‘Gov. Ron DeSantis has repeatedly talked about parental rights in education as the way to go in Florida. Unfortunately, he fails to mention that ONLY those parents who agree with his stupidity are allowed to exercise their freedoms,’ said Ray Tampa.
BY RAY TAMPA, The Ray Tampa Podcast
STATEWIDE — Gov. Ron DeSantis has been known to say, “Education not indoctrination.” He has also been known to say, “Critical Race Theory (CRT) will not be taught in Florida schools.”
He has repeatedly talked about parental rights in education as the way to go in Florida. Unfortunately, he fails to mention that ONLY those parents who agree with his stupidity are allowed to exercise their freedoms.
DeSantis has even told college professors what to and what not to teach. What happened to academic freedom? What happened to teaching and debating facts? What happened to the board of trustees’ authority to control curriculum at the college and university level?
How do you have students majoring in American history ONLY to be taught partial or revised history? How do you major in anything but are told your studies will stay confined to conservative ideology? How do you have a diverse student body but tell one group of students your history doesn’t matter, while telling a different group of students their history is significant?
Just recently, Gov. DeSantis promoted the unveiling of the “new” civics curriculum to be taught in all Florida school districts. The governor held a press conference on June 30 where he “announced that the Florida Civics and Debate Initiative will expand to all school districts for the upcoming school year.”
He also stated that 2,500 teachers would complete three-day civics professional development training by the end of July. As a former social studies teacher and school principal, I am willing to bet that 99 percent of the teachers in Florida can see straight through this nonsense being peddled by DeSantis and his minions. This is indoctrination in every sense of the word.
Our sick-minded governor spares no opportunity to twist everything done by the Biden Administration to try and satisfy his and Trump’s base of idiots. For example, Congress passed a bill called the Civics Secures Democracy Act. DeSantis has suggested that this act would “allow the Biden Administration to buy off states with $6 billion if they sacrifice American history for Critical Race Theory and Biden’s other political whims.” This is pure madness!
DeSantis and our Republican-led legislature have received consultation from a little-known private college based in Michigan. Yes, Hillsdale College, a very conservative Christian Nationalist institution, has been focusing its attention on changing America’s educational system by extensively promoting charter schools.
However, they have shifted their attention to the public schools and the teaching of civics grounded in Christianity and conservative ideology. So, here it is – indoctrination in its truest sense.
No doubt, DeSantis is damaging Florida’s Educational Systems badly. A local news report said that Hillsborough County lost more than 1,800 teachers over the course of last year, and county after county reported huge teacher losses in 2021.
A couple of Pinellas school board members told me in separate conversations that teacher burnout is real. While neither board member knew of specific numbers or percentages, the district, like so many others, has seen teachers leave the profession in significant numbers. Too, the pressures from outside the district definitely factor into the equation, big time.
Republicans are spewing the same stupidity being spewed by DeSantis all across the country. They are very coordinated in their messaging, which is anti-public education. Reportedly, more than 280,000 teachers nationwide have left the profession. OUCH!!!
