All politics is local.

Statutorily, the 5 elected members of the Harrison County Board of Education have control of and are responsible for EVERYTHING regarding Harrison County schools.

From what I have seen at the Board meetings, the 5 elected Board members are just yes men for what ever the unelected bureaucrats present to them at the Board meetings. They have abdicated their power and authority to the bureaucrats.

They must either be convinced to actually do what the voters want them to do, OR be replaced in the primary election. The 2 business as usual candidates had about 5000 people cast their votes for them. The 4 candidates running for change found about 6000 voters voted for change but those votes were evenly distributed among them so none of them won. Despite more voters wanting change, those voters that did not want change won.

Who were those voters?

Those wanting change were all parents and citizens that bothered to vote in the primary. Only about 17% of the population of registered voters.

Those against change were over whelmingly teachers, education bureaucrats, education contractors, bus drivers, janitors, food service personnel, members of other unions, and their friends and family members. They represent well over 75% of all that are in those groups but only about 15% of registered voters. They actually get out and vote for their own best interests.

To see real change, some group (this group?) needs to educate more voters on the importance of the primary election. The future of our children is truly at stake.

See the posts on the main page of this website for more information. See especially the post "Real Education not Political Education" and even more importantly the youtube video linked in that post.

Become a member. Join to help make a difference. Or email me at steve@PUREdWV.com

If you are concerned about what is being taught to our children, you are not alone. Join Parents United for Real Education in your county with other like minded citizens and help President Trump make education great again. If not you, who? If not now, when.

On the HOME page of this web site, See "Trump on Education" [Permission to view this media is denied]
Also see "Real Education not Political Education"

They do not do their job. They are yes men for the administration who support the political agenda of the Teachers Unions' Leadership. See the puredwv.com post about the NEA.

What can parents and others do about this power structure? How can an individual engage to make a difference?
This is the Parents United for Education (PUREd) Parent Group for Harrison County where we can organize for change. If you are interested become a member and post or comment. Lets get started.

Importance of Controversial Issues:
Controversial or emotionally charged issues provide opportunities for students to engage in critical discussions, consider diverse perspectives, and develop informed opinions.
Teaching these issues helps students understand the complexities of real-world problems and encourages active citizenship.

Challenges and Considerations:
Emotional Impact: Some topics may deeply affect students due to personal experiences, cultural backgrounds, or societal contexts. Teachers must be sensitive to this and create a supportive environment.

Balancing Perspectives: Teachers should present multiple viewpoints, allowing students to explore different sides of an issue. This promotes critical thinking and empathy.

Selecting Resources: High-quality resources that represent diverse voices are crucial. These resources should inform students and encourage engagement.

Professional Development for Teachers:
Teachers need training on how to handle controversial topics effectively.

Contained Risk-Taking: This approach encourages inquiry and discussion while proceeding with caution. It involves building a supportive environment, framing issues appropriately, and choosing resources wisely.

Human Rights Framework: Applying human rights principles helps students evaluate perspectives and understand the impact of emotionally charged issues.

Self-Reflection: Teachers should reflect on their own biases and emotions when discussing these topics.

Addressing Emotional Dysregulation: (Meaning disruptive Student Behavior)
Emotional problems can spill into classrooms, affecting student behavior and teacher stress.
Teachers can support students by acknowledging their emotional responses and creating a safe space for discussion.

Validating Student Emotions:
When discussing emotionally charged news, validate students’ feelings and provide opportunities for self-reflection.
Encourage respectful dialogue and empathy, even when opinions differ.

In summary, teaching controversial issues requires thoughtful preparation, empathy, and a commitment to democratic education. It’s a challenging but essential aspect of K-12 classrooms.

What’s wrong with this picture??????

Parents should have the option to choose classroom instruction focused solely on traditional education, without the inclusion of adult political topics. Offer both real education and political education for parental choice.

With the limited number of learning hours in a school year, it's crucial to consider whether a child's time should be spent solely on education, rather than addressing adult social political issues, which is robbing them of real education to hinder their academic success.

Freire's 1985 publication "The Politics of Education" became the road map for many tenured professors, originally radicals of the '60s, to help in reshaping education into a political arena aimed at societal transformation by creating political activists of as many children as possible using Critical Theory and adult political issues.

Discussing Adult political issues in preK-12 public school classrooms- take climate change for instance, which causes Stress, anxiety, fear and depression in ADULTS who have much better coping mechanisms and subject knowledge. It is making emotional wrecks out of many children, causing them to act out more at home and in school, sometimes violently.
It also takes valuable time from teaching real education and student achievement suffers.

Rather than conveying factual knowledge, teachers adopt a dialectical method of learning, where students and teachers learn from each other through discussions shaped by their limited experiences and knowledge, with one of their main reliable sources being media reports, which have shown significant bias. This follows Critical Theory as opposed to real education and Critical Thinking - they are not the same

See the posts on our puredwv.com website for Critical Thinking and soon to come Critical Theory.