I was talking to a K-12 teacher the other day about Natalie Munroe - the controversial Philadephia teacher who was suspended with pay after students discovered her blog on Feb. 8. In the blog, Munroe, a 30-year-old pregnant teacher at Central Bucks East High School, ranted about her students being "disobediant, disrespectful oafs" and "noisy, crazy, sloppy, lazy, LOAFERS." Talking about the rude kids in her honors class, she wrote,
"Something must be done about their disrespect and attitude problems. We should do away with the attitude of the students (and if we can't, we should do away with the students who have attitudes.) Better to have a pet - at least you know where you stand with a pet."
Munroe, who started her blog in 2009, was harshly criticized by Central Bucks Superintendent Robert Laws. No kids should have to be subjected to such a hostile environment, he said.
But the K-12 teacher I talked to thinks everyone should have the option to vent. "If you can't vent in a blog, where can you?" she asked. Munroe's lawyer likewise believes Munroe has a free-speech defence, and education blogger Alexander Russo asks, "Should teachers be limited to happy talk?"
Interestingly, Monroe's original blog, which did not use her full name and did not name her school or students, has been taken down. But Monroe has started a new blog, and this one makes no effort to be discreet: It's at www.nataliemunroe.com.
USA Today reports that while Monroe previously had nine followers, now she has 22. But people looking for outrageous comments - such as when Monroe wrote that teachers should be able to use "rat-like" and "dresses like a streetwalker" when writing report cards - might be disappointed. So far, Monroe has busied herself with defending and explaining her actions.
How are we going to communicate in a world of increasing smoke and mirrors? When should people keep their thoughts to themselves, and who's going to decide?
I disagree with the implication that Natalie Monroe is some sort of figure worthy of admirations. Yes, she is entitled to her opinions but she must also be entitled to the consequences. She elected to be a teacher and the youth obviousily don't respect her teaching capacity. Based on her deficit thinking rants, I wonder if she is a graduate from a Ruby Payne workshop and whether she was ranting in hopes of getting fired. I would like to hear feedback from her husband, the youth from her class and the other teachers of the school before determining whether the rants were warranted or just plain malicious.
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