John J. Duggan Middle School is undergoing more than a name change this fall as it begins a four-year transition from a Grade 6 to 9 school to a Grade 6-12 Expeditionary Learning Magnet School with an emphasis on issues of social justice.
Over the the last few weeks, Michael Calvanese, newly appointed principal at Duggan, has been hiring and recruiting new teachers to join his team in an effort to shape a school experience that focuses on character development and a respect for others as well teaching them English, math and science skills.
While this school might sound like a great idea to 1960s-style progressives, it could backfire horribly. What happens when sixth-graders immersed in social justice ideology start arguing that it’s not fair for some students to get A’s while others get C’s, and that math is an oppressive social construct they should not have to study?