https://thefederalist.com/2021/06/18/pro-critical-race-theory-teachers-reward-extra-credit-to-students-who-testify-on-anti-crt-bill/
A group of Rhode Island teachers in favor of implementing critical race theory in their schools offered extra credit to their students who agreed to testify on an anti-critical race theory state bill.
Documents obtained by Parents Defending Education show that at least two educators across different departments at Barrington High School in Barrington, Rhode Island offered five extra points to students to be used on their next exams if they chose to verbally testify or offer a written comment on the legislation. Emails also show the educators praised students who chose to submit testimony.
The bill prohibits teaching certain divisive concepts that have infiltrated government schools at the taxpayers’ expense, as well as some private schools. Those concepts, which make up the bedrock of the racist so-called critical race theory, include “an individual, by virtue of their race or sex, is inherently racist, sexist, or oppressive, whether consciously or unconsciously,” “an individual, by virtue of their race or sex, bears responsibility for actions committed in the past by other members of the same race or sex,” and “meritocracy or traits such as hard work ethic are racist or sexist, or were created by a particular race to oppress another race.”
The social studies teacher who created the original email “strongly urged” her students to partake in the hearing while offering her own left-leaning commentary on the legislation, which she said would prevent her from teaching “the unit on Race or Gender.”
The teacher, Alison Grieco, claimed she believes “every opinion is valuable in my classroom as long as it is respectful” and that “good civics discourse only happens when multiple sides of an issue is discussed” — but she made those comments only after clearly opposing the legislation. “This bill essentially states that there should be no discussion of race or gender in classrooms,” she lamented.
Although Grieco also claims she always encourages her students to involve themselves in the political process, saying she “[doesn’t] care if they testify for, against or no position (you must select one of those three options when testifying and I have gone over all three with students),” she also wrote in an email that she encourages students to testify on legislation “that would relate to them.” The examples she listed are all on Democrats’ wish lists: “lowering voting age, funding for mandatory civics education, and this bill.”
