H.S. English Essay Question: "If you knocked your brother down, would you urinate in his mouth?"

[cali]

Teacher Disciplined For Unusual Creative Writing Assignment
School Says Teacher Gave Students Inappropriate Assignment
POSTED: 2:59 pm EDT September 18, 2009
UPDATED: 6:19 pm EDT September 18, 2009


WOLFEBORO, N.H. -- An English teacher is being closely monitored at Kingswood Regional High School after administrators said she assigned an inappropriate essay topic to her students.

Jack Robertson, superintendent of the Governor Wentworth Regional School District, said the teacher asked students to respond to the question: "If you knocked your brother down, would you urinate in his mouth?"

The question was posed as part of creative writing assignment to a class of about 12 or 13 seniors. Robertson said the question was designed to help motivate students to improve their writing, but he said the teacher lacked good judgment in assigning the question.

Administrators found out about the question after a student approached another teacher for help with the assignment. That teacher told the school principal about it.

School officials said the assignment didn't have to do with a book the students were reading. The district said she's a good teacher with a track record of motivating her students.

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http://www.wmur.com/education/20990241/detail.html

[bbinacan]

1. All I have to say is

:wtf:

[BlooInBloo]

2. Whoa. Hardcore.

[DCKit]

17. Kinky, too. But I'm not judging. Ewwwwwww. n/t

[d_b]

3. maybe?

[TwilightGardener]

12. LOL

[Bicoastal]

4. I think this was pretty apropos, considering their in-class reading...

..."A Treasury of GG Allin Lyrics."

[varelse]

31. That was close... there was a beverage in play there >:(

my poor keyboard... will I *never* learn not to drink while DU'in?

[mitchum]

5. Inappropriate; I always ask, "Would you piss in your brother's ass if his guts were on fire?"

She must be a new teacher

[Fla_Democrat]

6. not even if his teeth were on fire

but there's a little animosity between us. go figure. :shrug:

[Liberal_in_LA]

7. WTF kind of question is that?

[cali]

8. An essay question. I thought I made that clear.

and yes, that was a snark response.

[Fumesucker]

9. No, but I used to spit on him..

Hold him down by kneeling on his shoulders and then let spit drip out of my mouth onto his face. :)

[renie408]

10. Is that some kind of universal thing that brothers do to each other??

My husband's older brothers used to do that to him. That stuff can really color a relationship later in life, let me tell you.

[Fumesucker]

14. Eh, we're both in our fifties now and we are very close..

He was seriously hyperactive and used to torment me too so it wasn't entirely one sided.

I still have a blue spot on my leg where he jabbed me with a pencil once.

[ashling]

15. When I did that I never let the spit actually hit his face

That's just gross!

[renie408]

11. Wow...I guess a kid really WOULD have to be pretty darned creative to write an essay based on

that question.

[NJCher]

13. stupid

What kind of essay question is that? It can be answered "yes" or "no."

Essay questions are supposed to be open-ended.


Cher

[old mark]

16. Which brother - the Republican or the Democrat?

Makes all the difference.....


mark

[Selatius]

18. Methinks the teacher grew up in a stifling home environment is subconsciously rebelling.

Just wild speculation, though.

[ashling]

19. That's nothing - My Junior year English teacher suggested this essay :

"Richard Nixon should be elected President because ..."


Of course, I wrote "Hubert Humphrey should be elected President because.."

She told me she decided to vote for Humphrey because of my essay .... do you think she was hitting on me?
:rofl:

[JBoy]

20. Perhaps that teacher has a "going problem".

[Quantess]

21. Sounds like she has deep-seated frustration and unhappiness in her job

It sounds like self-sabotage.

[asdjrocky]

22. I like any question that provokes so many strange and nervous responses as

this question did here.

I like the question, and I would think nothing of assigning this to a group of smart and inquisitive seniors.

Just imagine the class discussion!

For me I see this as a question of compassion. I'd rather talk about the true essence of the question, than rather the question is appropriate or not. The real question is what interests me.

[cali]

24. I didn't see the responses in this thread as particularly nervous

and there are so many truly thought provoking questions that can be asked. this wasn't one of them- just logistically. The premise that you can simply knock someone over and piss in his mouth is ludicrous. Either you tie up said sibling and somehow pry his mouth open- or you knock them out. Yeah, the question has shock value but it doesn't have much else.

[asdjrocky]

26. Then I guess it's just me.

I didn't take the question so literally. I saw the question as asking, once you've beaten someone, isn't that enough? I think it's about boasting.

Perhaps I just try to read more into some things than others do, it's a curse.

[BlooInBloo]

25. For fuck's sake. It's a stupid ass question and everybody knows it.

Damn different-just-for-the-sake-of-being-different fools.

[asdjrocky]

27. Man, are you always this angry, or do I just get to you?

[BlooInBloo]

32. Neither.

[TexasObserver]

23. And for extra credit, "What color bandanna would you stick in which pocket for that?"

[undeterred]

28. Sexist question, since girls aren't equipped to aim urine as well as boys.

:hide:

[burning rain]

29. The best answer is one that raises the ante.

Something like, "Yeah, but only after I screw his socks off and donkey punch him."

[cali]

30. OK, I can't stop giggling over that.

[burning rain]

34. Then you must be a terrible person.

It's great to meet you! :hi:

[BlooInBloo]

33. I don't know what a donkey punch is, but I suspect that's for the best.

[burning rain]

39. Maybe you just don't remember. They have that effect.

:evilgrin:

[seabeyond]

38. exactly. the teacher is asking for more. nt

[seabeyond]

35. she doesnt think much of her student. appealing to the lowest of who we are

to gain their interest.

if you have low expectation of your student, then that is what you will be given

she could have easily found an interesting topic that didnt resort to crudeness. all she did was encourage like behavior and essays will be turned in with the crudest of language

[and-justice-for-all]

36. What the hell kind of question is that?! nt

[redqueen]

37. WTF?

I guess we have shock jocks, so why not shock teachers. Still... ugh.