Class Dismissed
In 2021, a video of Leah Kinyon, chemistry teacher from Utah, surfaced online causing shockwaves throughout the American media and getting her fired in the process as well. During one of her classes, she was triggered into a rant: a vocal hatred of Donald Trump, dismissing her students’ parents as stupid and threatening them should they say anything homophobic. She was dismissed from her position after the video went viral. How could it not? The woman used the education process for airing her frustrations, throwing accusations and insults at everyone.
In the video, her meltdown looks like something from straight out the Jerry Springer Show minus a violent chick fight and the bodyguard. The core of the problem isn’t really so much about what Kinyon was saying, but the violent, vitriolic tone that made her look like a brainwashed teenage activist instead of a competent intellectual that keeps her politics out of her classroom. Even if it were a class of political science it would still be inappropriate and arrogant.
The anecdote is symptomatic of the bigger picture in the public ideological discourse: the middle ground disappeared along with capability for polite dialogue shrinking like ice caps. It plays straight into the hands of right-wing populists that label even moderate leftists as loonies to scare away those who might be inclined to support them. Yes, it’s important to be inclusive and kind. It’s important to work on critical thinking instead of ignoring things you don’t like. It’s important to voice your disapproval or support about things that matter.
But the most important thing is to do it in a non-threatening, respectful way. Everything else is a road straight into political chaos we’re trapped in right now. Which is why education is crucially important, to teach us how to do it. Because it’s not limbo dancing and setting the bar as low as possible is considered a success. That’s exactly what’s going on, and profound changes are required in order to make teachers go viral for the right reasons.
It especially applies to the process of selection when it comes to teaching. It should be harder to get a position in a good school than in national government. But that’s unfortunately not yet the case, which is why people like Kinyon are on the payroll of institutions that should shape intellectuals of the future instead of grooming deluded freaks that give a sensible cause a bad name.
Post-war schools in 1990s I attended in Bosnia and Herzegovina were a great example of this. My hometown is and still is notorious for having two schools that share most things apart from language and history classes where they are being taught lessons carefully filtered through the simmer of clerical and nationalist doctrines.
The aim is self-victimisation based on dangerous stereotypes, fear and corruption where success depends on connections, not competence. It’s the root of elitism that keeps the engine of that broken social vehicle running even after past its expiration day. Which means that there are countless equivalents of Leah Kinyon in our system as well, equally incompetent and embarassing, but in a slightly different way.
I remember a physics teacher who would send a student to pick up a magazine and a soda for her to enjoy while we’d work on a short lesson that she’d put together. In a serious school, she’d be fired but that was unlikely to happen and I wouldn’t be surprised if she were still working there, though she didn’t have the prerequisite degree when she started working with us. There were others who were sexist simpletons or active in politics and you might have benefitted from a membership in their party.
Just like anywhere else, there were exceptions that would revive your belief that education is a calling, not a job. They didn’t rant about politics, feminism, homophobia. They taught us how to be decent human beings, that it’s important to read books and how to tell trash from treasure. They make the whole experience worth while, in spite of school yard bullies, backstabbing girlfriends or teachers with questionable ethics. They teach you true integrity and certain values require a sacrifice worth paying. If you’re lucky enough to cross paths with them, don’t waste the opportunity.
It’s easy to get disillusioned with the big picture. But that shouldn’t discourage us from looking for those few shining pieces of the puzzle. Personal values are defined by what we choose to compromise on. That’s an undervalued indicator when it comes to the curriculum and process of education. Because it’s difficult to separate your own beliefs from the work you’re supposed to do. By transferring knowledge, teachers also transfer ideas they themselves have been exposed to. That can be risky since we’re talking about students susceptible to ideas they don’t necessarily understand or subscribe to.
This is the dividing line between education and indoctrination. Which is why it’s so important to stay focused lest we end up on the other side. If you don’t properly root the tree, it’ll be difficult to fix it afterwards. When that happens, we’ll end up with a forest we can’t see because it’s not there and the ground is full of rotten trunks.
There are probably many schools out there with their own Leah Kinyon. The criteria need drastic revisions, because the road to hell is paved with good intentions. An example of those are recently introduced assistants for children with special needs in our local schools that are suppose to boost in-class inclusion.
This is a rather clumsy operation because there aren’t any specific eligibility criteria apart from the basic ones that you need for a teaching position anyway. But that doesn’t imply you’re competent to work with students requiring special attention. There’s no special training, not even special studies that would focus specifically on this particular field.
It means that there’s a long way to go but the side-effects of it in the meantime could be a disservice than a benefit to the curriculum as such. Inclusion is one of the basic cornerstones of a successful society. And a successful society isn’t sustainable without education and the right values in all the right places. There should be no compromise on that.
Sacrificing the future of those who will shape the future of their own communities is something that’s unexcusable. Which is why proper education is so important. Why those few teachers willing do more than they’re paid for are of vital importance. A litmus for what we stand for and why it matters. As well as the limits of our inclusivity and sympathy.
Last but not least, in which direction we’re headed and how far willing to go to stay on the track. Until we start treating and paying teachers according to the instrumental role they play in our life, we won’t see much improvement on that particular frontline. It’s not only a sign of respect for them, but everyone else included in the system: students, parents, administration.
Each of these links must be firm if we want to keep the chain from breaking up. I’ve seen people in teacher’s lounges that I wouldn’t even trust with babysitting. I’ve also seen parents who are so removed from reality they believe curriculums are menus where they get to choose what children are supposed to do. And then there are those who know that having the right teacher in your classroom should be a right, not a privilege. But those usually tend to be a minority.
