School Apologizes For Teacher Instructing Students To Write Nazi Propaganda For Assignment

http://www.addictinginfo.org/2013/04/13/school-apologizes-for-teacher-instructing-students-to-write-nazi-propaganda-for-assignment/

In what may have been a massive misjudgement, a teacher in Albany, New York told students to write a persuasive argument saying that Jews are evil and to “convince me of your loyalty” to Hitler’s regime. The Albany school has issued an official apology for the actions of the instructor, whose name was not reported.

UPI reports:

One-third of the students refused to complete the assignment, the Albany (N.Y.) Times Union reported.

Albany Superintendent Marguerite Vanden Wyngaard issued a statement apologizing for the assignment.  “I would apologize to our families,” she said. “I don’t believe there was malice or intent to cause any insensitivities to our families of Jewish faith.”

Although this assignment doesn’t seem particularly well-thought out and is extremely insensitive, I’d like to give the teacher at least part of the benefit of the doubt. Writing from that position would be an educational experience, as it would require putting yourself in a position — inside a Nazi propagandist’s mind — that most people can’t imagine. While that doesn’t excuse the insensitivity of the assignment, it does make it easier to understand how an instructor could think that was an appropriate thing to tell the children in their charge to do.

That’s with the assumption, of course, that the teacher is a normal American (whatever that is) and doesn’t support or endorse Nazism/the Third Reich in any way, shape or form.

why would she/he pick Nazism, there are more American pro and con scenarios they could have used that were a direct influence on Americans today, i think a piece on the racial situation of this country it is here and has not gone away since it's inception, letting those not being prejudicial referred to and looked on as still 2nd rate persons, while being taught how great America is, that would be the way to stop those growing up with hate they can't explain and realizing we are all God's children.

i think this teacher may have had a bad decision but even so how would kids know what thoughts Nazi kids had or for that matter adults the more i write the more ridiculous this sounds,  writers are toldto write what you know about, because it's impossible to write about something you know nothing about.