California teachers suspended over execution images

http://www.alertnet.org/thenews/newsdesk/N16145260.htm

16 May 2004 20:00:19 GMT

LOS ANGELES, May 16 (Reuters) - Three high school teachers in California have been placed on leave while school officials investigate complaints that images from the beheading of an American captive in Iraq were shown in their classes, according to weekend media reports.

In all three cases -- two involving San Diego-area teachers and a third in the Orange County town of Santa Ana -- education officials questioned the judgment of teachers who displayed, or allowed students in their class to display, video footage or sound from the execution of Nick Berg by Islamic militants.

Grossmont Union High School District Superintendent Terry Ryan told the San Diego Union-Tribune he was looking into whether the two teachers in his district violated policies barring the display of unsuitable material in the classroom.

"You don't have academic freedom to show unfettered violence (or) cause unfettered emotional and psychological damage to children," Ryan said in the Union-Tribune's Saturday edition.

MORE -

those teachers??? Are they out of their minds? I wouldn't watch it myself and certainly wouldn't want my grandchildren seeing something like that. They should be fired for such behavior..they've probably marked those kids for life.

In High School, back in the late 70s, we had a detective from the child abuse prevention division come in and show us autopsy photos of infants to pre-teens to teens that had been killed by their parents. Nobody called foul over that. I will say though that these are the most vivid images I can remember from any class in High School.