To the editor:

In the last two years after a plethora of new state legislation focused on education, such as “Don’t say gay,” elimination of unapproved books from the classroom, and woke concepts, our teachers are tasked with navigating a veritable minefield of vaguely written laws.

As a result of these laws, the Lee County School Board developed a series of new policies that need further explanation to be followed correctly. After a review of the laws and policies, these 10 commandments for Lee County teachers were developed.

1. Thou shalt not provide, furnish, supply, or maintain any materials, bulletin boards, lectures, videos, slide presentations, or personal items in a classroom or on a desk, that do not explicitly follow the Florida curriculum and standards or Lee County “District Speech.”

2. Thou shalt not wear any clothing, shoes, or jewelry that another individual, including a student, a parent, a teacher, a community member, school staff, school board member would find offensive; including but not limited to rainbows of any color, more than two colors in combination, commercial logos, or religious paraphernalia, such as a cross, Star of David, Egyptian Ankh, witchcraft, or any mythological or fictional symbolism.

3. Thou shalt not dye hair that could be mistaken for religious, political, social, or personal ethics, including, but not limited hair of multiple colors or totally black dyed hair. This also includes hair that could be construed as cultural or ethnic as well.

4. Thou shalt not participate or be seen in close proximity to any banned book, including a club, purchase, or merely looking at a banned book dealing with any sexual content, historical facts, scientific evidence or any topic that has not been previously approved by the Governor’s Curation Committee.

5. Thou shalt not provide any unapproved learning materials, bulletin boards, artwork, literary works or lecture on objective historical facts or scientific evidence that may damage the egos of learners, their parents, or the community at large.

6. Thou shalt not apply any accepted learning theories or pedagogy that could be considered divisive in the classroom, especially if the concepts could be indoctrination into any specific mindset that could be considered harmful to a child.

7. Thou shalt not engage in nor teach the skills of critical thinking as teachers and learners can only do what they are told, or what to think, or how to feel to avoid any type of mental health issue or psychological stress in a classroom.

8. Thou shalt not participate in toxic positivity which is defined as dismissing all negative emotions or critical feedback anyplace on school property, in public areas, or in private homes and buildings.

9. Thou shalt not ignore the criticisms of parents or the community who know better how to teach children; it is also required to ignore any and all evidence-based research regarding the study of education as it is heresy.

10. Thou shalt not engage in any activities outside the school or the home, which include sporting events, shopping, religious services, or community service not approved by legislature or the school board, to avoid termination through the capricious whims of the educational overlords.

In the 19th and 20th Century teachers were expected to follow a series of rules of behavior becoming their profession. For example, in 1872, after 10 hours in school, teachers could spend the remainder of their time before bed in reading the Bible or other accepted books. In 1915, teachers were expected to be at home daily between the hours of 8 p.m. and 6 a.m. unless attending a school function. Other expectations were no smoking, drinking, dressing in bright colors, or traveling beyond the city limits without permission of the school board. Different rules, but with the same expectations — that teachers must be controlled so they cannot indoctrinate the minds of our children.

Dr. Paula Porter

Lehigh Acres