School Bans Children From Using Common Phrase To ‘Promote Inclusion’

Parents of children from a Massachusetts preschool are outraged after the school bans students from using the word “best friend”.

Christine Hartwell, a student’s mother, reported that Julia, her 4-year-old daughter, came home from school upset. Her teacher at Pentucket Workshop Preschool in Georgetown had told her that she could not use the term “best friends” to refer to her classmates.

According to Christine, “When I asked her what was wrong, she said she was really sad about what her teacher did that day.”

Christine, who says the announcement is  “outrageous” and “silly”, searched the school’s guidelines about the usage of the term. However, she found none and decided to seek advice from the school’s director.

However, the school director sent their family a letter, stating that a research was done on the term and it was found to be hurtful.

According to the director, they are discouraging children from using the term as it can promote inclusion.

In the letter, the director writes “It has been our experience (which spans decades) that the use of the term ‘best friend’, even when used in a loving way, can lead other children to feel excluded…which can ultimately lead to the formation of ‘cliques’ and ‘outsiders’.”

Christine has decided to transfer Julia ot another school and many have agreed with her decision.

One user on Facebook wrote, “Insane. I’m so sick of hearing that people might be offended. Grow a spine and suck it up. Not everyone is going to like you or be your best friend. Learn the lesson when you are little so you can grow up and be a normal adult.”

Another user also agreed, saying “Ridiculous! As director of a childcare centre in Newburyport, Ma, I hear my preschoolers saying: ‘You’re my best friend’ many times a day. In my experience children use this as a way of saying ‘I like you’ and will say it to many different friends. Telling a child they may not use a friendly term, in my opinion, hinders their thoughts and feelings that are exclusively their own. We encourage it as it should be.”

Sources: Independent / Photo Credit: ABC7