Are teachers too stupid to understand education policy? (No, we are not.)

A rebuttal to the South Carolina Post and Courier editorial board.

Note: the full version of this post is subscriber-only, but if you aren’t able/ ready to subscribe, you can use a 7-day trial or email me and I’ll comp you a subscription (which will also give you access to the full archive).

We don’t think there’s much chance that teachers will be fired or silenced if [House Bill 3728] passes, and if they read it rather than just responding to what they’ve read about it on social media, they’ll know that.

-The Post and Courier Editorial Board

“I am pretty sure a teacher talking about systemic racism is illegal in South Carolina.”

-Lexington 5 student cited by The State, in reference to the district’s banning of Between the World and Me from use in a AP Language course (the budget proviso cited contains nearly identical language to 3278).

In March 2020, the editorial board of South Carolina’s Post and Courier published another in a continuing series of unsigned editorial pieces whose arguments depend upon the premise that South Carolina teachers generally don’t understand education policy. While I disagreed with most of the piece, and with the practice of publishing unsigned editorials in general, I will give the editorial board credit for being willing to publish my rebuttal, which you can find here (you can also read a longer version below).