How do they teach fifth graders in Tennessee about the history of race relations in the south? They begin with a vocabulary lesson…?

According to AP it goes something like this:

A crossword puzzle assigned as a homework lesson for fifth-graders studying a book about the 19th-century South asked them to use a racial slur the N-word as an answer.

At least one parent complained and the teacher, who is white, apologized to the parents of her students, said Donald Johnson, principal of Sequatchie County Middle School.

Johnson said the teacher obtained the crossword from a Web site, edHelper.com, a membership Web site that offers reading lessons, puzzles and other materials for teachers to download for use in class.

The AP story ends with this gem: “The principal said he was unsure if any black students were given the assignment.” So who’s more sadly incompetent: the journalist for asking that question or the principal for answering it?

Here’s ABC. Here’s Fox.

Image: No that’s not the classroom! Almost though: it’s Eastview elementary, 1946.

Tags: 'n' word, crossword, sequatchie county middle school