Culture war? It’s normally more of a culture strop.
New rules warning teachers not to contest the legacy of celebrated historical figures like Churchill, or to promote groups like Black Lives Matter, won’t change that much in the classroom.
Yes, there have been recent examples of teachers overstepping the mark and imposing their political views on students. Of course, there’s nothing new about Conservative authorities feeling twitchy that left-wing teachers might indoctrinate young minds – think back to Section 28, the Thatcher government law that banned the “promotion of homosexuality” (sic) by local authorities.
Yet these recent classroom zealots have been fairly isolated examples – and they are exaggerated for political gain
The Department for Education is well within its rights to remind teachers of their duty to be politically impartial. Plenty of the new guidance is common sense. However there’s a dog-whistle element too.
It’s no coincidence that these rules are released two days after Conservative Party chairman Oliver Dowden denounced what he called a “painful woke psychodrama” afflicting Western liberal democracies. Tory MPs fear that Winston Churchill is the next target for statue-topplers who are set on revising Britain’s history.
As in any cultural clash, the people fighting it need one another. Without an enemy, there can be no fight. So for some current Cabinet ministers who are keen to wage a so-called “war on woke”, leftie teachers who put their foot in it are vital allies.
Translation:
Conservatives are afraid that too many people are living in reality and reading documented history. Conservatives would rather they be dumb idiots that believe only what they are told so those who wish to exploit them can do so more easily.
So basically standard conservative stuff
The best kind of enemy is one that doesn’t exist. Makes it much less likely to lose a fight.
Sounds like the kind of ‘nanny state’ meddling that conservatives pretend to loathe
Someone should tell the Tories to stay the f out of education.
And they wonder why there’s a recruitment and retention problem in schools.
[deleted]
Devide and conquer, always been the government way since time began. Pick an enemy and turn everyone against each other.
Turn the middle class against the working class by showing them all as lazy dole lout scum. How do they do that, they plaster the newspapers with stories of mum of 7 gets five bedroom house….. Well yeah they need it.
Turn the working class against the people with real problems on the bottom of the ladder because they make working class people look bad. How do they do that they put shows like benefit street on TV portraying people who do take advantage but also people who clearly need more help than others for various reasons but let’s show them buying cigarettes and ale.
Turn everyone against the immigrants… Well we know how they do that and that’s the common enemy. Point the fingers because they’re the ones ruining this country.
The truth is everyone plays a part in the state of this country but the government love to have us all in fighting. I never forgot about the “upper class” or the “elites” either, they’re the fucking ones lording it over us they never change they just stair the big fuck off wooden spoon.
So we want to teach our kids not to be aware or be against racism?
Okay then…
I can’t wait until they try to do this in science on preventing science teachers discussing climate change, or topics like that.
Go on to a Facebook group comprised mainly of people 55+ and they’ll tell you there are hordes of radical left wokists coming to steal their pension.
Create an enemy to justify the shitty things you’re doing. Right from the authoritarians handbook.
Imaginary problems allow the right to to justify their inaction and ignore systemic social and economic issues.
“Even if there isn’t one”
>Yes, there have been recent examples of teachers overstepping the mark and imposing their political views on students.
Bonus points for using the phrase ‘Dog Whistle’ in the sub-title of a dog-whistle article.
Is there some way to read this article without subscription? (from outside the UK?)
Culture war! Huh! What is it good for?
Distracting people while we give their money to our friends and financiers.
Sounds like the tories are trying to pull a CRT “threat” like republicans over here.
It’s crazy. I just saw the Daily Mail list the “wokest” schools in England and even listing about how some teach critical race theory.
Why are they trying to import American culture specifically to be offended by?
‘Woke’ is a great term to use to replace the slurs people are ‘no longer allowed’ to say.
Love how this is triggering this sub.
People here *want* teachers to be political activists.
Oh yes there is an enemy and you have made yourself known so tough luck you’ve been looking for.trouble and now you’ve found it. So I hope they start throwing your leaders in prison for racial discrimination again innocent white working class citizens.
I’m loving how the Tories want to make schools correct to their politics.
It is literal political correctness.
More and more it feels like THIS Tory government have decided to use Umberto Ecos essay Ur Fascism as a policy guidebook rather than a brilliant summarising of the warning signs of a Fascist system.
What would be better to talk about is the think tanks and the money that funds them who are driving this narrative behind the scenes.
Amazes me how blind people are. When they are woke they literally become blind to it. But for those that aren’t it’s everywhere seeping into every aspect of life. I’m largely fine with it but it should be clear what the objectives are. Unfortunately many people mistake woke with far left imo.
Strategy 1 of the Tory playbook – if you can’t convince someone what you are doing is right, find a way of causing an argument. You don’t even have to be right in the argument just let it happen. Majority of the time the other person will say something that will cause someone else to stand their ground and continue to support torys even if they normally wouldn’t care.
Reason this works: if you stubbornly support something, you vote for it in protest. If you don’t, you probably won’t vote, or your vote will be split between the many other party’s.
Examples: brexit, covid, trade, literal parties, dealing with russia, feeding children, giving the north “power”, and now – being woke
Given that whatever happens in America usually ends up over here, better to nip this sort of nonsense in the bud. Their public schools are run by deranged liberals who go into teaching so they can push their disgusting values on your children.
I bet Reddit is offering a balanced discourse on this topic.
Political parties have natural cycles, I think conservative is due to finish soon, rishi may take the baton once Boris decides to leave or be pushed.
By this time rishi won’t be able to rescue the party and labor will come in again, they’ll also fuck it up and so the cycle begins again.
Maybe if those lessons taught actual history, especially regarding the slave trade, which was a world wide norm, (Britain bought its slaves from African slave traders) instead of a peculiarity of white culture. In fact, thinking slavery is bad is a white culture peculiarity.
28 comments
Culture war? It’s normally more of a culture strop.
New rules warning teachers not to contest the legacy of celebrated historical figures like Churchill, or to promote groups like Black Lives Matter, won’t change that much in the classroom.
Yes, there have been recent examples of teachers overstepping the mark and imposing their political views on students. Of course, there’s nothing new about Conservative authorities feeling twitchy that left-wing teachers might indoctrinate young minds – think back to Section 28, the Thatcher government law that banned the “promotion of homosexuality” (sic) by local authorities.
Yet these recent classroom zealots have been fairly isolated examples – and they are exaggerated for political gain
The Department for Education is well within its rights to remind teachers of their duty to be politically impartial. Plenty of the new guidance is common sense. However there’s a dog-whistle element too.
It’s no coincidence that these rules are released two days after Conservative Party chairman Oliver Dowden denounced what he called a “painful woke psychodrama” afflicting Western liberal democracies. Tory MPs fear that Winston Churchill is the next target for statue-topplers who are set on revising Britain’s history.
As in any cultural clash, the people fighting it need one another. Without an enemy, there can be no fight. So for some current Cabinet ministers who are keen to wage a so-called “war on woke”, leftie teachers who put their foot in it are vital allies.
Translation:
Conservatives are afraid that too many people are living in reality and reading documented history. Conservatives would rather they be dumb idiots that believe only what they are told so those who wish to exploit them can do so more easily.
So basically standard conservative stuff
The best kind of enemy is one that doesn’t exist. Makes it much less likely to lose a fight.
Sounds like the kind of ‘nanny state’ meddling that conservatives pretend to loathe
Someone should tell the Tories to stay the f out of education.
And they wonder why there’s a recruitment and retention problem in schools.
[deleted]
Devide and conquer, always been the government way since time began. Pick an enemy and turn everyone against each other.
Turn the middle class against the working class by showing them all as lazy dole lout scum. How do they do that, they plaster the newspapers with stories of mum of 7 gets five bedroom house….. Well yeah they need it.
Turn the working class against the people with real problems on the bottom of the ladder because they make working class people look bad. How do they do that they put shows like benefit street on TV portraying people who do take advantage but also people who clearly need more help than others for various reasons but let’s show them buying cigarettes and ale.
Turn everyone against the immigrants… Well we know how they do that and that’s the common enemy. Point the fingers because they’re the ones ruining this country.
The truth is everyone plays a part in the state of this country but the government love to have us all in fighting. I never forgot about the “upper class” or the “elites” either, they’re the fucking ones lording it over us they never change they just stair the big fuck off wooden spoon.
So we want to teach our kids not to be aware or be against racism?
Okay then…
I can’t wait until they try to do this in science on preventing science teachers discussing climate change, or topics like that.
Go on to a Facebook group comprised mainly of people 55+ and they’ll tell you there are hordes of radical left wokists coming to steal their pension.
Create an enemy to justify the shitty things you’re doing. Right from the authoritarians handbook.
Imaginary problems allow the right to to justify their inaction and ignore systemic social and economic issues.
“Even if there isn’t one”
>Yes, there have been recent examples of teachers overstepping the mark and imposing their political views on students.
Bonus points for using the phrase ‘Dog Whistle’ in the sub-title of a dog-whistle article.
Is there some way to read this article without subscription? (from outside the UK?)
Culture war! Huh! What is it good for?
Distracting people while we give their money to our friends and financiers.
Sounds like the tories are trying to pull a CRT “threat” like republicans over here.
It’s crazy. I just saw the Daily Mail list the “wokest” schools in England and even listing about how some teach critical race theory.
Why are they trying to import American culture specifically to be offended by?
‘Woke’ is a great term to use to replace the slurs people are ‘no longer allowed’ to say.
Love how this is triggering this sub.
People here *want* teachers to be political activists.
Oh yes there is an enemy and you have made yourself known so tough luck you’ve been looking for.trouble and now you’ve found it. So I hope they start throwing your leaders in prison for racial discrimination again innocent white working class citizens.
I’m loving how the Tories want to make schools correct to their politics.
It is literal political correctness.
More and more it feels like THIS Tory government have decided to use Umberto Ecos essay Ur Fascism as a policy guidebook rather than a brilliant summarising of the warning signs of a Fascist system.
What would be better to talk about is the think tanks and the money that funds them who are driving this narrative behind the scenes.
Amazes me how blind people are. When they are woke they literally become blind to it. But for those that aren’t it’s everywhere seeping into every aspect of life. I’m largely fine with it but it should be clear what the objectives are. Unfortunately many people mistake woke with far left imo.
Strategy 1 of the Tory playbook – if you can’t convince someone what you are doing is right, find a way of causing an argument. You don’t even have to be right in the argument just let it happen. Majority of the time the other person will say something that will cause someone else to stand their ground and continue to support torys even if they normally wouldn’t care.
Reason this works: if you stubbornly support something, you vote for it in protest. If you don’t, you probably won’t vote, or your vote will be split between the many other party’s.
Examples: brexit, covid, trade, literal parties, dealing with russia, feeding children, giving the north “power”, and now – being woke
Given that whatever happens in America usually ends up over here, better to nip this sort of nonsense in the bud. Their public schools are run by deranged liberals who go into teaching so they can push their disgusting values on your children.
I bet Reddit is offering a balanced discourse on this topic.
Political parties have natural cycles, I think conservative is due to finish soon, rishi may take the baton once Boris decides to leave or be pushed.
By this time rishi won’t be able to rescue the party and labor will come in again, they’ll also fuck it up and so the cycle begins again.
Maybe if those lessons taught actual history, especially regarding the slave trade, which was a world wide norm, (Britain bought its slaves from African slave traders) instead of a peculiarity of white culture. In fact, thinking slavery is bad is a white culture peculiarity.