What my daughter learned at elementary school...

[Jehanne]

My daughter attends a poorer elementary school with a large fraction of minority students. A week or so ago she came home and described for us the “meaning� of the “candy cane�. The “J-shape� of the “candy cane� stands for “Jesus�, as the first letter of his name is a “J�. The “red stripes� are for “his blood� that “he shed on the cross�. Finally, the “white stripes� are for “our redemption�. Again, folks, this is public school here! (And, my daughter’s teacher has a “spirit corner�!) No complaints planned, as my son’s kindergarten teacher (a woman who is a social, political and religious conservative) already turned me in to Child Protective Services for “child abuse� (two weeks after learning that I was an atheist), and I do not want another “incident�! (As for the “child abuse� allegation, the report came back as “not founded�. We are now homeschooling my son.)

[Corwin]

My daughter attends a poorer elementary school with a large fraction of minority students. A week or so ago she came home and described for us the “meaning� of the “candy cane�. The “J-shape� of the “candy cane� stands for “Jesus�, as the first letter of his name is a “J�. The “red stripes� are for “his blood� that “he shed on the cross�. Finally, the “white stripes� are for “our redemption�. Again, folks, this is public school here! (And, my daughter’s teacher has a “spirit corner�!) No complaints planned, as my son’s kindergarten teacher (a woman who is a social, political and religious conservative) already turned me in to Child Protective Services for “child abuse� (two weeks after learning that I was an atheist), and I do not want another “incident�! (As for the “child abuse� allegation, the report came back as “not founded�. We are now homeschooling my son.)

If she turns another bogus claim on you, couldn't she be looking at legal action?

I'm not personally familiar with CPS but I strongly doubt they have much of a sense of humor regarding that sort of thing....

[Jehanne]

If she turns another bogus claim on you, couldn't she be looking at legal action?

I'm not personally familiar with CPS but I strongly doubt they have much of a sense of humor regarding that sort of thing....

Where I live, filing a false child abuse report is only a simple misdemeanor, and I have never heard of anyone being prosecuted for it. According to the laws of my state, the CPS must investigate every report unless there have been three reports in a row that we all "not founded". After that, they can use "their discretion" to ignore further reports. However, CPS and the "mandatory reporters" are all "in bed" together, and they "look after" each other's "interests". And, “mandatory reporters� are completely protected from any and all civil lawsuits and may base their report upon a simple “belief� that child abuse has or will occur. The “standard of evidence� is practically zero.

[MrDarwin]

First off, unless you know something else you haven't told us, don't assume the teacher is proselytizing. She very well may be, but she may also think the story she told is true. And if it is true, is there any reason why a teacher should not tell the story behind it? (E.g., I assume it's okay to tell a class that Christmas is a holiday on which Christians celebrate the birth of Jesus?)

But...

Here's the real scoop on candy canes (http://www.snopes.com/holidays/christmas/candycane.asp) (I love Snopes!).

I would suggest that you tell your daughter that her teacher was mistaken, tell her the true story, and let her know that her teacher isn't always right! I would also suggest printing out this or some other authoritative text telling the story of how candy canes came to be and sending it to the teacher--letting her know (politely of course) that she is mistaken and that you're sure she doesn't want to give the children erroneous information!

[EverLastingGodStopper]

Copy the OP into an email and send it to: americansunited@au.org with a note saying that Janice Rael thinks this might be a violation of church-state separation that falls under AU's new "Stop Religious Discrimination" Campaign. The Delaware Valley AU chapter (http://www.dvau.org) recently wrote about this campaign in our December 2004 newsletter. The story is below. Send your email to AU soon. Like, now.

-Janice
Del Val AU to Join AU’s “Stop Religious Discrimination� Campaign

Americans United for Separation of Church and State has kicked off a new initiative to end religious discrimination, and the Delaware Valley chapter is focusing its efforts on specific assignments.

State and Federal governments are increasingly using religious organizations to provide social services such as job training and substance abuse treatment. These arrangements often violate the law and divide people along religious lines. Join with us in bringing these violations to an end. Americans United for Separation of Church and State is leading the fight to ensure that government funding of religious organizations does not compromise constitutional principles.

The Delaware Valley Chapter is joining in the fight. DVAU affiliates will be encouraged to investigate and seek out violations to bring to the attention of Americans United. The campaign will focus on identifying discrimination in employment and against those in need, religious coercion, public subsidy for religious programs, religious activities in publicly financed buildings and religious set-asides.

Examples include:

· Requiring employees to be of a particular religion or to sign a Statement of Faith,

· Limiting services to persons of a particular religion,

· Requiring people to attend a religious event as a condition of receiving services,

· Using tax dollars to fund some or all of a religious program,

· Using public funds to build or renovate a building used for religious instruction or worship,

· And a government agency making certain funds available to religious organizations only.

Americans United is asking members to report violations to AU by phone, fax, email or snail mail. If you are concerned that you will suffer consequences for reporting a violation, tell AU, and your identity will be kept confidential.

...

Now, this campaign is more about faith-based funding than about being preached to by a public employee, but proselytization in public schools is a form of religious coercion. So email AU now. Public school teachers can not teach religious ideas to students.

[lisarea]

Well, if you're not willing to consider making any complaints, you really don't have much recourse, aside from talking to your daughter. I want to make it very clear that I'm not saying that you absolutely should make a complaint, because you're right that it could put you at risk, and your primary concern is the welfare of your family.

Do you have proof that it was your son's teacher who filed the CPS complaint? I thought the complainants were kept confidential. (This backfires, obviously, but you can see where identification might create a chilling environment for those who genuinely suspect abuse.) You're correct that the punishments for filing false claims are probably pretty minor, but maybe you could approach it from the perspective of her position as a teacher, rather than from the CPS direction. That is, if she did report you, in her capacity as a public employee, based on political and religious differences, you might get a better response. Don't bring it up with CPS. Bring it up with the schools.

Was the complaint specific? Did she cite anything that would indicate that it was based on her bias? Are complainants required to provide any reasoning for their claims?

This is a different teacher, though, right? Have you broached the subject with her at all? Maybe you could be a little vague about your personal beliefs, and simply try to address your concerns in a broader sense--not tell her specifically that you're an atheist, but that you believe that religious instruction belongs in the home. It's none of her business what religion you are or are not.

If you don't want to confront the teacher directly, you could go over her head. It's not an honest misunderstanding. Public school teachers know that religious indoctrination is not within the scope of their jobs, and if they don't, they're idiots and shouldn't be teaching at all. So, if you're uncomfortable addressing it with her, I wouldn't hesitate to go over her head, to the principal and/or the superintendant. It probably would get back to her, of course, but she might be a little more careful in the way she approached you if she knew she were being watched. And be sure to cite your previous experience with intimidation by a teacher as the reason that you're uncomfortable approaching her directly.

[Jehanne]

Do you have proof that it was your son's teacher who filed the CPS complaint? I thought the complainants were kept confidential.

"Yes" and "yes". While child abuse reports are confidential, my son told us what had happened, and it was very obvious to begin with, because we were not getting along with his teacher for a few months, as she was trying "to pin" a ADHD diagnose on our son.

Was the complaint specific? Did she cite anything that would indicate that it was based on her bias? Are complainants required to provide any reasoning for their claims?

I do not learn of the "complaint" until 30 calendar days after the report was filed. Fortunately, my son (due to chance) had a check-up with his pediatrician the very next day after the report was made, and the pediatrician documented everything (including, forensic charts). According to the pediatrician's report, he had a "1 by 2 cm" scrape on his left temple, which, when the CPS report came out had "grown" to a "1 by 3 inch" scrape.

This is a different teacher, though, right? Have you broached the subject with her at all? Maybe you could be a little vague about your personal beliefs, and simply try to address your concerns in a broader sense--not tell her specifically that you're an atheist, but that you believe that religious instruction belongs in the home. It's none of her business what religion you are or are not.

We are homeschooling now for a semester, and are not planning any additional contacts with her. My son will be going to a different school this fall.

If you don't want to confront the teacher directly, you could go over her head. It's not an honest misunderstanding. Public school teachers know that religious indoctrination is not within the scope of their jobs, and if they don't, they're idiots and shouldn't be teaching at all. So, if you're uncomfortable addressing it with her, I wouldn't hesitate to go over her head, to the principal and/or the superintendant. It probably would get back to her, of course, but she might be a little more careful in the way she approached you if she knew she were being watched. And be sure to cite your previous experience with intimidation by a teacher as the reason that you're uncomfortable approaching her directly.

We wrote a letter to the superintendant and a school board member, neither of whom responded to us. I suspect that the city's lawyers got involved.

[DougP]

I would talk to a lawyer about what legal action to take. Or at least talk to the lawyer about what you should do if you bring it up and you are once again charged with child abuse. That way you have your bases covered. I certainly wouldnt stand for my child being taught those things.

-Doug

[Jehanne]

I would talk to a lawyer about what legal action to take. Or at least talk to the lawyer about what you should do if you bring it up and you are once again charged with child abuse. That way you have your bases covered. I certainly wouldnt stand for my child being taught those things.

-Doug

At $100 a hour, attorney fees "blows" our budget. Besides, the report was "not founded" which means that it will be destroyed in five years. And, we are sending our two youngest children (we have four kids) to a private kindergarten when they reach that age. So, if all goes well, we will never see (or hear) from that teacher again! :) But, the “lesson learned� is to be wary of the power of “mandatory reporters� and CPS! Frankly, I think that defendants who went before the Medieval Inquisitions had more “legal protection� against false accusations!