Student-teacher dismissed over Black History Month assignment

A student-teacher was let go from her teaching role after giving her class an assignment that upset several parents. The student-teacher, who remains unnamed, was a Black female student at Vanderbilt University. The students were fourth graders at Waverly Belmont Elementary School in Nashville, Tennessee. The task, which was part of a Black History Month lesson plan, was titled “Let’s Make A Slave,” . it was reportedly based on an infamous 1712 speech by William Lynch, a slave owner. The students were asked, “to keep their slaves subservient, plantation owners should,” with a blank space left for their answer. One parent, Karen Lockert, whose son is Black, said the exercise forced him to question if his white peers viewed him differently. “[My son] felt that sense of looking differently at his friends … For me, I said, ‘We’re not going to look differently at people unless they treat you differently’”. Another parent told WZTV that they believed it was “horrible and wrong to teach this kind of stuff to fourth-graders”. Nashville Metro Public Schools issued a statement on the student-teacher’s dismissal, saying her teaching material was not “age-appropriate” . Vanderbilt University also released a statement, calling the assignment “an unfortunate situation”