©AP Photo/Pablo Martinez Monsivais
Obama’s upcoming address to all elementary students has many parents in an uproar. A number of questions have been raised about motives and methods concerning this address, and the lack of required parental consent for the event.
Many parents are electing to keep their children home from school on the day of the address. Others are requesting that their children be provided an alternative activity during the elementary address during school hours. Their reasons range from a belief that Obama’s address is a form of indoctrination to a simple desire to be able to view the address first before guiding their children through it.
However, some school districts are not allowing children to “opt out” of the President’s address. One school district in particular, the Tempe, Arizona Elementary School District No. 3, has said that parents will not be permitted to pull their children out of class.
FOXnews.com quotes the Tempe superintendent as saying:
I have directed principals to have students and teachers view the president’s message on Tuesday,” Superintendent of Schools Dr. Arthur Tate Jr. said in a statement Thursday. “In some cases, where technology will not permit access to the White House Web site, DVDs will be provided to classes on subsequent days. I am not permitting parents to opt out students from viewing the president’s message, since this is a purely educational event.”
The Tempe, Arizona school district has chosen to make a decisions for parents, even though these parents are the primary caretakers and molders of their children.
This raises a number of questions. Who determines what political statements a child can process apart from their parents? Can a school district prevent parents from pulling their children out of class for any address to the school? Are schools able to make political decisions for the parents of their students?
Weigh in by posting a comment below!
To keep up with all Generation Y news, please scroll to the top and click on the SUBSCRIBE button above. Enter your email address to receive all the best Generation Y news and articles.
For more Gen Y News:
Sony PS3 to make 3D games a reality in 2010
Trending: Unemployment hits 26-year high at 9.7%
