In recent years, many parents, taxpayers and fellow educators have grown increasingly concerned about the direction of public education. Real concern deepened during COVID and the online learning or lack thereof, when learning loss became undeniable and academic priorities appeared to shift.

Today, the push for ideologies and beliefs is evident all around our country. Reading and math proficiency rates across the country remain well below where they should be, and many students continue to struggle to regain lost ground. These outcomes should give all of us pause. What are the goals of public education? Why do public schools exist?

Public schools exist to provide all students, regardless of backgrounds, with a strong foundation in reading, writing, mathematics, history, science and civics, grounded in facts, not feelings. Education requires critical thinking, looking at multiple perspectives and giving students time and space to come up with their own ideas and beliefs.

Teachers should be giving facts from all angles and allowing kids to put their own points together. Schools are not meant to serve as platforms for political activism, nor are classrooms intended to reflect the personal ideologies of individual educators.

The organized walkouts or protests around the nation, and including School District 51, on January 30 open much discussion around quality educational experiences. While educators have the right to personal beliefs and civic engagement on their own time, be it weekends or evenings, they are also public employees funded by taxpayers and entrusted with the education of hundreds of students. The outward display of dehumanizing authority is the opposite of what educators want and need in a classroom.

School District 51 policies are explicit regarding this.

Policy GBIA prohibits political activity during the workday or any encroachment on instructional time resulting from such activity.

Policy IMB restricts the use of controversial materials not approved by the district and requires educators to exercise sound professional judgment while encouraging consideration of multiple perspectives.

Policy GCMEF reminds educators that each teacher represents the school system as a whole and that the public often judges the entire profession by the actions of one individual.

Policy GBEB requires staff to uphold high professional, ethical and moral standards and explicitly prohibits the distortion or suppression of subject material to promote personal views.

These policies are not hidden or optional. Teachers review and acknowledge them annually through required training. They exist to protect students, families and the integrity of public education.

Have teachers breeched policies? Maybe, maybe not. What is true, is that regardless of what the students thought or knew, all students in schools suffered a loss of learning as a result. Some classrooms had only 7 students. Staff had to be pulled in order to make sure all were safe. Freedom of speech and standing in solidarity with your beliefs is a right, and to staff I say, “Do it on your own time, NOT school mandated time.”

The language displayed on protest signage and chants reported – such as “F* ICE” – raises serious questions about professionalism and role modeling. Regardless of one’s personal political views, such messaging does not align with the standards expected of educators or with the responsibility of serving a diverse student population.

Thankfully, no students were harmed during the events in our community, though that has not been the case elsewhere in the country. Even so, the larger issue remains: Was this decision made in the best interest of students and their learning?

Educators often speak, and maybe rightfully so, about wanting to be treated as professionals. With that expectation comes the responsibility to act as professionals. Taking instructional time away from hundreds of students to make a political statement for a select few undermines that goal.

Every teacher should pause and reflect on why they entered this profession in the first place. Education is about developing capable, informed citizens – students who can read, write, solve complex problems, think critically, overcome challenges and form their own conclusions about the world.

If students leave a classroom knowing all of their teacher’s personal political beliefs, something has gone wrong. Teachers should not be remembered for their ideologies, but for the quality of education they provided.

My own education was rooted in academics. I had no idea the sexual preference or political stance of any of my teachers, and for that I am deeply grateful. Our students today deserve the same commitment to learning, to professionalism, and to putting education first.

In closing, do some research and look up Mao. How did he use students and children? The parallels may surprise you.

Christy Anderson is a K–3 elementary educator with 26 years of experience in Mesa County Valley School District 51. She was formerly an active member of the local teachers’ union, and she now serves as an ambassador for the Professional Association of Colorado Educators (PACE). In addition to being an advocate for students and teachers, she is a parent and a local Realtor for Bray and Co. Real Estate.