Will Tallman, a Pennsylvania State representative for the 193rd District, wants to ban teachers from discussing “modern-day civics, politics and science in classrooms,” according to a report in the Morning Call.
Tallman is seeking the support of fellow lawmakers for his “Teacher Code of Ethics,” a bill that may, from the outset, be unconstitutional.
The bill would prohibit teachers from discussing a number of relevant politics issues, including local candidates or nominees, enacted or pending local, state, or federal legislation, current court cases, and similar subject matter.
The bill would also prevent a teacher from introducing any “controversial subject matter that is not germane to the topic of the course being taught.”
Teachers that would run afoul of this bill, should it pass, would be subject to penalties up to and including the loss of their teaching credentials.
Tallman feels his bill is necessary to prevent teachers from talking “time away from instruction in the academic foundation subjects of mathematics, science, English, history, and civics,” feeling that doing so would prevent Pennsylvania students from “receiving a high-quality public education for careers in the global, high-tech economy.”
The bill is unlikely to go anywhere and, even if it did, would surely face a constitutional challenge. Likewise, Tallman is not seeking re-election in November.
Image by Will Tallman via Facebook