A state-mandated “Constitution Week” went south at Tuloso-Midway High School after a teacher distributed an American history test with what parents are calling an inappropriately worded question.
“The discussion was that the framers of the Declaration of Independence were mainly wealthy landowners,” Superintendent Rodney Sumner said.
Instead, the question was worded, “How many rich white guys signed the Declaration of Independence?”
Parents are now taking to Facebook to express their concerns about the test.
“There are a lot of ways we could’ve asked that question to get the point across, and I can understand how some people might be offended,” Sumner said.
Sumner said the test was written years ago by a teacher who is no longer employed by the district. The test was stored away in a filing cabinet. He said the teacher who gave out the test did not read through the material beforehand.
Sumner said this situation should pose as a valuable learning experience for all educators.
“A teacher that’s using some material that they did not write needs to really spend some time to review that material to make sure it’s something they feel comfortable presenting,” Sumner said.
Sumner said he could not comment on whether or not the teacher who administered the test was reprimanded, but did say the situation was handled.
