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Texas teachers give ‘most likely to become a terrorist’ award to 13-year-old

Dalek

Member
Texas teachers give ‘most likely to become a terrorist' award to 13-year-old

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Seventh-grader Lizeth Villanueva has been in her school's academic honors program for two years. She gets good grades and has never been a discipline problem. Yet on Tuesday, her teacher gave her a ”most likely to become a terrorist" award.

It was supposed to be a joke, part of a mock end-of-the-year awards ceremony at Anthony Aguirre Junior High in Channelview, Tex., near Houston, where a group of teachers hand certificates to students. Lizeth, 13, said her teacher ”just laughed" when she signed and handed her the certificate, just one day after the Manchester arena terrorist attack in Britain.

But Lizeth's mother Ena Hernandez didn't find the award funny at all.

”I was upset and very mad when I saw the award," Hernandez told The Washington Post. ”I was surprised because my daughter has been doing well in the honors program."

Lizeth, who is Salvadoran American, wasn't laughing either. Her emotion was one of shock, she said.

She said two honors classes were brought together for the fake ceremony. Other awards included ”most likely to cry for every little thing" that was given to a girl and ”most likely to become homeless" that was presented to a boy.

The three other teachers in the room laughed when the awards were handed out, according to Lizeth.

Channelview Independent School District spokesman Mark Kramer told KPRC the awards were a ”poor attempt to poke fun" and it ”wasn't well thought out."

Hernandez said the principal Eric Lathan personally apologized during a meeting at the school.

In a statement the school district said:

”The Channelview ISD Administration would like to apologize for the insensitive and offensive fake mock awards that were given to students in a classroom. Channelview ISD would like to assure all students, parents and community members that these award statements and ideals are not representative of the district's vision, mission and educational goals for our students.

”The teachers involved in this matter have been disciplined according to district policy and the incident is still under investigation."

Hernandez says she wants them fired or else ”they will continue doing the same thing."

Lizeth hasn't been back to school because she ”feels uncomfortable."

video at the link. award me "most likely to repost duplicate story" if old.
 

HStallion

Now what's the next step in your master plan?
People still don't seem to get this shit isn't funny in this day and age, teachers especially should have more of a fucking clue.
 

Akuun

Looking for meaning in GAF
Disgusting, and they should definitely be fired and prevented from working with kids ever again. Doing this shit to kids in front of large audiences? That stuff sticks in kids' heads for the rest of their lives.

Is Texas trying to out-WTF Florida?
 

tbm24

Member
I wouldn't stop until that teacher is fired. Hope the mother doesn't stop either. I've had cops called to my home because a racist neighbor told them we were harboring terrorist since me and my mom are brown. Feels awful, if it happened to my daughter I would rage like never before.
 

Massicot

Member
"Other awards included “most likely to cry for every little thing” that was given to a girl and “most likely to become homeless” that was presented to a boy."

Maybe im a soft snowflake but this comes across like straight up sanctioned bullying.
 

Volimar

Member
Humor is subjective, but sometimes you have to step back and ask yourself "Is this really a good idea?" I mean, mock "most likely to" awards are old as time but give a little thought to what you're saying with these. Bozos.
 

SolVanderlyn

Thanos acquires the fully powered Infinity Gauntlet in The Avengers: Infinity War, but loses when all the superheroes team up together to stop him.
As a teacher, I can confirm that other teachers say this kind of shit (less so the terrorist thing and more the other two awards mentioned in the article, but still) about their students behind their backs all the time. Student gossip is like the #1 subject of conversation. I always found it extremely serpentine and unprofessional. This is crossing too many lines.
 
It's fine to have joke awards but oh my god how did these pieces of shit think this was in any way appropriate. Most likely to become homeless? Really? And who sanctions terrorism jokes post 9/11 in America at school.
 

caliph95

Member
"Other awards included “most likely to cry for every little thing” that was given to a girl and “most likely to become homeless” that was presented to a boy."

Maybe im a soft snowflake but this comes across like straight up sanctioned bullying.
There is no way they didn't see that backlash coming right
No one is this stupid
This has to be some sort of plan
 

LordKasual

Banned
this is terrible

but i've been in classrooms in highschool where the rapport with the teachers was so good that this could actually have been considered hilarious

but that was years ago, so yeah.


Anyway RIP in RIP teacher's job : whenever - May 2017
 
In some scenarios, a 'most likely to become a terrorist' award might be the first step in a childs eventual radicalization due to being discriminated against over decades.
 

marrec

Banned
My school gave out mock awards like this at the end of my middle school years. Well, not like this obviously, but other joke awards. The kids and teachers were always in on it however.

How does a grown ass supposed to be professional adult how do you rationally make this decision and then go "yep, this will not cause any problems what-so-ever".

It's not even funny!
 
i mean, if it was all adults, i would get it, it's a joke, but childs can be very influenced by these kind of things, that's fucked up!

Would have been way better if all the awards were presented earlier and kids knew that it was all a joke
 

Brinbe

Member
Jesus Christ, fire them all! How do you go through all that schooling to be a teacher and still lack basic critical thinking skills. Nothing about that is funny or even close to okay.
 

Pizza

Member
As a teacher, I can confirm that other teachers say this kind of shit (less so the terrorist thing and more the other two awards mentioned in the article, but still) about their students behind their backs all the time. Student gossip is like the #1 subject of conversation. I always found it extremely serpentine and unprofessional. This is crossing too many lines.

Yeah lol never let that shit leave the teacher's lounge or just.. idk get better at your job and deal with the "problem" kids (also a teacher)
 
Normally there's a part of your brain that blares out a signal, warning you that this idea you've just come up with is likely in no way a good idea at all. I'd like to think that everyo- okay, fine, most people, have this inbuilt alarm system in their head to prevent them from carrying out dumb shit. I guess that wasn't the case here.
 

Erv

Member
Loll wth. I wish this award ceremony was filmed. I can imagine Michael Scott from the office doing this.
 

bjork

Member
My school gave out mock awards like this at the end of my middle school years. Well, not like this obviously, but other joke awards. The kids and teachers were always in on it however.

How does a grown ass supposed to be professional adult how do you rationally make this decision and then go "yep, this will not cause any problems what-so-ever".

It's not even funny!

Exactly, they had to know this would be trouble.

I remember us having some mock awards but I feel like they were way tamer. And that was back in the 80s when we were hardcore or whatever.
 

Tall4Life

Member
i mean, if it was all adults, i would get it, it's a joke, but childs can be very influenced by these kind of things, that's fucked up!

Would have been way better if all the awards were presented earlier and kids knew that it was all a joke

You really should never joke about someone being the most likely to become a terrorist...
 
Jeeeeesssusssss..... some people are just so dumb.

And yeah, teachers talk about their students all the time. If you've ever had the (dis)pleasure to meet up with a group of teachers at the bar on a Friday afternoon, you know all of them just gossip about school... Students, administrators, other teachers, all afternoon/evening. It's like because they're surrounded by high school drama all day, they naturally live for the drama.

Jesus Christ, fire them all! How do you go through all that schooling to be a teacher and still lack basic critical thinking skills. Nothing about that is funny or even close to okay.

It's texas. They probably require like 20 hours of community service to get your teaching certificate.



(j/k to texas teachers)
 

Lkr

Member
this is terrible

but i've been in classrooms in highschool where the rapport with the teachers was so good that this could actually have been considered hilarious

but that was years ago, so yeah.


Anyway RIP in RIP teacher's job : whenever - May 2017
This isn't high school, this is middle school. Much different relationship between teachers and students.
And joking in the classroom at that age and giving out an award like this are much different. Not to mention the award is "likely to become a terrorist." If it was a high school valedictorian getting the most likely to become homeless award from their favorite teacher it MIGHT be different but even then it would need context and the teacher would be risking some shit
 

Zolo

Member
"Other awards included “most likely to cry for every little thing” that was given to a girl and “most likely to become homeless” that was presented to a boy."

Maybe im a soft snowflake but this comes across like straight up sanctioned bullying.

Yeah. These seem pretty awful. Worst I got was a chatterbox award.
 

caliph95

Member
My school gave out mock awards like this at the end of my middle school years. Well, not like this obviously, but other joke awards. The kids and teachers were always in on it however.

How does a grown ass supposed to be professional adult how do you rationally make this decision and then go "yep, this will not cause any problems what-so-ever".

It's not even funny!
We had that too though i think it was for the teachers though it was i don't think it as any as bad as this and was really lighthearted jabs like "Military instructor" and stuff

This was just dumb
 
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