Schools are for learning, not politics. Progressive activism a dangerous distraction from real education
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“Resistance to colonialism is not terrorism.”
This quote was recently shown to more than 5,000 Winnipeg School Division (WSD) staff at a professional development session that Dr. Chris Emdin from Teachers College, Columbia University delivered. Not surprisingly, many teachers found the quote offensive, with more than a dozen walking out.
The teachers who walked out did the right thing. Whatever one’s political views might be, there is no context where intentionally murdering innocent civilians, which is an act of terrorism, is acceptable.
Even more offensive was the fact that this presentation took place only two days after the first anniversary of Hamas’s brutal attack against Israel on Oct. 7, 2023. More than 1,200 Israelis were murdered that day, with many others wounded or taken hostage.
 Photo by Levi Meir Clancy |
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Considering how often Hamas apologists justify their antisemitism by reframing it as “resistance” to colonialism, it’s not surprising that a quote minimizing the evils of terrorism wouldn’t go over well with many teachers, particularly Jewish educators.
WSD Superintendent Matt Henderson was quick to engage in damage control. He apologized for the quote in a letter to staff and explained that “the speaker’s view does not reflect the views of the WSD in this context.”
However, Henderson shouldn’t be let off the hook so easily. No competent superintendent would organize a division-wide professional development event without carefully vetting a keynote speaker, reviewing the PowerPoint slides, and knowing exactly what message that speaker would deliver to his staff.
The fundamental issue here is how this incident exposes the divide between two different visions of public education. On one side we have the traditional view of education, which emphasizes the importance of knowledge acquisition and skill development in school. On the other side is the progressive view, where teachers engage in social justice activism and seek to liberate students from colonialism and oppression.
This is not a new debate. In her 2000 book, Left Back: A Century of Battles Over School Reform, education historian Diane Ravitch chronicled the long struggle between traditionalists and progressives for control of Teachers College, the most influential teacher training institution in North America.
In the end, the progressives won the power struggle and took effective control of Teachers College, where Emdin currently teaches.
In other words, by inviting a well-known political activist to be the keynote speaker at this WSD event, Superintendent Henderson signalled his desire to take WSD schools in a more progressive direction, where teachers focus more on activism than on traditional academics. This won’t surprise anyone who has read any of Henderson’s many articles over the last decade or so. His left-wing political views are hardly a secret.
Not surprisingly, many parents are uncomfortable with this approach. Most parents send their children to school because they want them to learn basic facts and master essential skills – not to be indoctrinated into an ideology that conflicts with what they are taught at home.
A far better approach would be for all schools to focus on the fundamentals of teaching and learning. Help students become knowledgeable and skillful and leave political activism out of the classroom.
If teachers want to be political, they should do it on their own time. A school division should focus on academics, not political activism.
Michael Zwaagstra is a public high school teacher and a senior fellow at the Frontier Centre for Public Policy.
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