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By Kent Larsen
West High Teacher's Story: Student's Were Disruptive
SALT LAKE CITY, UTAH -- The West High School teacher who had three
students escorted from her class, says that the students refused to
follow instructions and were disruptive, according to a press release
from the Salt Lake Teachers' Association, the union which represents
teachers in Salt Lake City and which is giving the press the
teacher's version of the incident. Her claim is significantly
different than the claims of the students, who say the teacher didn't
want them reading the Book of Mormon during a free reading time in
class.
Currently, the teacher is on administrative leave waiting for the
conclusion of the school district's investigation of the student's
claims. According to the students, she told them they couldn't read
the Book of Mormon during a free reading period on Tuesday, November
7th. The teacher then called school security to remove the students
from class, saying that they were causing a disruption. Word of the
incident soon hit the press and the families of the students hired
Salt Lake City lawyer Frank Mylar to represent them.
But the Salt Lake Teachers' Association now says the students are
wrong about the details. They defend the teacher, who has a different
version of the events. The teacher says that the incident didn't
happen during a free reading time, but during normal class time, when
the students were supposed to be studying Nataniel Hawthorne's
"The Scarlet Letter." When the teacher asked six students in the
class to put away their copies of the Book of Mormon and take out the
Hawthorne text, three refused and became disruptive, she says.
The school district is currently investigating the differing versions
of what happened, and is expected to complete its investigation
tomorrow.
Sources:
Union: West Students Were Disruptive
Salt Lake Tribune 11Nov00 D2
By Ashley Estes: Salt Lake Tribune
and
West teacher gets administrative leave
Deseret News 15Nov00 D2
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