Are Public Schools Anti-Parent?

Some public schools try to turn children against theirdisturbing anti-parent campaign by many public
parents with scary classroom stories or lessons aboutschools across the country:
child abuse. Public school authorities have increasingly"I first became aware of the protective behaviors
decided that they are children's first line of defensecurriculum when a mother called me to tell me of an
against child abuse. This new attitude falls under whatexperience she had with her daughter. Her child, an
is now known as "protective behavior curriculum."elementary schoolgirl, had come home in tears. When
The assumptions behind this curriculum are thatshe saw that her mother was home and waiting for
every child needs to be warned about and preparedher, she rushed to her in relief. AI wasn't sure you'd
for possible dangers of verbal, physical, and sexualbe here, she told her mother. Her mother reassured
abuse because allegedly every child is a potentialher that she would always be there for her. In school
victim, not only of strangers but of his or her ownthat day, her daughter told her, her class had
family.discussed "bad" touching including spanking.
Increasingly, school authorities instruct teachers to"In the course of the discussion, children had been
ask children questions about their parents' behaviorencouraged to share with the teachers and
and actions toward them at home. The questionsclassmates whether they had ever been touched in
amount to asking kids to spy on their parents andthat way and the girl had said that her mother had
report incidents that make them feel "uncomfortable."spanked her. The children were also told that people
Some school authorities use such tales by children towho engaged in bad touching would be taken away
investigate or file charges of child abuse againstand put in jail. For the rest of the school day the girl
parents who often did no more than yell at theirwas terrified that her mother who had spanked her
children or spank them lightly.would now be taken away and locked up for her bad
In effect, to allegedly protect children, some schooltouching."
authorities now consider all parents as potentialParents, it might be wise to periodically ask your
abusers, use children to invade parents' privacy, orchildren if their teachers ask them personal questions
make kids afraid of their parents. Often, children areabout your family or how you discipline your children.
disturbed and emotionally traumatized by theTurning children into spies against their parents or
insinuations school authorities put into their heads.making them afraid of their parents is not what
The following incident described by Charles J. Sykes,parents pay school taxes for.
in his book "Dumbing Down Our Kids," illustrates this