The Manitowoc Public School District’s Board of Education met last night, and on the agenda was a vote on the new wording of the policy that relates to the discussion of controversial issues in the classroom.
This is the second time the board read over the revised policy, which Board Member Kathy Willis said is not a new addition to the policy manual.
“I want people to be aware that Policy 2240 is not a new policy,” she explained. “This policy has been here as long as I know of. We just addressed it again, and made some changes.”
Then, after discussing the revisions, the board put it to a vote, and it passed unanimously.
The policy itself did not change all that much.
Teachers were never allowed to discuss certain topics in the classroom, but one significant change was made.
The new policy states that “in the discussion of any controversial issue in the classroom or in the course of professional duties, a teacher may not express a personal opinion.”
The Board also changed one sentence to say, “does not indoctrinate or persuade students to a particular point of view” which used to read as “does not TEND to indoctrinate”.
The full discussion can be viewed on the MPSD YouTube page. This discussion begins at around the 2-hour 23-minute mark of the meeting video.
Click here to read the full policy.
