Texas 7th Grader Teacher Told Me to Admit God Is Not Real

This teacher went way to far. If someone does not believe in GOD, that's their opinion, i don't judge them. I still am friends with them, and don't think of them in any other way, we don't discuss it period. Trying to turn someone into something they are not, is wrong on so many levels in my book. They took away the star spangled banner at schools already, kids can't have a Halloween costumes any more because it affect other kids that don't believe in dressing up for this day. They tried, and are still trying to remove the GOD name from the dollar bills. Now this ! How far is too far. Poor kid, she was forced to say she doesn't believe in something she was raised to believe. On top of that she was told if she believed in GOD to prove it ? Here is the video and article.

Link to article

Calling bullshit right here.. Having a teacher in Texas of all places do this? We already are having problems further north with Teachers trying to enforce Christianity in schools.. Wtf are you even talking about? Star spangled banner? Well of course they should remove god from the dollar bill.. Not because of the lack of belief it self, but you can argue it's the government promoting a specific religion.. Which is a violation of the first amendment..

If this is true, it was a poor choice of phrases to use in the assignment. Keeping religion out of the public classroom means avoid the subject in courses that do not demand the discussion. This just invite controversy, especially in an elementary or secondary school.

I'm a teacher and I know my audience. This teacher should have done the same.

Believe what you wanna believe.

this story is sorely lacking in details.

what is the teacher's side of things? what was the point of the lesson? what does the administration have to say?

God and chemistry don't mix !

Hey look, another sensationalized tabloid media story I don't believe for one second.

Insider Fox News, I'd rather have another source. If true, teacher should not have done it.

The whole "In God We Trust" money bullshit was added in the 1950's. That didn't exist when the country was first created.

Pretty bad

You shouldn't need to claim you believe in God, or any other religious deity, to avoid being kicked out of class or school.

You shouldn't need to claim not to believe in God, or any other religious deity, to avoid being kicked out of class or school.

Your religion or lack off is your personal business.

Sounds like something her parents told her to say.

Teachers know full well that they have to walk on egg shells in bumpkin rural America in fear of being ostracized for either sticking to secularism in public institutions or even just being perceived as non-Christian. Just go to YouTube channel National Center for Science Education, great stories of teachers having to put up with Christian activism in school on all levels (from parents to the text books); I'm sure that parents are prepping students to either lie or go to school and make issues in order to combat science and secularism in schools, it's a never ending battle with them.

Seems to me too the girl still fails to realize the assignment. It isn't to deny God but realize that god isn't something you can factually assert. Hence, that's why it's faith. Of course that wasn't part of the assignment, the assignment was to discern from things that are factual from things that are opinions.

Anybody regardless of their religious stance or lack their of should have been able to do this assignment without a problem as far as I see it; did you see what the assignment was? Identifying factual, opinionated, and commonplace assertions. Something like "There is a God" is a commonplace assertion. Something like Michael Jordan's career average stats or George Washington was the first President of the United States under the Constitution would be facts. Something like "manatees are the ugliest sea creature" is an opinion.

I imagine the teacher at most challenged the student in that she cannot definitively prove God is real. The purpose of such isn't to deny God exists but to show you can't prove it either. The reason to push this isn't over the issue of God but for the student to discern between fact and commonplace assertions and opinions.

I'm beginning to agree with what I heard the other day, teaching kids about creationism IS a form of minor child abuse if it does indeed put them at a competitive disadvantage by instilling them with irrational fear...

I think a good Christian parent that wants to do right by there kid will try to best explain the discrepancy between their beliefs in God, Christ, and the importance of the teachings of the tenants of their particular faith, and how they differ from the many world-views, so the kid at least knows there's different worldview perspectives and can adapt to live in both worlds would be best. Whereas if kids are taught that the reason there's a discrepancy is motivated in anti-religion they're going to end up thinking science is out to disprove the 6000 year old creation myth and that evolution is against the Bible and science is only out to pervert mankind and have a deep distrust for education and institutions of learning... like basically today's modern day conservatives are symptomatic of this failure to discern.

I agree with ssubzero. Sounds like a fishy or sensationalized story. If true, that's a major overstep on that teacher's authority, but most of these so called incidents tend to be exaggerated.

you obviously forget that the US was founded as a christian nation :P

Yeesh... Science can be taught in school without having to piss on people's beliefs. Children, of all people. What's the point of bullying someone like that?

keepin' it real, I see XD

In Texas?
Are you sure?

If your not questioning everything that is said in The Bible, than you will never truly enjoy life. My life has been so much better when I decided it was time to boot my beliefs out the door, and appreciate life for what it is.

The point of the excercise was to learn to differ between facts, opinions and assertions. Which is paramount to learning critical thinking.

God is real would fall under assertion. An assertion is a positive statement. An assertion can be correct. Nowhere did they make her admit that god is not real.

That does not seem like a good class for a student of any age.

@LexLas: is there any actual proof of this? Has the teacher admitted this? If no to either, then I call bs

@The_Last_Ride: This was leaked yesterday, and today there was another article on it. I'm sure it will all leak out very soon. I don't think they would use actors as judges, a real 7th grader and all just for this. Soon enough, patience Obi-wan

i will trust this if there is evidence for it

While a conservative state it's true....that doesn't mean everyone is conservative in the state.

The story was on Fox News so I didn't bother to read further. Anytime you see a link to Fox or MSNBC you can move on without reading as it's most likely bullshit.

It's quite possible. I live in Arizona. The Democrats here are trying woo my wife into becoming one just because she was an immigrant. They have no idea she's far more conservative than I am.

Like most places in North America, the cities tend to be a lot more socially forward than the rural locations.

Austin, Texas for instance is incredibly secular and home to one of the bigger Atheist organizations (can't recall the name for the life of me).

And just look at the most recent Canadian election. Manitoba for instance, all of Winnipeg voted either for a Liberal or NDP representative, while most of rural Manitoba voted for Conservative representatives.

The Texas people feel offended.

Anybody see those texas textbooks that were trying to make slavery seem not that bad?

They were 'workers', not slaves. Get it right.