1. A South Carolina high school forced an AP English teacher to scrap a unit on Between The World and Me, the award-winning memoir by Ta-Nehisi Coates
The teacher was accused of BREAKING THE LAW & trying to indoctrinate students on racial issues
Follow along if interested
🧵
2. The AP teacher who was targeted, Mary Wood, is good at her job.
In 2022, 82.6% of Wood's students received a 3 or higher — a passing score — on AP English
Globally, the pass rate is just 55.7%
Mary Wood teaches English literature at Chapin High School in Chapin, South Carolina. Wood, who has been teaching for over a decade, offers a variety of honors courses, including Advanced Placement (AP) English Language and Composition. AP courses give high school students the opportunity to earn college credit. To get credit, students must receive a passing score on an exam produced by the College Board, the same organization that produces the SAT.
3. Since AP courses are intended to be college-level, they include more sophisticated texts than are typically assigned in high school.
The AP itself, in the course description, says texts with controversial viewpoints on a variety of issues, including race, are appropriate
4. So Wood assigned Coates' memoir, which won the National Book Award and was a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize
She also assigned writings by Donald Trump, Malcolm Gladwell, Lou Gehrig, and many others
Mary Wood teaches English literature at Chapin High School in Chapin, South Carolina. Wood, who has been teaching for over a decade, offers a variety of honors courses, including Advanced Placement (AP) English Language and Composition. AP courses give high school students the opportunity to earn college credit. To get credit, students must receive a passing score on an exam produced by the College Board, the same organization that produces the SAT.
5. Wood assigned Coates' book in 2022 and received no complaints. But this year, it prompted complaints from two students.
She also showed two YouTube videos on racism and how historic discrimination can still create obstacles today
6. In February, after Wood showed the videos, two students complained
One wrote that the videos "made me feel uncomfortable" & "ashamed to be a Caucasian"
The student also complained the videos were "antiquated history" and said race is "too heavy" a topic to discuss in school
8. The other student wrote that the videos made them "incredibly uncomfortable." The student was "in shock" that the videos were shown, claiming "a teacher talking about systemic racism is illegal in South Carolina."
This student also said Coates was a "Malcolm X fanatic"
9. The same student accused Wood of trying to "subtly indoctrinate our class under the guise that she is trying to 'get us to think about different points of view.'"
Mary Wood teaches English literature at Chapin High School in Chapin, South Carolina. Wood, who has been teaching for over a decade, offers a variety of honors courses, including Advanced Placement (AP) English Language and Composition. AP courses give high school students the opportunity to earn college credit. To get credit, students must receive a passing score on an exam produced by the College Board, the same organization that produces the SAT.
10. In response, school administrators immediately took the side of the two students and the school board member.
Wood was called into a meeting and told that assigning Coates' book was illegal and "we need you to cease this assignment."
12. According to school officials, Wood’s assignment was “illegal” because it violated a provision of South Carolina’s budget law, known as proviso 1.105
Mary Wood teaches English literature at Chapin High School in Chapin, South Carolina. Wood, who has been teaching for over a decade, offers a variety of honors courses, including Advanced Placement (AP) English Language and Composition. AP courses give high school students the opportunity to earn college credit. To get credit, students must receive a passing score on an exam produced by the College Board, the same organization that produces the SAT.
14. There is really no explanation of why Coates book would be considered "illegal" or why the school didn't follow its written policies regarding challenges to curricular materials.
Mary Wood teaches English literature at Chapin High School in Chapin, South Carolina. Wood, who has been teaching for over a decade, offers a variety of honors courses, including Advanced Placement (AP) English Language and Composition. AP courses give high school students the opportunity to earn college credit. To get credit, students must receive a passing score on an exam produced by the College Board, the same organization that produces the SAT.
15. If you value FACTS and ACCOUNTABILITY journalism, please do not rely on this website for information.
It is controlled by a billionaire with little interest in either
Subscribe to Popular Information and get this info directly
It's free to sign up
Judd Legum
Alex Chaffee