Education and agriculture

[Ted M]

Evening all, feeling a bit annoyed tonight over the way animal agriculture is viewed in our schools.
Eldest arrived home tonight and informed me that during their maths lesson the teacher used a sliced up pizza as tool to demonstrate how fractions work.
When asked about the pizza topping, "vegan" was the teachers response.

Another teacher announced to the class she was a vegan during another part of the school day.

And last week whilst attending an open evening at the local secondary school I came across a large piece of work on the wall in the science department explaining the carbon cycle.
In two corners of this piece of work were cardboard cutouts of an industrial building and an aeroplane but taking centre stage were three cows twice the size of anything else on the wall.

I find it slightly concerning that teachers are in a position to influence young people with their own personal views and distorted facts and both schools are in a rural area with plenty of farm kids attending.
What must it be like in inner city schools?
Thoughts please....

 

[Shep]

We had an English teacher, who was very anti farmer, very pro environment and all the comprehension was photo copied out of amnesty International magazine.
This was in the 80's and early 90's so not much has changed.
She didn't like to be challenged and sometimes got very worked up about the next environmental catastrophe, none of which ever happened.
Ironically her father was a farmer and when he died she sold the farm for development for millions, she built a mansion and drives a big car, she also has the hight of fashion and had work done, she hasn't aged hardly in almost 30 years, so when the money rolled in she somehow lost her hippieness.

 

[SteveHants]

I'm not sure I get that teachers being vegan must somehow be anti-farming. All vegan foods must also be produced by farmers.

As for the cow - there's a lot of science that points to the livestock industry as a significant source of pollution. It's science I disagree with in part, especially as it relates to UK ruminant production (certainly pasture based agriculture is a carbon sink), but you can hardly expect teachers to have read as far into the scientific literature as I have.

If kids are interested in farming, ultimately, there are plenty of decent degree programmes out there that will teach them to evaluate the literature for themselves.

I think that the vegan based hysteria whipped up on some corners of the internet is really unhelpful- it suggests that a minority of extremists have way more influence than they do - which is exactly what they want.

 

[Ted M]

If you read what I wrote I said anti animal agriculture not farming.
I'm also not saying that what we do is totally green and agree with your point on pasture based agriculture.
My concern is the distortion of facts which are then presented to our children, how can they go on to make informed choices if they are not provided with an unbiased education.
I agree with your last paragraph, hence why I posted on here rather than get into a row on Facebook and give them even more oxygen

 

[SteveHants]

Whe

If you read what I wrote I said anti animal agriculture not farming.
I'm also not saying that what we do is totally green and agree with your point on pasture based agriculture.
My concern is the distortion of facts which are then presented to our children, how can they go on to make informed choices if they are not provided with an unbiased education.
I agree with your last paragraph, hence why I posted on here rather than get into a row on Facebook and give them even more oxygen

Whatever happens in their formal education- hopefully they will be taught to question in their home lives.

This, essentially is why I worry about the notions of conformity (and tradition, to an extent, it can sometimes be very positive and occasionally very negative) I see in some parents - if we didn't question things, nothing would change.

 

[Still Farming]

Kids came home the other day ,agitated about that mornings assembly all about extinction rebellion and veganism !
Drip drip constant effects with NO balanced good with Farming and products.
You get a Young strong Vegan Teacher on about it day after day it's bound to have an effect direct or indirectly ,cohesion or radicalisation or what ever you call it?

 

[SteveHants]

Kids came home the other day ,agitated about that mornings assembly all about extinction rebellion and veganism !
Drip drip constant effects with NO balanced good with Farming and products.
You get a Young strong Vegan Teacher on about it day after day it's bound to have an effect direct or indirectly ,cohesion or radicalisation or what ever you call it?

I'd rather that than the religious assembly they are supposed to have every week.

Also- see other threads about ER - they aren't vegan, their organiser for the countryside is a livestock farmer.

 

[Still Farming]

I'd rather that than the religious assembly they are supposed to have every week.

Also- see other threads about ER - they aren't vegan, their organiser for the countryside is a livestock farmer.

The assembly was on the 2 subjects ,nothing about their connections if any ?
Balanced views on all should be the way!

 

[kiwi pom]

Evening all, feeling a bit annoyed tonight over the way animal agriculture is viewed in our schools.
Eldest arrived home tonight and informed me that during their maths lesson the teacher used a sliced up pizza as tool to demonstrate how fractions work.
When asked about the pizza topping, "vegan" was the teachers response.

Another teacher announced to the class she was a vegan during another part of the school day.

And last week whilst attending an open evening at the local secondary school I came across a large piece of work on the wall in the science department explaining the carbon cycle.
In two corners of this piece of work were cardboard cutouts of an industrial building and an aeroplane but taking centre stage were three cows twice the size of anything else on the wall.

I find it slightly concerning that teachers are in a position to influence young people with their own personal views and distorted facts and both schools are in a rural area with plenty of farm kids attending.
What must it be like in inner city schools?
Thoughts please....

If you feel strongly about it contact the school, make a complaint and ask for a meeting with your child's teacher. Don't go in there yelling and screaming just put your points across. If the teacher ignores you ask to see the principal or contact the school board.
If you wanted to make them think about what they are teaching a bit more, mention that farmers are a minority in the UK and you feel very strongly that they are being unfairly targeted.

 

[delilah]

If you feel strongly about it contact the school, make a complaint and ask for a meeting with your child's teacher.

Or, if you are too busy with the stresses of everyday life to do that, get on to your national representatives and ask them to send the school their educational briefing sheet 'livestock farming and the environment'.

 

[kiwi pom]

Or, if you are too busy with the stresses of everyday life to do that, get on to your national representatives and ask them to send the school their educational briefing sheet 'livestock farming and the environment'.

No I would never do that, if I felt strongly about it I would make time to go and see them myself and put my point across, if I didn't my wife certainly would.
People are very quick to be outraged by just about everything these days but always expect someone else to sort it for them. Either that or they rant about it on social media. If you have a problem with someone, go and see them.

 

[ARW]

On a lighter note, if some of the kids go vegan at least your wee lads and lasses will smash sports day!

 

[SilliamWhale]

I'd rather that than the religious assembly they are supposed to have every week.

Also- see other threads about ER - they aren't vegan, their organiser for the countryside is a livestock farmer.

I dunno. Learning about religion can teach you a lot about critical thinking and reasoning. I think religion and awareness of religion is really important although I'm fundamentally an athiest

 

[betweenthelines]

OP needs to contact the school to offer them a free farm visit for all the pupils. No point in either posting on here or getting upset about what the school is doing if you're not prepared to offer them an alternative viewpoint.

Really gets quite annoying seeing farmers constantly moaning about the public being presented with an anti farming viewpoint but doing sweet FA to combat it. Rather than treating the public as the enemy, present them with pro farming information.

I don't think vegans, PETA, the environmental lobby etc. would win the argument, but at the moment, no one is arguing with them!

 

[Red Fred]

I don't think vegans, PETA, the environmental lobby etc. would win the argument, but at the moment, no one is arguing with them!

I've just been arguing with some vegans.
Sadly a horse was allegedly stabbed to death by a nutter in a field near Bournemouth and the Echo reported the story on their Facebook page. Cue the vegan comments saying that the horse murderer was the same as a livestock farmer as we murder animals after making them live lives of misery and pain in factory farms.
I was pleasantly surprised at the reaction to their comments, with a great majority of the, presumably non-farming Echo readers telling them to bog off and stop trying to control their childrens' thinking with this nonsense.
I couldn't resist chipping in with a few polite comments regarding the extinction of domesticated animals, destruction of pastoral habitat and the economic effects on the livestock areas of the UK and Ireland, but my points were all ignored so I'm thinking it is best left rather than give them any publicity. Just needed to get this off my chest as they did get me going!

 

[betweenthelines]

Pointless to directly engage with extremists. Far better to do what Delilah has done (See her thread on info sheet for teachers) and try to influence those who still have an open mind

 

[teslacoils]

My boy got told to research the incredible and sustainably produced.......jackfruit. ffs