I ran into something that made me shake my head in wonder today. I saw in an online discussion someone telling a group of kids that no one ate Turkey on thanksgiving until the late 1800s because it was not a Native North American bird. I attempted to gently correct this person, telling them that she was confused with the ring neck pheasant. At this point the person in question flew off the handle, telling me that I was a stupid kid that needed to shut up and get more education like she had. I reminded her of a mouthy student of hers that thinks he is right about things too, and on top of that, she had a teachers edition text book that said that what she was saying was true and that the first thanksgiving was a vegetarian meal with maybe a little fish. She also mentioned that she is a middle school history teacher and does important work. I let the issue drop at the moment, but responded with this email.
I was extremely baffled by your insistence that the turkey came from somewhere other than North America.
Since you seemed so completely sure of your self, I decided to give you the benefit of the doubt and look into it some more.
It is a North American bird. Simple as that.
Sources: Encyclopedia Britannica, US Department Of Fish, Wildlife and Game, the National Wild Turkey Symposium, the Smithsonian Bird Center and Cornell University where it is currently the bird of the week for the Ornithology Department.
http://www.birds.cornell.edu/AllAboutBirds/BirdGuide/Wild_Turkey.html
As to the personal issue. I am not a kid. I have 2 undergrad degrees and I have 8 years of post graduate education. I have a Licentiate degree as well as several certificates from various peripheral inter-disciplinary tracks.
I am glad you can read your teachers addition, but that is not an excuse to turn off your brain, because frankly whoever wrote it was an idiot.
As to reminding you of one of your students, it appears that you would do well to listen to him more and hold rigid false opinions less.
It is exactly this kind of nonsense going on in public schools that makes me believe that they are rather pointless.
I really believe that the public schools are doomed.
4 comments:
Yes, with teachers like this example, I agree. Have you had your Bp checked lately? :)
If my Bp gets any lower, I will be in a coma ... it seems to be genetic. My mother's side of the fam. has no metabolism. As a result we are excellent athletes, have healthy hearts, not cholesterol (my last test said 59) and we get fat easy.
OMG!! I wish this was my reason for "fluffiness"! I just love to cook,... and sample. Must be a bitch trying to keep the wt down though with limited metabolism.
I have to run and run and run ... and even in the best shape of my life i had a gut.
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