to be disturbed that my DD was shown this anti-abortion video

[Tanga]

DD (15) came home saying that she'd been shown a video of 'the baby's view of abortion' in her RE class today. She was pretty horrified (both for herself and on behalf of one of her friends who has had an abortion)which I'd guess would be a fairly typical response, but she went on to make some wildly innacurate comments about the proceedure (some very graphic so I'll spare you) so I asked her what it was she'd actually been shown.

It's called 'The Silent Scream' (written in Hammer horror style lettering) and I've googled it and am fairly appalled. It's (IMO) an anti-abortion piece of propaganda made in the '80's and is riddled with innaccuracies.

Is this a normal video to show a class of teenagers? It was presented as fact, BTW, and as 'the most humane method of abortion' by the RE teacher.

So what's happened OP - did you contact the Head?

Absolutely agree with Lynette.

I am absoltely horrified that this has been shown. I would have thought this crap would have been binned years ago.

A haunting post above - someone who went to a convent school, a girl who had an abortion at 14 was made to sit at the front by the nuns and forced to watch this video. If I believed in hell I would wish those nuns to burn in it.

If this kind of nonsense goes on in community schools I wonder what faith schools get up to.

Just talked to my son about this, as he has just done his RS GCSE. He said that opposing views on abortion were discussed rationally, and that the teacher gave no indication of his personal view point. It is obviously not part of the syllabus to show this inaccurate film, nor to have a pro-life view point.

It is immoral of teachers to try and force their own opinions on children. Their job is to present the facts so the child can make an informed choice.

This film is not factual. It is unabashed propaganda.

Horrific....what was the teacher thinking? Bet she doesn't show fucking animals being slaughtered.

YANBU! I cannot believe a teacher deemed this suitable. Factually inaccurate propaganda is not part of presenting a balanced view. Nothing in the letter you received indicated that this would be shown. I am raging on your behalf! I haven't seen this video but just reading about some of the imagery is making me upset, I was a mature 15 year old but this would have destroyed me

I saw this video at fifteen... and I would be screaming blue murder if it was my child.

Pro-life/pro-abortion, this is just bad teaching.

There;s nothing accurate or informative in this video, it's pure propaganda.

Insist on a meeting with the Head and the teacher and ask the teacher to screen the film to the head. Ask her is she'd be happy to let her daughter watch it.

If she's says no (and I suspect she will) ask her what disciplinary steps she intends to take against the teacher and how she intends to correct the damage done to the class.

If she says yes... get your daughter the heck out of that school!

Tanga - what happened on this? did you contact the school, is your dd & her friend ok?

Just seen this. I would go ape shit if someone showed this film to my DC (haven't seen it, and judging by the descriptions, don't want to).

I went to a Catholic boarding school and remember watching The Silent Scream in class - probably in the sixth form. I remember being very upset by it, but not traumatised, and I don't suppose for a moment that my parents were asked if they were happy for us to watch it - it was a Catholic school and after all the teachings of the Catholic faith are that abortion is wrong.

However, in this case, given that it's not a faith school, I would have expected my permission to be sought (which I would not have given - even as a Catholic I think there are better ways to teach the subject), and I would also be complaining to the head in the strongest possible terms.

I have contacted the school and have a meeting with the class teacher at the end of the school day today (I'm actually quite nervous as well as fuming) I want to find out how she tries to justify herself before seeing the head (who is male) DD is at school and I will pass on everyone's thoughts about this video as I'm not sure that she was convinced by my reaction/assurance that the video is BS. I still can't quite believe that someone thought this was appropriate, but we'll see what she says. I'll report back, of course.

Good luck Tanga - the teacher is out of order.

Just seen this thread and can't quite believe a school (and a non religious one at that) showed that video.

Still less that they described it as fact (rather than as blatant propaganda).

Good luck Tanga. I would love to hear what justification they come up with.

I would also ask them to have, eg, a Marie Stopes counsellor in to the school to speak to the class and present the TRUE picture.

This could useful to present to the head teacher - my.opera.com/JoanRC/blog/2010/01/02/planned-parenthoods-critique-of-silent-scream-propaganda-film It's on someones blog - it's not my blog just to say!!

I work as a teacher (in primary) and assumed this "film" had been discredited and thrown out long ago - hell I'm in my 30s and remember it so it's been doing the rounds for well over a decade and a half.

Seriously - any school showing that aren't doing it to promote discussion, it's pushing such an agenda and I hope they get that piece of pap pulled completely one day.

One of the things I remember most vividly when I was in having my abortion was that in the bed next to me was a kid, probably no more than 14 going through the same - I wouldn't want any child to have to go through that and then sit in a classroom through that flaming video because I remember just how badly it affected me purely knowing my mother had had an abortion.

I'd be/will be (if I ever get lucky) pulling any kid of mine out of any classes where that might well be shown.

As for the toeing the party line= A at RE. I argued all the way through my GCSE on it (and did the Catholic syllabus as well!) - despite my friends being convinced you got more marks if you wrote "as a Christian I believe..." etc. If the question said black was black - I argued it was white (yes I was an argumentative little nowt) - came out with my A. My brother did exactly the same when he got to GCSEs as well - my family = RE teachers' worst nightmares!

Good luck Tanga - I know you say you are nervous but just put your side acorss and don't let them bullshit you.

Now, I am pro-life (anti-choice if you will but rather that than anti-life...) BUT I don't think you are being unreasonable. Such a difficult subject should be discussed using up-to-date facts only.
Now, as a teacher I think that your daughter's RE teacher/department is probably lazy, rather than pro-life. If this is on the syllabus every year for every class then it is a departmental matter, in which case you need to be speaking to the HOD rather than the teacher. If it's not a departmental thing then the teacher has an agenda in some way. Either way, it is not appropriate to show a manipulation of facts like this.
When you have your meeting with the class teacher make sure you let her know that you are going to be taking this further and that as well as an apology to the class, assurances that this outdated video will not be used again and steps must be taken to show the children an unbiased, factual programme is a must. Make sure she knows that a copy of your WRITTEN complaint will be forwarded to the HOD, headteacher and governors.

Sorry, fellow pro-lifers out there, but there is no excuse for such lazy teaching. There is a plethora of useful resources on this subject - even if it is to be taught in a biased way facts must be used in the place of sensationalist lies and half-truths, which risk seriously traumatising children.

Excellent post loopy.

Why, thanks!

I am at different side of the argument from you Loopy (am pro choice) but your eloqquent post shows that there is a rational and coherent argument which can be made from the pro life lobby without resorting to traumatic and disturbing propaganda like that video.

Just seen this. Bloody hell YANBU how awful. I have heard of this film and understood that it was propoganda, showing (as people have said) things which are not what they purport to be.

Tanga let us know what the school say. I am stunned that this has been shown, in a community school for crying out loud. And I would be pretty shocked to hear it was being shown in an RC school TBH.

I am not 'pro-life' or 'pro-choice' but I am pro truth.I feel TSS is totally inappropriate,outdated and sensationalist propaganda.I also agree that a 6-12 week foetus wont feel pain.BUT-it is still a baby. To me abortion is killing babies at an early stage of development.It is not getting rid of a cluster of cells.I can think of situations where I might have had to make that decision but I would have done so knowing that,for whatever reason,I was killing a baby.I could never feel that 'social' or late[after 20 weeks] abortions were right.

Reading this and working in education policy, I am shocked and appalled that the teacher concerned could have shown this video without speaking to the parents properly first. If it was a video about conception there would likely be a letter to parents, possibly a screening for parents, teachers available to answer parents' questions, the right to withdraw kids from the lesson if parents so wished...

The double standards amaze me - how can a teacher be allowed to show such a film in RE without approval and without giving parents the right to withdraw their children from it if they object to them seeing it? Forget being pro-choice or pro-life - it is educationally unsound to show a biased and emotive video as truth and without considered and balanced debate. I am amazed the headteacher allowed this (if s/he knew at all).

Marking my place to see what the teacher said.

(YADNBU)

Come on Tanga, we're all waiting with baited breath! What did she say?!!