My purpose in establishing this blog is four-fold:
1. To enter public discourse on topics I care deeply about,
such as culture, politics and social policy.
2. To develop my
skill as a writer, and to model that development.
3. To respond to the
literature I am reading, and in responding, to better understand and appreciate
that literature.
4. In doing all of
the above, to leverage the wonderful new power of electronic media.
This blog contains my personal opinions. Because I am an evangelical Christian, my
opinions are informed by my personal worldview as a Christian. This occurs in every
area of my social, professional and intellectual life. Because I am a public
school teacher, however, there are ethical and legal boundaries regarding my
expression in the classroom of ideas that are specifically religious in nature.
This does not mean, however, that I may not comment upon a matter from a
Christian perspective, as long I do not seek to compel, or to coerce in any
way, my students to adopt my own perspective. This I would never want to do,
anyway. On occasion, I may also comment upon something we are discussing from a
Biblical perspective without making specific reference to the Bible. It is my
intention to honor the personal belief system of each of my students. In fact,
I encourage each student to develop his or her own beliefs, drawing from the
faith system of his or her own personal choice and also from the literature we
will cover in this class. As it happens, the literature we cover in Senior
English is, in most instances, expressly Christian (at least until the Romantic
and Modern Periods). For example, we will objectively identify elements of
Christian and Pagan thought in the first works of literature we examine from
the Anglo-Saxon Period. Also, the literature of all periods is replete with
allusions to the Bible. The literature of the Middle Ages (such as The Canterbury
Tales) is understandable only if one has a familiarity with the practices
of the Roman Catholic Church (and the history of the church in European affairs
and the Crusades). So, religion will be
discussed in class, simply because it was extremely important to the people who
were producing and reading the literature we will be reading. The point I am
making about this blog, however, is this: in this blog, I take the liberty of
expressing my personal beliefs beyond the boundaries of what would be
appropriate for the classroom. I will never hold you, as a student, responsible
for any of the content from this blog. You are however welcomed to visit this
blog and to comment on any matter expressed herein. I will always honor your opinion, while I may
disagree with it, or I may offer suggestions regarding how you express your
opinion. I am specifically interested in
helping you learn to express your opinion in a skillful and artful manner,
whether I agree with it or not.
Here are some helpful links for guidelines in understanding
your religious rights in a public school:
No comments:
Post a Comment