The N-Word, Should it be in Schools?

Luke Steiner
ls290516@ohio.edu

What would happen if the N-Word was illegal to say? That is exactly what Ohio University Alum, Kyle Bowser, did with his direction of the short film called "Trial by Jury: A Case of the N-Word." Bowser had an incredibly interesting interactive session at the Athena on Saturday about his film.

The Film
The film, Trial by Jury: A Case of the N-Word, was a very interesting film at the Athena. Director Kyle Bowser focused on the conflict of the usage of the N-Word in a fourth-grade classroom, and if it should be used by a teacher in the classroom. In the film, there is a young student that comes home to her parents and asked if "negro" is a bad word or not. Her parents had conflicting opinions if the word was bad for the fourth-grade student to know. It turns out that the student's teacher taught the word to the whole class during a Civil Rights lesson. The film brings up the question, should teachers be teaching classes these types of things, even if it used educationally?

Source: Playbill.com

In Favor of the Teacher
In this interactive experience, 12 participants were taken outside of the theater to act as a jury in a court case. The crowd that was not included in the jury debated what side they would pick. Many of the people that decided to support the teacher did so on the premise that there is a great chance that the student has already learned the word before reaching the fourth grade. They believed that the teacher has the right to do something like that because they are trained professionals with the ability to do that.

In Favor of the Family
Some people supported the family's decision on the premise that the teachers or school do not have the right to teach something like that without the consent of the family. Those in favor of the family decided that it was just like teaching sexual education or religion in classes, there should be a chance for the family to take their child out of the class if they are being taught something that the family feels is not correct. Some people decided the parents should teach them about things that might not be socially correct.

What I Think?
I understand both aspects of the people that may be in favor of either the family or the teacher. I believe that the family should be able to make the decision on if they would like to teach their child about those types of things. I believe that it also refers back to the ethics codes that we talked about in class, with minimizing harm. The teacher should do what benefits most of the students. The school should have a utilitarian approach to a situation like this so that most parents can be happy.

Journalist's Job
Journalists can do the same thing that a parent would. They have to ability to make a decision on what they believe is right, but they also have to follow their media outlet's code of ethics.