NBC 4 Washington reported
Critical Race Theory has come under fire in Fairfax County, Virginia,
where a High School English class assignment was given called "Privilege Bingo."
The main concern in the report is naming "Military Kid" as "Privileged."
(I suspect the authors really meant "Military Brat." Talk about stereotyping
people.) However, I get the concern because in High School there are military
kids -- but as I reviewed the list there were other entries that were overlooked
and are just as concerning.
My first concern is the premise. It seems implied that
being on the "Privilege" list is somehow bad or at the very least,
something that should cause a student some level of shame.
those not on the "Privilege" list are somehow second class citizens
and have some unfair disadvantage.
As I read through the list of 24 entries:
Ten of them are (mostly) out of the hands of the students. As I see it, they are:
Native English Speaker, Both Parents Went to College, Drive/Get Driven to School,
White, Parents are Married, Born in Country of Residence, Military Kid, Have Your
Own Bedroom, Never lost a loved one, and Male.
Students have some control over the rest of the entries. Of particular
concern is that being "Christian" is labeled as "Privileged." This smells of
anti-Christian bigotry. Notice no other religion or absence of religious beliefs
are singled out for the "Privilege" label.
If being "White" or "Male" is defined as "Privileged", then it follows
that being non-white and non-male automatically puts one at a disadvantage.
I disagree with that premise. Students are all in the same classrooms, receive the same
instruction, are given the same assignments, take the same tests, and are hopefully
graded the same.
A few questions I have are:
Who comes up with an assignment like this?
What is its purpose?
Might those on the Privilege list be put on the defensive?
Might those not on the Privilege list feel resentful of those who are?
I point out, this isn't even a Political Science or Current Events class. This
is an English class.
Of more interest to me than the list, is how the moderators would lead
discussions of the privilege of being Male, White, Christian, etc. Yes, I'd like
to be a fly on the wall for those conversations. These days, parents are
listening in as many students are taking classes remotely from home. In fact,
that's how stories like these are coming to light. As a result, some parents
are rightfully concerned -- and speaking up.
Since this story came to light, FCPS offered an apology and has "revised
the activity." I can't help but wonder exactly what "revised" means.
As a social commentary:
Isn't teaching High Schoolers
that whites automatically have an advantage teaching racism?
that males automatically have an advantage teaching sexism?
I fail to see how labeling those who are "White", "Christian", etc.
as "Privileged" is productive and it concerns me that some lessons in schools
have students focus on that which makes them more or less "Privileged." How
about educators:
focus less on what makes students different and more on what they have in common?
spend more time focusing on the tasks at hand, like completing the next
English assignment?
In life, we all have areas where we have it better or worse than others.
Part of maturing is dealing with these realities, capitalizing on our advantages
and overcoming our disadvantages.
