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SVSD
Policy #2331
This is the official school policy
governing teacher and staff behavior with respect to controversial issues. Click
here to download the policy
as a
PDF file.
Policy No. 2331
Adopted July 28, 1978
Revised March 26, 1999
Revised October 8, 1992
Revised March 8, 2001
TEACHING OF CONTROVERSIAL ISSUES
The presentation of
controversial issues which are relevant to curriculum objectives and appropriate
to student maturity levels should be encouraged. Teachers should, however, guard
against giving their personal opinion on such issues until the students have had
the opportunity to find, collect, and assembly factual material on the subject;
to interpret the data without prejudice, to reconsider assumptions and claims
and to thereby encourage the students to search after truth and to think for
themselves. The personal opinion of a teacher should always be identified as
such and only introduced when it contributes to the student’s understanding of
the issue.
Our representative
form of government demands that citizens be well informed and able to make
responsible choices. Only by being allowed to practice rights granted under our
Constitution can a student be prepared to fulfill his participating role in the
ever-increasing complexities of modern society.
Among the most
valuable products, therefore, of a free educational system is the development of
the ability to meet issues without prejudice and to withhold judgments until
facts are collected, assembled, and weighed, and relationships seen before
making conclusions.
This policy sets forth
four basic rights of students:
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The right to abstain from participating
in an educational process that, in their judgment, constitutes an invasion
of privacy, or an abridgement of their social or religious belief.
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The right to study controversial issues
which have political, economic, or social significance on which, at their
respective maturity level, students should begin to develop an opinion.
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The right to study under competent
instruction in an atmosphere free from bias and prejudice.
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The right to access to all relevant
information freely available in the school.
Emotional criticism
and the promotion of a cause within the classroom are both inappropriate and
unscholarly. The teacher’s attitude, in all matters, should be that of the true
scholar which is truth-seeking, open-minded, and tolerant.
Procedures
Film, Video Tape, and DVD Rating Guidelines
It is acknowledged
that made for entertainment films, video tapes, or DVD’s may have some limited
use in schools. Occasionally, a film, video tape, or DVD is made with
historical, scientific, or literary merit that expands on the established
curriculum in a manner that makes it a worthwhile addition to the schools.
Schools shall show movies only when there is a correlation between the movie and
the school board adopted curriculum. Because the established rating system of
such movies provides some general guidelines, it is incorporated into the
District’s procedures as follows:
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1.0 |
“G” Rated Films
These
films are approved for use subject only to approval by the principal. |
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2.0 |
“PG” Rated Films
These films will not be
shown to general audiences in elementary schools. “PG-13” materials will
not be shown in either elementary or middle schools. Exceptions are
noted in paragraph 5.0 |
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3.0 |
“R” Rated Films
These films will not be
shown in school nor will attendance at a public showing be encouraged or
promoted as a part of the classroom program. Exceptions are noted in
paragraph 5.0. |
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4.0 |
“X” Rated Films
These films will not be
shown nor will student attendance at a public showing be encouraged or
promoted in any way. |
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5.0 |
Exceptions |
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5.1 |
Films that have been rated
“PG” or “PG-13” may be used in specific curricular programs following
approval by the principal. Such approval will be based on the
exceptional merit of the film and its contribution to student
achievement or course goals. |
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5.2 |
Parent notification of the
intended use of the film is required as are permission slips. |
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5.3 |
Parent preview shall be
provided prior to classroom showing. |
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5.4 |
“R” rated films may only
be used at the high school provided steps outlined in 5.1 – 5.3 are
followed. |
Guidelines for Teaching of Controversial Issues
“Controversial Issues”
are those questions, most often associated with current events that are apt to
generate emotion on the part of students or community members when they are
considered in the classroom setting. When such issues are a part of the approved
curriculum, it is appropriate that they be thoughtfully examined.
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Planned activities which are
outside of the approved curriculum should be approved by the building
principal.
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Audio-visual materials to be presented
in class must have been first previewed by the teacher.
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Teachers must have a general awareness
of the content of any invited outside speaker for a class presentation.
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Whenever applicable in the approved
curriculum, teachers shall encourage students to develop and base
conclusions on collected, assembled, and weighed facts without bias, and to
develop the ability to conduct such processes with tolerance and respect for
differing conclusions held by others.
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Materials, issues, or teaching
techniques that are intrusive of the privacy rights of students or parents
shall be avoided.
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If a parent request or other
circumstances require that a student be excused from some portion of the
instructional program, the student shall be excused in the most appropriate,
unobtrusive manner possible to another productive, but alternative, learning
experience.
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The opinion of the teacher on a
controversial issue should be introduced in the classroom only when it will
contribute to the student’s understanding of the issue and only when it is
appropriate to the age and maturity level of the students. If teacher
opinion is introduced, it should be clearly identified as such.
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