Amy Haywood writes for the Federalist about an interesting aspect of the school choice debate.
A new report on federally run schools for more than 66,000 military-connected children highlights concerning practices and underscores the urgent need for Congress to ensure education freedom for military parents stationed overseas.
Open the Books, a nonprofit organization dedicated to providing transparency in government spending, released “Schools for Radicals” last week, a report delving into an official Department of Defense Education Activity (DODEA) teacher training. The training revealed classroom technology, such as Google Classroom and Pear Deck, have the capabilities to allow educators to monitor students’ emotions throughout the day and to serve as an archive for personal data, which is different from a student’s official record.
The report also reveals that, as the result of collaboration between the Modern Military Association of America and DODEA, schools can update a gender-confused child’s “affirmed” name, upon student request, in 24 hours in Google Classroom, which activists have long claimed is necessary as a mental health intervention. It is unclear whether this would require parental consent.
Parents may wonder why DODEA, which the report shows has continually stymied parental and congressional inquiries into very basic information about policies and curriculum, seems to be expanding its mission to include invasive mental health interventions. Many would argue that DODEA has no business taking more control of kids, especially as it continues to avoid the accountability that parents have been demanding for decades.
Last year, the Bahrain School, a DODEA school in the Middle East, faced congressional scrutiny after parents spoke anonymously to the press to publicize the treatment they and their children had experienced from school staff. Parents claimed that the schools ignored their concerns, many teachers were unqualified, special education students were not accommodated, and course requirements were lax and did not prepare students well for reentry after a return to schools in the United States, among other serious complaints.
