Ashville N.C. School teacher browbeats student over being a McCain supporter [Archive] - Debate Policy

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stephanie

11-06-2008, 10:54 PM

Yurt

11-06-2008, 11:15 PM

i wouldn't be surprised if this ocurred at all levels of education, especially college

hjmick

11-07-2008, 11:40 AM

This woman... She needs to find a new occupation. She flat out intimidated that little girl.

hjmick

11-07-2008, 12:37 PM

Seems as though Ms. Harris' appearance in this video is causing something of a stir at her school.

Teacher's comments about McCain, war stir anger
By Francis X. Gilpin
Staff writer

A Cumberland County school teacher is defending her comments to a fifth-grade pupil who expressed support for John McCain in her class last spring.

The exchange at Mary McArthur Elementary School was captured by a Swedish television documentary crew, and the video is making the rounds on the Internet including YouTube.

In the video, which reportedly aired in Scandinavia earlier this week, teacher Diatha D. Harris calls the Iraq War “senseless” and tells one student whose father is a soldier that McCain would keep troops there for 100 years.

The classroom discussion begins with Harris asking the class who they support for president. When two students say McCain, she responds with “Oh Lord” and “Oh Jesus.”

She asks them why they are you pulling for McCain or Obama. One student says she supports Obama because “he is making good changes” like “not having a fight between Iraq, and having soldiers killed.”

“So in other words,” Harris says, “Barack is going to end that war in Iraq.”

One girls says she supports McCain. When asked why, she tells her teacher “I think it’s because of my parents are going for him, too.’’

Harris points out that the girl’s father is in the military, then says to the class that Iraq is a “senseless war.”

“And by the way,” Harris tells the girl, “the person that you’re picking for president said that our troops could stay in Iraq for another hundred years if they need to. So that means that your daddy could stay in the military for another hundred years...”

In an interview late Thursday, Harris, 53, said somebody edited the video to make it appear she was an Obama partisan imposing her views on a child. In fact, Harris said, she made gestures after pupils voiced support for Obama.

“It has been doctored,” Harris said. “They didn’t show anything about Obama.”

In another sequence on the video, however, Harris sports an Obama button during a pep rally at the school.

Wanda McPhaul, a spokeswoman for Cumberland schools, said county officials were shocked when they were alerted to the video.

But McPhaul said Superintendent Bill Harrison, who will post his own videotaped statement on the matter on YouTube later today, is prohibited by state law from revealing what might happen to Harris.

Earlier this week, reports about the video on the Internet said Harris was a teacher in Asheville. She used to be a teacher in western North Carolina, but moved to Fayetteville within the past couple years.

Source (http://www.fayobserver.com/special/drudge.html?id=309760)

"In an interview late Thursday, Harris, 53, said somebody edited the video to make it appear she was an Obama partisan imposing her views on a child. In fact, Harris said, she made gestures after pupils voiced support for Obama.

'It has been doctored,” Harris said. “They didn’t show anything about Obama.'"

Ah yes, that old, familiar refrain: It's somebody elses fault.

-Cp

11-07-2008, 04:10 PM

krisy

11-07-2008, 04:20 PM

This bitch should be reprimanded for trying to embarass that little girl like that. How dare she?I hope her dad comes home from Iraq and reems that teacher a new one.

Yurt

11-07-2008, 04:26 PM

joe biden made me do it

Kathianne

11-07-2008, 07:02 PM

Blackfive and others are all over this, a travesty:

http://www.blackfive.net/main/2008/11/teacher-abuses.html#comments

emmett

11-07-2008, 07:45 PM

Binky

11-08-2008, 04:59 AM

Being the grandmother of two girls ages 9 and 11, that peeves me off. It is not the job of any teacher to impose his/her beliefs on their young students and to make them feel belittled for theirs etc. How dare she? If I were that girls parents I would be raising cain to get her reprimanded or suspended. And since this Ayers thing has been all over the tube and he has been teaching young people for decades, it really burns my butt that teachers are allowed to impose their ideals on our young. God only knows the crapola they spew at our kids.

Binky

11-08-2008, 05:02 AM

You ought to see what happened when my granddaughter asked why a Libertarian was not on the ballot in her fifth grade class. She wrote in Bob Barr! So did her friend.

When the teacher asked her what a Libertarian was in a smart ass attempt to derail the kid, Lexi told her and it sparked a good debate. I have made sure she knows how to answer the question intelligently just in case that happened.

This goes to show you how ignorant that teacher was since she didn't know what Libertarian was. Good grief! I bet she was blown away with her answer. Ha, Ha. Good for your granddaughter! :clap:

Psychoblues

11-08-2008, 05:10 AM

krisy

11-08-2008, 08:15 AM

A good point was brought out earlier in this thread. How about a good look at the interview start to finish? Is a point trying to be made by the edits or were good points being made by the teacher?!?!?!?!?!?!??!?!??! Having been educated in entirely public schools my teachers often took many sides of issues in effort to increase participation and to teach critical thinking skills and at least average discernment. Obviously many of you have been victimized by educational derilections of your own teachers!?!?!?!??!?!?!?!??! Whose fault is that?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!??!?

God Bless America!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I Just Want To Celebrate!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

:salute::beer::clap::laugh2::beer::salute:

Are we supposed to believe that this teacher wasn't on Obama's side because she claims the video was edited? She was wearing an Obama button!!

Not to mention,whether or not she did make comments about Obama too is not the point. Her methods if humiliating any student is way over the top. What if that were your little girl sitting there psych? Sitting there humiliated in front of the whole class with no one to defend her? If that were my kid......she would be suspended or fired. Teachers are supposed to be someone a child can look up to and trust.....not someone that the child is going to be scared of because they're political beliefs are different.

Kathianne

11-08-2008, 04:00 PM

The school superintendent responded:

http://www.ccs.k12.nc.us/

CCS Headline News - Superintendent's Response to YouTube
I was shocked when I saw the clip of an interaction between a Cumberland County Schools teacher and her students as posted on YouTube. While neutral discussion of the political process is appropriate, at no time, particularly with elementary students, should a teacher infuse his/her political views into the discussion. Most disconcerting was the military slant that made its way into this discussion. We are a military community, serving over 15,000 military students and their families. We value the sacrifices, not only of the military parents but also those of their families.

We believe that military children are our children, military spouses are many of our employees, and military service men and women are our heroes. We proudly serve our military children and have received national awards for our support of military families.

I was particularly disturbed to see the uncomfortable position in which our children were placed due to the inappropriate actions of one of our teachers. Please be assured that the actions exhibited in this video are not consistent with the vision of the CCS. Moreover, the actions of one teacher do not represent the 7000 employees in our organization.

Once the video was brought to my attention, I immediately launched an investigation. Personnel laws prevent me from releasing information regarding individual employees and personnel action taken. I can assure you that upon completion of the investigation, I will take appropriate action.

Dr. William Harrison
CCS' Superintendent

There's also video:

http://www.ccs.k12.nc.us/MediaFiles/Sequence%2001_wmv.wmv

At the same time, the military parents of the child involved are defending the teacher:

http://www.citizen-times.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=2008811080340

November 8, 2008

Students defend former Asheville teacher on hot seat

By Jon Ostendorff

The Cumberland County school system is investigating the actions of a former Asheville teacher criticized for “belittling” a student who voiced support for presidential candidate John McCain.

But the parents of that student, and the student herself, said Friday that teacher Diantha Harris did nothing wrong.

“She is usually messing around,” said Cathy Thompson, who was in Harris' fifth-grade class in May when a Swedish film crew visited for a documentary on American politics. “When she said that, I knew she was messing around.”....

...Cumberland County is home to Fort Bragg and the 82nd Airborne.

Cathy Thompson said Friday she wasn't upset at the time. Her parents, Angela Moore and Army Staff Sgt. Robert Thompson, also said they weren't mad at the teacher.

Moore said her daughter never mentioned feeling as if she was being picked on.

“Mrs. Harris is always active with the children like that,” Moore said. “I have sat in her class when my Cathy was a student, and she was very active with the children. She tries to get them involved with everything.”

Robert Thompson said when he first watched the clip Friday, he understood why some would see it as Harris trying to change his daughter's mind.

But after hearing Harris' side and talking with his daughter, he now thinks Harris is “getting a rough deal.”....

My guess is the teacher DID make a mistake here, but has a long history of being a good teacher with the kids. In this case, sounds like 'Cathy' has had older brothers/sisters that had her as a teacher. She probably apologized to the parents, child and admitted being caught up in the moment. If the parents feel like that, seems that should put an end to this story.