9-11 Homework? What do you think?

From Fox 26 in Houston … I was kinda taken back. But what about you? The homework assignment … write a letter to a loved one as if you knew you were going to die.Some may find this thought provoking but elementary school? Outrage? Please you tell me. From Fox 26 in Houston.

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Jim Vicevich

Jim is a veteran broadcaster and conservative/libertarian blogger with more than 25 years experience in TV and radio. Jim's was the long-term host of The Jim Vicevich Show on WTIC 1080 in Hartford from 2004 through 2019. Prior to radio, Jim worked as a business and financial reporter for NBC30 - the NBC owned TV station in Hartford - and as business editor at WFSB-TV in Hartford for 14 years while earning six Emmy nominations and three Telly Awards.

8 Comments

  1. dustinvictory on September 13, 2013 at 12:28 pm

    Who cares. ? There’s nothing foul here. In fact I applaud this teacher for trying to teach the students how to learn instead of simply having them temporarily memorize things. ?



    • Linda Mae on September 14, 2013 at 12:21 pm

      Sorry – you have bought into the PC argument that memorizing is a bad thing!!!! One memorizes facts that they can then use to develop ideas, inventions, endless possibilities. We decry the comparison of American students to other countries without looking at the facts behind the scores.? First, our high schools have students of all levels in them while almost every other country tests after 5th grade and assigns kids into different levels – ex. Germany has students graduating after 10th grade, 11the grade and 12th grade – depending upon their academic aptitude.? (Note I said aptitude since non-academic kids can have soaring IQ’s but prefer to work with the concrete skills rather the abstract.)? Kids in the 12 year tract are the high school kids our all-inclusive high schools are measured against.? And, yes – memorization is very important – so that kids can use facts to support their ideas.? Many students I know understand algebra -but lack multiplication skills because some “idiot” educator said they didn’t need to memorize them – they could use a calculator.?
      I’d expect any lesson on 9/11 to include the date, place, and situation.
      ?
      I also think teachers are afraid to blame Muslim radical…



    • Eric on September 14, 2013 at 1:13 pm

      Baloney… rote memorization is critical to learning, as long as the kids are being given facts to memorize. ?Far too often the ideas and opinions that our public schools expose our kids to aren’t worth spit. ?Many kids are being taught an ideology that’s untrue at is heart and damaging to a young mind. ?In fact it’s damaging to our country as well, but that’s an argument for another time. ?Kids don’t deserve to be treated this way. ?I kept my five kids out of the public school system for this very reason. ?The majority of public school teachers are told what they will teach and how they will present their materials. ?I don’t call this teaching, I call it indoctrination. ?This is what these schools do best, so when I see or read about a teacher that has broken that mold I applaud them. ?They won’t be allowed to teach like this for long, but this is just the kind of teacher that makes a difference in a child’s life! ?It really is too bad that our public school system in this country is so far gone. ?With all the money that’s thrown at education you’d think we’d have the best schools in the world… but we haven’t got the best, we have one of the worst systems of public education in the industrialized world. ?In this…



  2. Eric on September 13, 2013 at 7:24 pm

    I thought it was a very thought provoking idea. ?Using it in an elementary school setting may have missed the mark though. ?Kids at that age don’t think the same way as say a middle school class or even a high school group, but I thought it was a brilliant way of getting kids to take a real close look at who they are… especially who they are on the inside, a part of themselves that isn’t normally shared with others. ?Good for the teacher!?



  3. Gary J on September 14, 2013 at 10:57 am

    So does anyone expect teachers to have common sense as well as education? Common sense can not be taught. Ask any congressman or senator.



  4. bien-pensant on September 14, 2013 at 12:07 pm

    9/11 is a worthy topic for introspection. Elementary school?
    What was the reaction of the students’ parents?
    My reaction is: The assignment was not age appropriate; the direction was too narrow and; it is morbid.



  5. Lynn on September 18, 2013 at 4:04 pm

    We raised two boys, in my opinion, this is an excellent subject to write about. However, I do not think it is appropriate until freshman year in High School. I think teens can accept the concept of mortality. It is appropriate to imagine the the feelings, if you knew you were dying. Would you be courageous like those on Flight 93, totally scared, remorseful, filled with loving thoughts of loved ones, flashing back on memories good or bad. ?A great exercise in empathy and assessing your strengths and weaknesses, real or imagined.



    • Eric on September 18, 2013 at 4:46 pm

      Excellent response Lynn. ?This teacher is tossing the ball to the kids… she wants them to think. ?This is an unusual concept for kids who are learning in a public school system. ?It’s more the norm these days that our young are being told what to think instead of being taught how to think. ?I think it was a great exercise, and I also have to agree that the substance of this particular lesson may even be lost on the younger kids as opposed to the 13 & 14 year old age group. ?I still believe that it’s good material for younger kids to think about, but I’m not sure they can fully articulate their thoughts in the elementary grades without feeling just a bit self-conscious.



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