School apologizes for assignment asking 5th grader to 'pretend to be a white slave master'

SOMERSET COUNTY, Pa (WJAC) — Two Somerset County parents say they were surprised to find what they say is an "alarming assignment" brought home by their fifth-grade daughter last week.

Conemaugh Township elementary parents Shannon and Kenneth Poole say their daughter brought home an assignment last week instructing students to “pretend to be a white master looking to buy a slave.”

“On Thursday morning, we got an assignment in our daughter’s schoolwork folder, and it was basically a colored in worksheet that was titled ‘auctions, winnings to the highest bidder.’ And it was an assignment wherein the fifth graders were supposed to portray slave masters and identify what qualifications they wanted in their slave,” the father said.

The Pooles say the assignment asked the students to draw and describe the living quarters, as well as various scenarios that would occur on a plantation. They say their daughter lost points when she wrote that she would “treat the slaves nicely.”

“I don’t think that we should be teaching our fifth graders or putting them in the frame of mind of what it’s like to own another human being or what qualifications hypothetically you would want in them. And I question the educational value of the assignment because if we’re asking our students to pretend to be slave masters or anything like that, why are we giving them points off if they said they’d treat a slave with empathy? That seems to suggest that there’s a certain type of response that’s correct or incorrect.”

The Pooles say they contacted the teacher and principal, but they say that school officials were initially unwilling to remove the assignment or apologize. In response, the couple says they took to social media, and their Reddit post currently has over one thousand comments.

“The consensus is just overwhelmingly that this was inappropriate. And I think the point in doing so wasn’t to condemn the institution or reprimand any teachers or anything like that, it was just to bring awareness to the fact. And when we tried to bring that through the proper channels, it sort of fell flat. And again, it’s our hope that this will bring awareness to the issue and correct these so that there aren’t other little children going through this.”

In a statement to 6 news, the superintendent of Conemaugh Township school district says the assignment was intended to help students to comprehend slavery, but a different approach should have been taken.

The assignment has been eliminated from the class and the district deeply apologizes to all who were offended by the assignment. The matter is, otherwise, being handled internally and measures are being taken to ensure that an unfortunate event like this does not happen again.

“It’s important to advocate for your children. I mean, at 10, they might not identify a problem but then they’re growing up and they’re going to see this thing and wonder and think ‘oh my God.’ And why didn’t your parents speak up for you. As parents we have an obligation to represent our children and to help them and make sure they are okay," the father added.

The couple says they are relieved to hear that the assignment has been removed from the class, and they hope other schools can learn from this.