School Teaching Kids How to be Terrorists

@laglen (19759)
United States
August 26, 2010 7:49am CST
At Kalgoorlie-Boulder Community High School in Western Australia, a teacher assigned students to plot a terrorist attack. Grades were to be allocated based on students' ability to analyze information they had learned on terrorism and chemical and biological warfare and apply it to a real-life scenario. When the principal heard of it, he pulled the assignment citing that the teacher was inexperienced and misguided. I wonder, wouldnt it make more sense to brain storm how to detect and stop terrorist attacks? http://www.myfoxny.com/dpp/news/international/teacher-assigns-students-to-plan-terror-attack-20100825-newscore
2 people like this
5 responses
27 Aug 10
I don't see a problem with this. It's not like the teacher was telling the students to actually go out and do this kind of stuff. It's a theoretical exercise, to encourage their problem-solving abilities. It's only in the same vein as studying the campaigns of people like Napolean and Rommel.
1 person likes this
@laglen (19759)
• United States
27 Aug 10
There is a difference. With this assignment they are to come up with an attack. With kids already shooting each other, is this really what we want to teach teen agers? I believe it is a subject for study but I believe it should be for a more mature student body.
@laglen (19759)
• United States
27 Aug 10
I would see this as a college course as a continuation in the field. Sometimes a little knowledge can be very dangerous, some subjects when studied should be studied completely. High school doesnt study anything completely
27 Aug 10
Dangerous in what way? Do you think any of these students are going to go out and start a bombing campaign or something? What are the odds?
1 person likes this
• United States
26 Aug 10
This teacher should be fired. These students don't need to learn how to be terrorists, they need to learn basic skills. Now, if they want to learn how to prevent terrorism on their own free time, that is another story, but when children are in school, they should learn things that will benefit them in life. Language skill, reading, math, history, science, geography, geology (for those of you who live in "The Ring of Fire"), computers, how to build computers and robots (What?! It's 21st Century, students ought to know this by now!), survival skills (Basically, think "The Colony", how will you survive in a disaster or nuclear attack?), and conflict resolution (How to say no to bullies and peer pressure). Students need to learn the skills that are going to help them survive, not planning terrorists attacks.
@laglen (19759)
• United States
27 Aug 10
I understand wouldnt you say that terrorism 101 seems more like a college class?
1 person likes this
• United States
27 Aug 10
Yes, and sadly, I know students at my university who would probably pay good money to take that class.
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@laglen (19759)
• United States
27 Aug 10
I bet it would be interesting
• United States
26 Aug 10
I personally, find that appalling! What in the world was he thinking? Of all the assignments you can give kids in that age bracket, that's what he picked? Kids are so impressionable at that age, I just can't understand him requiring them to kill innocent people, and get graded on it. It's disgusting and as far as I'm concerned, he should have been thrown out of the teaching field forever. He should have been teaching them the horrors of terrorist attacks, and brought in people to talk about what it felt like to lose friends and family to these horrendous acts of violence. Thumbs down to this guy.
@laglen (19759)
• United States
26 Aug 10
I do understand the need to teach the subject matter but I think the age was wrong for the assignment.
@hari1111 (238)
• New Zealand
27 Aug 10
Thats great we need more terrorists. As if those other groups are not enough :) Lets just teach the future of our world how to analyze and find loop holes in our current system so we will have even more devastating terror attacks. These are the things that encouraging more and more children to become more violent.
@laglen (19759)
• United States
27 Aug 10
the law makers should be finding these loopholes.
• Netherlands
27 Aug 10
your turning it around the "future" is supposed to find those loop holes in the current system to prevent terrorist attacks
@Absinto (2385)
• Portugal
26 Aug 10
There should be more brainstorming about how to detect and stop terrorist attacks but not by children. This is just plain irresponible of the teacher. They need to learn the basics and not material that could teach them to do very dangerous things
1 person likes this
@laglen (19759)
• United States
27 Aug 10
I agree with you both and who are you talking about assannight
• Netherlands
27 Aug 10
Children could help but you're right i guess the teacher just made a big mistake and there should be more brainstorming about how to detect and stop terrorist attacks i'm affraid that a certain man within the politics of the netherlands who is going to ground zero to protest against the mosque there is going to cause terrrorist attacks in my country :'(
1 person likes this