A screenshot of the writing assignment asking students to argue the Nazi case.
Parents were horrified when it was revealed that a teacher at Albany High School in New York was making students in her sophomore English classes argue that ?Jews are evil? as part of an exercise in persuasive writing.
TheBlaze?s Tiffany Gabbay explained the assignment and its wider implications:
?You must argue that Jews are evil, and use solid rationale from government propaganda to convince me of your loyalty to the Third Reich!? read the description on the assignment, which the school?superintendent said reflects the kind of sophisticated writing expected of students under the new Common Core standards and was meant to hone students? persuasive argument abilities.
According to the Times Union, which broke the story, the teacher was not in class Friday and has been placed on leave.
District Superintendent Marguerite Vanden Wyngaard held a news conference apologizing for the assignment, but said it was too early to determine what punishment the teacher will receive.
It could apparently range from a letter of reprimand to termination.
?You asked a child to support the notion that the Holocaust was justified, that?s my struggle,? she said. ?It?s an illogical leap for a student to make.?
Albany Public Schools Superintendent Marguerite Vanden Wyngaard speaks about an assignment asking students to create a persuasive argument blaming Jews for the problems of Nazi Germany during a news conference on Friday, April 12, 2013, in Albany, N.Y.? (AP Photo/Mike Groll)
The school district has not named the teacher, who has been described as a veteran who likes to ?challenge? students. ?Monday?s assignment was brought to administrators? attention by a horrified parent, before making national news.? Some of the children reportedly refused to write the essay, but others were concerned it would irreparably affect their grade.
?I was putting it off because I didn?t want to think about it and I didn?t want to say anything bad about Jewish people,? 16-year-old Emily Karandy remarked. ?We thought it would make more sense if we were Jews arguing against Nazis.?
She said she felt ?horrible? when she turned it in.
New York City Councilman David Greenfield was one of many to call for the unnamed teacher?s resignation, concluding: ?The teacher responsible for coming up with and assigning students with this task must be held accountable for attempting to indoctrinate children with anti-Semitic beliefs?Quite obviously, this teacher lacks the judgment and common sense necessary to have a position of such great responsibility and is clearly not fit to return to the classroom.?
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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