[eesmith]

You expressed an ideal view of what teaching should be, and could be if there is the time and funding for it.

However, you did not actually address my points.

When is the teacher supposed to research it? Teachers are already busy at school, and many end up also working at home. Will they get extra time at work for this research, or will it be more unpaid work for them at home?

Or will some existing demands on their time be removed, and if so, which ones? Will those demands be eliminated, or will the school hire additional staff?

When is the teacher supposed to explain it to the student? Which other topics should be covered less or skipped?

On top of that, this is the state of Florida, which has been deprofessionalizing teachers. The state removed tenure a few years ago, and switched to yearly contracts. Lawyers for the state argued in court that "reports card are meaningless and don't show if someone can read at grade level". (See http://curmudgucation.blogspot.com/2017/06/fl-death-to-publi... for more examples.)

This is the state that won't require 20 minutes of daily unstructured playtime for elementary school because 'There is a lot of emphasis on performing well on the mandated tests,” United Teachers of Dade president Karla Hernandez-Mats said. “Therefore teachers focus on utilizing every minute of instructional time.” http://www.miamiherald.com/news/politics-government/state-po...

This despite research showing how important recess is for the physical, mental, and social development of elementary school children.

That development isn't on the standardized tests. Neither are oddball/bullshit questions. Florida is doing all it can to de-incentivize a teacher from taking the time to "research it, understand it and explain to the student who is asking the question".

[babyrainbow]

>You expressed an ideal view of what teaching should be...

ideal? Try minimal. What according to you is the minimum requirement for teaching? Orating a textbook in front of a class and map questions to answers and make students learn the mapping?

[eesmith]

Remember, we're talking about bullshit topics.

A teacher should be able to say that it's bullshit, or more politely "outside the scope of the class", and move on, without the obligation to research it further.

It doesn't even need to be a bullshit topic. If a student asks a math teacher "What is the Treaty of Aix-la-Chapelle?", do you really think the math teacher "should research it, understand it and explain to the student who is asking the question"?

No, I don't think so. Teachers are not there as custom research assistants.

Furthermore, at some point the student needs to learn to do independent research, rather than always expecting that the teacher will be able to explain it to a student. This won't happen if teachers always spoon-feed answers.

We could totally change the system so that teachers are able to research and answer off-the-wall topics. However, you have still not addressed my points. Who will pay for the training and time needed for the teachers to research and answer bullshit questions, and which material should be covered less in order to teach bullshit topics?

Also, some students will deliberately ask questions to derail the class. "I was just asking questions". The teacher should be be under no obligation to answer those questions, and in fact should be able to reprimand that sort of behavior.