[ti:US Parents Look to Have More Influence over School Curriculums] [by:www.51voa.com] [00:00.00]更多听力请访问51VOA.COM [00:00.04]A big debate in American schools is over how much control [00:04.96]parents should have in their child's education. [00:09.04]Parents around the nation have been protesting how certain topics, [00:13.76]such as race, history and religion, are taught in schools. [00:18.48]Some have gone to school board meetings and demand their politicians [00:23.76]take steps to control what is taught in the classroom. [00:28.32]A school board is a group of elected officials [00:31.60]who control educational policy and finances. [00:36.20]At least 12 Republican-led states have recently introduced bills [00:41.52]that require school districts to post their teaching materials online. [00:47.60]Some of the bills permit parents to bring legal action [00:51.96]against schools that do not follow the rules. [00:55.72]These are called "transparency bills." [00:59.44]And in the United States Congress, [01:01.64]Republicans have introduced a "Parents Bill of Rights." [01:05.44]Included in the proposal is a list of rights parents should have [01:10.68]when it comes to their child's schooling. [01:14.32]For example, parents should "have the right to know [01:17.92]what their children are being taught," and "have the right [01:21.24]to see the school budget and spending." [01:24.68]Republicans that support the proposal said in a statement [01:28.84]that Democrats "want to take power away from parents [01:32.68]and hand over more control to politicians and teachers unions [01:37.08]to dictate what our children should be taught in classrooms." [01:41.36]The bill of rights has gained popularity among conservatives [01:45.56]in response to things like critical race theory [01:49.00]and mask and vaccine mandates in schools. [01:53.32]Critical race theory is based on the idea that systemic racism [01:58.12]has deeply shaped American society, laws and policies. [02:03.76]The bill was first introduced in November [02:06.52]and is unlikely to pass the Democratic-controlled Congress. [02:10.68]But it may have caused some Republican states [02:14.12]to introduce similar measures. [02:17.80]Georgia's state Senate last week approved a measure [02:22.16]that protects parental rights in public education. [02:26.04]The measure says parents have the right [02:28.56]to examine all classroom materials, [02:31.28]the right to see all records relating to their child, [02:35.04]the right to remove their child from sex education, [02:38.84]and the right to prevent the creation of photos, videos [02:43.80]and voice recordings of their children except for security purposes. [02:49.56]Many of the rights already exist. [02:52.80]A December survey by EducationWeek found [02:57.00]that most teachers say parents should have a say in the curriculum, [03:01.56]or the subjects and materials that are being taught. [03:06.28]But just 33 percent of teachers surveyed said parents were involved [03:11.80]in selecting curriculum and materials in their district. [03:17.00]The survey also suggested that parents and teachers [03:21.76]may have differing opinions on what topics should be taught. [03:26.52]For example, just 51 percent of teachers [03:30.96]said they believe parents want them to teach about race. [03:35.12]But 80 percent of teachers said they should teach about race and racism. [03:42.20]In Virginia, Republican Glenn Youngkin made parents' rights [03:46.68]a big part of his campaign for governor, an election he won. [03:50.92]He has said that parents should be in charge of their kids' education. [03:56.96]But teachers and educators say transparency bills are unnecessary [04:02.48]because information on curriculum and spending is already publicly available. [04:08.44]Opponents of the bills say it would make teachers' jobs even more difficult. [04:15.36]In a Washington Post column, authors Jack Schneider and Jennifer Berkshire [04:21.20]argued that parents have no legal right to determine their child's curriculum. [04:27.28]United States law supports "the idea [04:30.52]that education should prepare young people to think for themselves, [04:35.00]even if that runs counter to the wishes of parents," they said. [04:40.56]Robert Estice is a middle school science and critical thinking teacher in Ohio, [04:46.16]one of the states that introduced a transparency bill. [04:51.24]He said the bill is a way to control what is taught in the classroom. [04:57.04]He told The Associated Press the bill is a way "to get into the classroom [05:02.80]to pick through what they see and point us in different directions [05:07.32]or stop us from doing things." [05:10.80]I'm Dan Novak. 更多听力请访问51VOA.COM