[ngcles]

Hi Astraltraveller & All,

I can relate to your experience!

My daughter did astronomy as part of her "comprehensive" education two years ago at a large public high school in southern Sydney in Yr 10.

Of course, she didn't let Dad know she was doing astronomy in science, she didn't want me looking over her shoulder at what she was doing. But ...

One day near the end of the section she came home and asked:

"Dad, Sedna _isn't_ a planet, is it" -- No it isn't I replied "Why do you ask?" (privately I was very proud that she knew that despite her "apparent" disinterest in astronomy).

"Well, we were taught today that it _was_ a planet and I asked the teacher whether she was sure and the teacher said she was".

Hmmm ... well the teacher is wrong I'm sorry.

"Yep I told her that it was wrong and that she ought to check it out, and then the teacher said it would be in the exam at the end of the week _and_ that if I answer that Sedna is not a planet, I _will be marked incorrect_ and loose the marks. What should I do?"

Well that wasn't hard.

I told her to go into the exam and give the _correct_ answer and if anything comes of it, I would deal with it. I also armed her with print-outs of several pages from the IAU website on the status of Sedna confirming its KBO/non-planet status by the only body that has authority to make pronouncements on the subject.

She did the exam. She took Dad's advice. She was marked wrong.

After the exam, she took the point up with the teacher and produced the IAU documents that prove the point _definitively_.

The teachers response was (can you guess??):

(a) Oh yes, I see you are right. I'll fix it right away. Thanks for putting me straight.

(b) The curriculum documents clearly instruct that Sedna is the 10th planet in the solar-system. It is the only answer I can accept. What the IAU says is _irrelevant_.

Yep you guessed it, b.

Luckily parent-teacher night was the next week. It was an interesting conversation we touched firstly on the issue of the status of Sedna. The teacher asked "well what makes you an authority on the subject?" -- so I told her. Then, we discussed the absolute authority of the IAU on nomenclature.

Following this, we had a bit of a "fireside chat" over the role of the teacher, the importance of teaching factually correct material and lastly upon scientific method.

The marks were restored.

Was the correct material ever taught? Who knows. I'll bet all my daughter's classmates are still under the impression Sedna is a planet.

Most teachers do a sensational job but this fool really, really irritated me and I am given to wondering how much other incorrect stuff is taught, and how this wrong information could become part of the curriculum.

My daughter is now at a different school.

True story.

Best,

Les D
Contributing Editor
AS&T