Parents are furious that the £32,650-a-year American School in London is allegedly teaching its children ’64 genders’ and supporting its ‘awakening agenda’ despite Ofsted’s revealing report.
A school regulator downgraded a private day school from “excellent” to “needs improvement”, saying there were “failures” in education and leadership after it placed more emphasis on teaching “social justice” than teaching “subject knowledge and skills”. “. .
Interim ASL head Sasha McQueen defended the school to parents, saying its programs are backed by school principals and the watchdog check was “out of the ordinary.”
More than 100 parents who signed the letter to Ms McQueen were shocked that a private school was sticking to its “wake up” program in light of a “crushing rebuke,” according to the Times.
Meanwhile, some students told Ofsted that their views were being “suppressed” in class.
Because of this, the school failed to comply with a number of independent school standards that forbid “propaganda of partisan political views” and require “respect for those who hold other beliefs”.
The Dams report says the £32,600-a-year American School of London (ASL) is now assessed as ‘in need of improvement’ due to ‘failures’ in education and leadership after putting more emphasis on teaching ‘social justice” than the study of the “subject”. – specific knowledge and skills
Interim ASL head Sasha McQueen defended the school to parents, saying its programs are backed by school principals and the watchdog check was “out of the ordinary.”
A parent told the Times: “The tone of the school email was not well received. It turned out defiant and irreconcilable.
“Parents were shocked to see the school stick to their programs.”
The parents also claim that students were taught that Olympian transgender weightlifter Laurel Hubbard should compete in women’s competition in gym class, and there were 64 genders in health class.
One parent said, “We have seen controversial views that are still raging in public debate in society being taught to these children as truth.”
The letter to Ofsted also claimed that the recent decision to create racially segregated after-school clubs in which students interact exclusively with peers of the same ethnicity was illegal because it violates the Equality Act.
The accusations rocked a prestigious school near Regent’s Park, whose alumni include Hollywood star Kathleen Turner and police drummer Stuart Copeland.
Corinne Hester will become the new head this month after ASL interim head Sasha McQueen steps down.
Inspectors visited the previously highly regarded school in December after parents complained that students were being “taught”.
Families said non-white students were recruited into “discriminatory” interest groups for after-school clubs and children were taught “white fragility.”
Former head Robin Appleby, who introduced the agenda, resigned in November, saying she wanted to “focus on her well being.”
The Ofsted report states: “Teaching places much more emphasis on the school’s approach to social justice than on the study of subject knowledge and skills.”
It added: “Not everyone felt they were free to express their views in class.”
Ofsted said that in the elementary school social studies curriculum, students “spend a lot of time revisiting identity (including analyzing their own characteristics) rather than learning, for example, geographical knowledge.”
In high school, students had to focus on “social issues” rather than “skills” in subjects like English.
The report concludes: “Recognizing the importance of promoting equality, a significant minority of parents and students told inspectors that a culture has developed in which alternative opinions are not welcome.”
Former head Robin Appleby, pictured, resigned in November, saying she wanted to “focus on her own well-being.”
The current parent said: ‘As the report shows, teachers indoctrinate students with extreme, partisan views, academic teaching is pushed out of the way by over-the-top teaching of ‘social justice’, and most students are afraid to express their views in a grade.’
ASL has stated that it does not teach students that there are 62 genders or critical racial theory and is revisiting its curriculum.
A spokesman said of Ofsted’s decision: “ASL has been rated as outstanding in all of our previous reviews.
“This review, however, was unusual in scope and content, with a narrow focus on some aspects of our program.
“Despite meeting 96% independent school standards, our rating has been downgraded by two notches. We do not think this ranking reflects the quality of our school or the excellence of our teaching.”
Corine Hester will take over from Ms McQueen as the new head this month.