Years from now, this will be a movie. You watch...

Edit: I meant keep an eye out, not necessarily go see the movie.

People are so f**king stupid.

IDK...It's easy to knee jerk and say that, but sometimes stuff like this is just the "last straw".

People in various organizations sometimes complain about being discriminated against, and make a big stink, but really, they're just huge a*****es who also happen to be minorities.

How is the teacher being an a*****e?

I'm not saying he/she was, just that we don't know the whole story.

The parents may have been like, "This guy is a condescending d bag every time I talk to him, and a terrible teacher, and this is the last straw, I'm moving my kid" and then the teacher cried foul.

The point I'm trying to make is that a person with a perfectly legitimate reason to perform a negative action against someone (firing, disciplinary actions) is often accused of being racist, sexist, etc., because the "victim" can't deal with the fact that they are disliked simply because they are a terrible person.

That's sounds bad I guess, but I hope you get what I'm trying to say.

Did you actually read the story? How could this be a case of an employee claiming discrimination, seeing as how the teacher was never interviewed, named, or even quoted second-hand, and seemed to just want his privacy honored?

The story was about parents "crying foul" and pulling their kids out of his class because they weren't informed of the sex change. It was about the teacher's right to privacy, versus the parents' right to know about the teacher's change of sex.

I've seen people file shaky discrimination claims, in business, and the military, so I know what you're talking about, but it just doesn't make sense to try and wrap a hypothetical story around another and call it a "maybe," when the hypothetical story involves elements that just aren't in the real story.

If this were a false discrimination scenario, the teacher would have been suspended from teaching by the board, and would have spoken out, claiming discrimination, where the board and the parents spoke mainly of other, unrelated breaches of conduct. In this case, the teacher is never even named, the school board supports his privacy, and the parents are the ones specifically targeting the sex change as the problem.

23 students are missing out on a music education due to their parents' ignorance. How sad.

I think since the school legally could not tell the parents then the teacher should've openend up and let them know ahead of time.. at least this way it wouldn't have been as big of a shock for the parents. I know the teacher has a right to privacy but It's is something she should have been proud of and He, being a teacher, should have been smart enough to relise how big of a controversy this would cause. so by all means have the surgery but let the parents of the kids taht you are responisble for know ahead of time.

I'm pretty sure some of the kids had a say in it as well.. don't go blaming it all on the parents.. If I was in a music class at that age and my teacher came back as a man, and after watching south park which the youth of today does do.. I'd totally opt for gym class or music class.

You might, but unfortunately for you, South Park, and "Why you trippin', Lady-Nipples?" doesn't make up the proper framework for a privacy policy for public servants.

Privacy act, huh? The question is, where do you draw the line?

If this person was going to be taking care of my 10-year-old kid for a portion of the day, I'd want to know. And privacy act or not, I think she had a responsibility to inform the parents of her decision.

Why? Why is it your right to know something that's personal to the teacher and doesn't affect your students' education at all?

What if your 10-year-old's teacher is schizophrenic? A pedophile? A satanist? A zoophile? Where do you draw the line?

It's the parent's right to decide when their kids should learn about sexuality. Personally, I don't think it should be an issue or a 10 year old kid. I think it's ignorant to force issues like this on them at such a young age when you don't have to.

[Edit:] Wow, I've been downvoted for having an opinion other than the majority lean. What a surprise! :P

I wouldn't have taken my kid out of the class, but I would have been disappointed in the teacher and the school for not speaking to parents about it ahead of time. That's a big change for elementary-aged kids to take in, and I would have wanted the opportunity to talk to my kid beforehand. Really, for the sake of the teacher as much as the students. Students who have had the opportunity to talk about it with their parents, ask questions, get answers, would (I expect) find it a lot easier to accept than a kid who hadn't.

It could have been an opportunity for everyone to show a little trust in one another, and for students and parents both to learn about what it means to be transgendered, and instead it turned into a news story.

Whether or not the teacher believes it but he/she is a public figure in the lives of the students. They look up to their teachers with a degree of respect. The teacher should have been open about their decision and informed affected students and parents. He/she wouldn't have to go into enormous detail about the decision, but at least let people know what is going to take place. That way it wouldn't be a shock when the school year starts.

I find this horrifying. Just because this man transitioned, 23 kids were pulled out of his class. It saddens me.
But then again, schools aren't really the most trans-friendly places to begin with. I feel sorry for the poor guy, having to go through what was likely several years of that hellhole before eventually getting his sex change surgery.

Wow, none of those things compare. We now know nothing of the teacher's sexual orientation. This is a medical and legal issue.

A closer comparison would be a really dramatic breast augmentation. If Mrs. A-cup showed up at school with DD-bazongas, would there be a demand that the parents be notified? No, but it has as much bearing on sexuality and students' education as this.

I think it's ignorant to decide that people can't teach children if they are "different."

Exactly my point.

IMO the second SHE wanted to be called MISTER the privacy act goes out the window. It's one thing to keep something private when nobody else will ever know about it if you don't tell. It's another for there to be an obvious COMPLETE change to a person and how the person is interacted with.

IMO the TEACHER should have done something to prepare the students himself. And personally I don't think transgender people should be teaching children if the kids are not at an age to understand it...or homosexuals...or ANY sexuality based lifestyles UNLESS IT IS KEPT PRIVATE. In elementary schoold and middle school and even high school I had NO IDEA if my teachers were gay/straight/trannies/NOTHING because it did not affect my education...I didn't need to know. But when it slaps you in the face like a Miss going to a Mister you are forcing kids to be exposed to things they may not be ready to fully understand.

I agree with the parents....sorry...I would be pissed at the school AND the teacher for not being up-front about it.