Teacher Resigns After Showing '40 Year Old Virgin' Movie To Spanish Class

[matcom]

<snip>

LEXINGTON, Ky. --Showing the R-rated movie "The 40-Year-Old Virgin" during high school Spanish class this week resulted in suspension for the teacher, who later resigned.

Fernando Del Pino was suspended with pay Tuesday for showing the movie to students at Lexington's Tates Creek High School a day earlier, said Lisa Deffendall, spokeswoman for Fayette County Public Schools. He resigned Thursday.

Del Pino, who was hired in August, said he decided to show the film after a student brought it to class and said it "was very funny," the Lexington Herald-Leader reported Friday.

The movie is about a 40-year-old single man whose friends try to help him gain experience in sex.

R-rated movies are not to be shown to anyone younger than 17 without a parent or guardian. The movie was rated R for pervasive, explicit and crude sexual content and drug use.

Parents of Tates Creek students must give written permission for their children to watch an R-rated movie at school, according to the school's video policy. Students whose parents object must be given alternative assignments.

The policy also states that the videos/movies "must be part of the lesson plan with genuine instruction objectives."

Deffendall said the investigation was initiated because "it appears that the Tates Creek policy was not followed." The suspension letter was issued Tuesday, the same day a complaint was reported to the district, she said.

http://www.boston.com/news/odd/articles/2006/01/26/class_watches_40_year_old_virgin_movie?mode=PF

[Shell Beau]

1. It seems as though he would've watched the movie first!

Duh! Not that these kids wouldn't have seen the movie anyway somewhere else, but school really isn't the place for a movie such as that one! JMO!

[DS1]

2. That's odd

I have Gangbang Facebath 3 on a permanent loop at work, nobody seems to notice :shrug:

[matcom]

3. who says your job isn't satisfying and rewarding

:bounce:

[no name no slogan]

11. but you're not a teacher, are you?

My 11th grade English teacher let us watch "Monty Python Holy Grail" for our unit on Arthurian Legends. She was very cool.

[Brewman_Jax]

4. He should have shown the Spanish language version

in Spanish class. :shrug:

[Nikia]

9. I don't know why he would have shown it if it weren't in Spanish

At least that would have made sense as to why he showed the movie. I saw the French version of Home Alone in high school French.

[realisticphish]

5. technically

he should be reprimanded. but fucking RESIGNING? Jesus. He showed an (in their opinion) inappropriate movie. You just apologize personally to the parents, and get on with your life. Dumb thing to do, but insanely excessive reaction by the school district

[Shell Beau]

6. It is an inappropriate movie for school.

I wouldn't want my child going to school to watch any movie that is uneducational. There are exceptions of course (like if it were a reward for them doing well or something). No he shouldn't have to resign, and they would have likely seen the film regardless, but it shouldn't have been at school.

[realisticphish]

7. i've watched countless non-educational movies

yeah, it probably would have been better if they were educational, but it's a fact of life for most high schools.

And, in any case, at school i've seen Moll Flanders, Schindler's List, Les Miserables, and I saw Gettysburg and Andersonville in 5th Grade. IMHO, all educational movies; not what some would consider appropriate for schools

[Shell Beau]

8. Yeah, I understand that, I watched them too!

But there is a time and place for some things and school is not the place for 40 Year Old Virgin, but again I don't think he should have resigned!

[Nikia]

10. I saw Schindler's List in a high school history class

We had to have permission slips signed in order to see it in class. I believe that everyone in my class got their slips signed. If a parent objected though, the student would have had a different assignment. We had to write an essay on it.

[Jara sang]

12. Those ratings are guidelines not the law.