed to what actually happened. Rearranging history. They do it all the time.

 

I always hated assignments that were like this because they always seemed so pointless. I don't have a problem with it other then that.