I quote myself from my article on the dangers of adapting tech to the classroom:
The education industry has had a weakness for non-academic fads for several decades.
I chose the external link in that quote (re-printed from my article) to highlight that I was not referring solely to fads involving education in the classroom. Schools, especially some big city public school systems, have a weakness for introducing things into the classroom and teacher accreditation that have nothing to do with education. In fact, these fads often run counter to education properly understood. I thought of my qip when I read an article titled NYC teachers union hosting seminar on ‘harmful effects of whiteness’ :
Participants will leave the workshop with a better understanding of how to center ourselves as a form of resistance against the harmful effects of whiteness in our lives, the organizations we work for or direct, and the communities in which we serve.
This is an example of noxious non-academic nonsense being introduced and promoted to teachers. One has a sneaking suspicion that the ultimate goal is to introduce it to students before they may know better than to trust quacks whose credentials often begin and end with degrees ending in -studies touting how they can combat the harmful effects of disembodied whiteness in their lives. Fortunately, the inane, overtly bigoted affair was cancelled after the New York Post provided it with much-needed publicity, but the story highlights that silly Microsoft apps about feelings are not the biggest problem facing public school students in many parts of the country. Also see my essay on the importance of proper discipline in schools for ensuring a safe learning environment.