A teacher in North Dakota was only suspended for three weeks for showing this video to a grade 8 health class.

This is video Jack Chick, out to guilt ‘Christian’ kids and it has no place in a classroom being shown by teacher Michael Nider who chose to behave and think he’s a preacher over his real job as a teacher. The disclaimer at GodTube says it is not meant to scare. I question that, I think it is meant to pressure and guilt teens. Chick, among other things is a master at it. Dare 2 Share is copycatting.

Bismarck Superintendent Paul Johnson says it`s not a part of the 8th grade health curriculum.

“Instructors do have some leeway in choosing supplementary curriculum materials and we wouldn`t want that to change because most of the time our instructors use very good judgment,” says Johnson.

But Johnson says teacher Michael Nider used poor judgment. He says this video clip found on godtube.com is “obviously inappropriate”. Because it violates school board policy, Johnson says Nider will be disciplined.

Johnson says Nider will get, “unpaid leave, starting tomorrow December 11 through January 1, 2008.”

Nider is also required to write letters of apology to the student and her family who filed the formal complaint, as well as to the rest of the 8th grade health class that watched the video.

“I would like to see that everybody learn from this experience, that everyone in the classroom is not the same, to protect everyone`s beliefs no matter what they may be,” says Hannah Balaban, the mother of the student, who filed a formal complaint.

If Nider does something like this again, Johnson says there will be grounds to remove him immediately, based on a letter of the event that`s going in Nider`s file.

“I`d like to see that this never happens again and I`d like to see maybe, perhaps the teachers in the school system educated a little bit more so that this type of thing doesn`t happen,” says Steve Balaban, father of one of Nider`s students.

Johnson says Nider will also be required to complete a multi-cultural course.

What is Nider’s problem? Is he able to see how inappropriate his behavior was?
Needless to say, religious right fundamentalists are playing the victim card, decrying an anti-Christian decision, really telling teachers they can’t use their position and authority (in a health class!?!) to preach to other faith and none christian students is anti-Christian? This video is anti-Christian, and represents a fundamentalist literalism no student should have to be subjected too. I doubt the irony is lost on students of faith.
If kids really want to see this, they can go to GodTube. Dare 2 Share isn’t shy about spreading their tactics around.
The video is put out by Dare 2 Share, a group published by Focus on the Family, and which promotes ‘extreme’ events. The groups headquarters is in Arvada Colorado. The groups leader has a blog and posted on the Dec. 9th shootings in Arvada. No comment on the media page of the teacher making his class watch this and his subsequent suspension.

via: Dispatches from the Culture Wars