Faithless
04-14-2005, 07:51 PM
No, not me -- the person who wrote the poem that became the centerpiece of this story: :rolleyes:
Mother upset, believes teacher's lesson will 'spread hate' (http://www.khou.com/news/local/stories/khou050414_gj_poem.1da49d7d3.html)
05:49 PM CDT on Thursday, April 14, 2005
From Carolyn Campbell / 11 New
A mother wants the Spring School District to punish her daughter's high school English teacher. The mother said an assignment was nothing more than an inappropriate lesson in hatred.
The teacher found it on the Internet. From there the poem became part of a high school senior English lesson.
"I hate your generation. I'm going to give you cause to hate mine," Dana Cook read from the poem.
But Cook thinks "I Hate Your Generation" is an inappropriate poem for high school students.
"This document is not poetry. It is a hate letter about adults and parents," said Cook. When she found out her 17-year-old daughter Bethany was studying it, she contacted the school district.
The Spring I.S.D. teacher said part of her goal was to show poetry doesn’t always rhyme. She went on to explain in a letter to Cook, "I believed it was relevant because it was written by a 17-year-old and it expresses some of the feelings that they have. As we discussed it, we talked about the angry tone of the letter and that often people write poetry to express their feelings, both good and bad."
"But there's too much school violence. There's too much, no prayer in school, no God in school. But then their going to pass out trash like this and, you know, spread hate," said Cook.
Dr. Scott Poland is a nationally recognized psychologist and author. He was sought out after the Columbine shootings and most recently in Minnesota after the Red Lake High School shootings.
"It was not explicit. It did not have specific steps, specific violent actions. I would view it as summing up frustrations that children often have with interactions with adults" Dr. Poland explained.
"And when you read through it you don't understand what this has anything to do with poetry," said Bethany Cook, student. "You just kind of wonder, is this what poetry is all about?"
The teacher did apologize to Cook and while the poem was not part of the curriculum, the district said teachers to have leeway to use supplemental materials. A spokesperson said the district did address the parent's concerns teacher who in no way intended to promote hate.
Mother upset, believes teacher's lesson will 'spread hate' (http://www.khou.com/news/local/stories/khou050414_gj_poem.1da49d7d3.html)
05:49 PM CDT on Thursday, April 14, 2005
From Carolyn Campbell / 11 New
A mother wants the Spring School District to punish her daughter's high school English teacher. The mother said an assignment was nothing more than an inappropriate lesson in hatred.
The teacher found it on the Internet. From there the poem became part of a high school senior English lesson.
"I hate your generation. I'm going to give you cause to hate mine," Dana Cook read from the poem.
But Cook thinks "I Hate Your Generation" is an inappropriate poem for high school students.
"This document is not poetry. It is a hate letter about adults and parents," said Cook. When she found out her 17-year-old daughter Bethany was studying it, she contacted the school district.
The Spring I.S.D. teacher said part of her goal was to show poetry doesn’t always rhyme. She went on to explain in a letter to Cook, "I believed it was relevant because it was written by a 17-year-old and it expresses some of the feelings that they have. As we discussed it, we talked about the angry tone of the letter and that often people write poetry to express their feelings, both good and bad."
"But there's too much school violence. There's too much, no prayer in school, no God in school. But then their going to pass out trash like this and, you know, spread hate," said Cook.
Dr. Scott Poland is a nationally recognized psychologist and author. He was sought out after the Columbine shootings and most recently in Minnesota after the Red Lake High School shootings.
"It was not explicit. It did not have specific steps, specific violent actions. I would view it as summing up frustrations that children often have with interactions with adults" Dr. Poland explained.
"And when you read through it you don't understand what this has anything to do with poetry," said Bethany Cook, student. "You just kind of wonder, is this what poetry is all about?"
The teacher did apologize to Cook and while the poem was not part of the curriculum, the district said teachers to have leeway to use supplemental materials. A spokesperson said the district did address the parent's concerns teacher who in no way intended to promote hate.