US teacher is suspended for letting pupils read bestseller

@loup.dargent
The matter of Ms. Heermann's rather draconian suspension for 18-months without pay has been receiving world-wide attention. The Guardian article you posted also appeared in The Telegraph (U.K.). The Guardian story broke just several days after the CNN story by Gary Tuchman:
http://www.cnn.com/video/#/video/us/2008/06/29/tuchman.in.banned.book.cnn
Other articles include the Anna Quindlen Newsweek editorial:
http://www.newsweek.com/id/145871
Also Richard LaGravenese, who directed the Freedom Writers DIary Movie posted an opinion on Huffington Post:
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/richard-lagravenese/emfreedomem-banned_b_110299.html
A very revealing local TV reporter covered Connie on the way to the airport. WISH-TV 8
http://www.wishtv.com/global/video/popup/pop_player.asp?ClipID1=2708996&h1=Suspended%20teacher%20making%20international%20headlines&vt1=v&at1=News&d1=150233&LaunchPageAdTag
Lastly, Erin Gruwell is firmly behind Ms. Heermann. As you may recall, she took the red-eye in and testified at her hearing. The Freedom Writers Foundation, founded by Ms. Gruwell is featuring the plight of Ms. Heermann on their website and is soliciting donations to help this dedicated teacher:
http://www.freedomwritersfoundation.org/site/c.kqIXL2PFJtH/b.2259975/k.BF19/Home.htm

Thank you
Emil Francis

@loup.dargent
Thank you for posting this story all over MIXX. There is a great blog by "Proteacher" that is entirely devoted to the plight of Ms. Heermann. ..
htt://isupportconnie.blogspot.com
It contains many other stories that are helpful in trying to understand this senseless punishment of an obviously dedicated teacher. The latest story posted is a WISH TV piece which interviews Connie Heermann at the airport on her way to a five-day Freedom Writers Teachers Book and student curriculum workshop in California, hosted by Erin Gruwell.
The WISH TV piece talks about Connie, taking a week out of her now unpaid summer vacation, then closes with some rather off the wall statements by the new board president, Steve Maple. This is what's weird: the reporter obviously told Maple what the story is about: suspended teacher getting more education...yet all Maple did was complain about how badly the media covered the board. Maple even acknowledges getting "emails from around the country," protesting Ms. Heermann's dismissal, but then says nothing more about it. He could of at least complimented the teacher for her initiative in continuing her education -- even when he suspeded her from the classroom for 18 more months! I couldn't believe it. Maple is actually the newly elected board president (July 1). Obviously he needs some PR training -- and to think about redirecting the board's thinking. Gee, when the teacher does something good, like continuing education (which is covered on TV) can't he just say something nice.
Here's the link to the WISH TV piece:
http://www.wishtv.com/global/video/popup/pop_player.asp?ClipID1=2708996&h1=Suspended%20teacher%20making%20international%20headlines&vt1=v&at1=News&d1=150233&LaunchPageAdTag

Thanks
Emil Francis
Supporter of Connie Heermann -

Comments (14)

- loup.dargent
>> Connie Heermann, a teacher for 27 years, sought permission to introduce the book to her students last autumn after attending a training workshop held by the Freedom Writers Foundation. "If you read the whole book you will see how these inner-city students grow and change and become articulate, compassionate, educated young people who want to do something good in their lives despite the environment in which they were raised," she told the Guardian. "I thought my students would very much relate to those kids."

Her head agreed and Heermann got written permission from nearly 150 parents,
but the Perry Meridian high school board urged her to wait for its decision.

Teachers' union officials say that a single board member objected to swearing in the book.
The school board member allegedly persuaded the other six officials to ban Heermann from
teaching the book. It remains available in school libraries. <<
- (0 Kudos received)
- susanai1
One is left just shaking ones head. What is the allowed reading? Comics!
- (0 Kudos received)
- loup.dargent
@susanai1

I know, this is madness...
The students were improving, what more did they want?
A few swear words (which the students probably already knew and heard anyway)
in a book and we've got the "Let's burn books" brigade up in arms... Even if this
uncalled censorship might ruin the chances for the students to do better in class.
Sheer madness...

They probably don't allow comics either... probably seen as subversive material ;-)
- (0 Kudos received)
- Cando2007
How is this happening? I don't see what she did wrong. Students need to learn and learn a lot.
- (0 Kudos received)
- Cando2007
Can everyone vote for my postings, thanks a lot! I wll vote for you guys in return
- (0 Kudos received)
- Albionshores
@Cando2007
Dude/babes/whichever seriously asking that is not going to help your cause. Submit great stories, contribute in a positive way to other people's threads through informed commenting and in the long run you'll be a great success.

Feel free to take or shake that advice....but asking people to vote for your submits in thread won't help in the long run - it will even be regarded as spam and work against you. There's even an email facility to help you do that if that is the way you want to go. But seriously, I'm just letting you know that it is not the effective way to go making friends that just blind vote to get blind voted.

But it is your call.
- (0 Kudos received)
- loup.dargent
@Cando2007

1) There is no need to ask for votes on Mixx
2) Votes are not everything on Mixx
3) Mixx is not Digg

Follow Albionshores' advice and you'll be fine...
- (0 Kudos received)
- susanai
Is anyone worried about this viacom/youtube business? I won't be going back to youtube until I know that my IP address is being defended by Google. Once they know your IP address they know where you live [or your computer]. I thought Google was better than this!
- (0 Kudos received)
- Albionshores
@susanai
Great comment. Maybe you should think about putting it on a Viacom/YouTube thread?
- (0 Kudos received)
- Albionshores
@loup.dargent
.....I feel like either woken up and the place has turned into 'Sean of the Dead' for social-networking?
Random SocialZombies comments are popping up everywhere!!!
- (0 Kudos received)
- susanai1
To albionshores - what is a RandomSocialComment? Didn't you just make one? What are thoughts about the disappearance of the orang-utang in Indonesia or the situation of penguins? The human species is a good one to contemplate. Should we still be here - or are far too many of us turning into 'keyboard extensions'? Write me.
- (0 Kudos received)
- Albionshores
@susanai1

Somebody raising "Is anyone worried about this viacom/youtube business?" on a thread with a Guardian article about a US teacher being suspended.

That....that was a random social comment.
- (0 Kudos received)
- emil043
@loup.dargent
The matter of Ms. Heermann's rather draconian suspension for 18-months without pay has been receiving world-wide attention. The Guardian article you posted also appeared in The Telegraph (U.K.). The Guardian story broke just several days after the CNN story by Gary Tuchman:
http://www.cnn.com/video/#/video/us/2008/06/29/tuchman.in.banned.book.cnn
Other articles include the Anna Quindlen Newsweek editorial:
http://www.newsweek.com/id/145871
Also Richard LaGravenese, who directed the Freedom Writers DIary Movie posted an opinion on Huffington Post:
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/richard-lagravenese/emfreedomem-banned_b_110299.html
A very revealing local TV reporter covered Connie on the way to the airport. WISH-TV 8
http://www.wishtv.com/global/video/popup/pop_player.asp?ClipID1=2708996&h1=Suspended%20teacher%20making%20international%20headlines&vt1=v&at1=News&d1=150233&LaunchPageAdTag
Lastly, Erin Gruwell is firmly behind Ms. Heermann. As you may recall, she took the red-eye in and testified at her hearing. The Freedom Writers Foundation, founded by Ms. Gruwell is featuring the plight of Ms. Heermann on their website and is soliciting donations to help this dedicated teacher:
http://www.freedomwritersfoundation.org/site/c.kqIXL2PFJtH/b.2259975/k.BF19/Home.htm

Thank you
Emil Francis
- (0 Kudos received)
- emil043
@loup.dargent
Thank you for posting this story all over MIXX. There is a great blog by "Proteacher" that is entirely devoted to the plight of Ms. Heermann. ..
htt://isupportconnie.blogspot.com
It contains many other stories that are helpful in trying to understand this senseless punishment of an obviously dedicated teacher. The latest story posted is a WISH TV piece which interviews Connie Heermann at the airport on her way to a five-day Freedom Writers Teachers Book and student curriculum workshop in California, hosted by Erin Gruwell.
The WISH TV piece talks about Connie, taking a week out of her now unpaid summer vacation, then closes with some rather off the wall statements by the new board president, Steve Maple. This is what's weird: the reporter obviously told Maple what the story is about: suspended teacher getting more education...yet all Maple did was complain about how badly the media covered the board. Maple even acknowledges getting "emails from around the country," protesting Ms. Heermann's dismissal, but then says nothing more about it. He could of at least complimented the teacher for her initiative in continuing her education -- even when he suspeded her from the classroom for 18 more months! I couldn't believe it. Maple is actually the newly elected board president (July 1). Obviously he needs some PR training -- and to think about redirecting the board's thinking. Gee, when the teacher does something good, like continuing education (which is covered on TV) can't he just say something nice.
Here's the link to the WISH TV piece:
http://www.wishtv.com/global/video/popup/pop_player.asp?ClipID1=2708996&h1=Suspended%20teacher%20making%20international%20headlines&vt1=v&at1=News&d1=150233&LaunchPageAdTag

Thanks
Emil Francis
Supporter of Connie Heermann -
- (0 Kudos received)