Christian OU student flunked after calling gender ideology 'demonic'

[Michie]

A Christian pre-med student has gone viral in recent days for filing a religious discrimination complaint with the University of Oklahoma after a trans-identified teaching assistant allegedly flunked her for an essay stating that gender ideology is "demonic."

Samantha Fulnecky, a junior at the University of Oklahoma who is majoring in psychology, received a zero out of 25 for a 650-word opinion essay she was told to write in her "Lifespan Development" class in response to an article about social gender expectations, according to The Oklahoman.

According to a copy of her essay published by the local outlet, Fulnecky asserted that God created two distinct genders with different roles, and that the idea of changing one's gender is a satanic assault against that design.

Continued below.

Christian OU student flunked after calling gender ideology 'demonic'

A Christian pre-med student has gone viral in recent days after filing a religious discrimination complaint that claims a trans-identified teaching assistant flunked her for an essay stating that

www.christianpost.com

 

[RileyG]

Ridiculous. That professor who failed her should be fired.

 

[Delvianna]

Good for her! I hope she wins against the school.

 

[RileyG]

Good for her! I hope she wins against the school.

Amen!

 

[PloverWing]

I am not convinced that flunking students and firing teaching assistants is a constructive way to engage in dialogue about controversial topics.

 

[RileyG]

I am not convinced that flunking students and firing teaching assistants is a constructive way to engage in dialogue about controversial topics.

That’s fair. I think when it comes to controversy, both sides of the issue must be presented in an unbiased, non-emotional manner. If I’m making any sense.

 

[jacks]

Some instructors aren't interested in teaching.
They just want their opinions parroted back to them.

 

[RileyG]

Some instructors aren't interested in teaching.
They just want their opinions parroted back to them.

In this case, the instructor was transgender, so he was very biased against this student. sigh

 

[PloverWing]

In this case, the instructor was transgender, so he was very biased against this student. sigh

And the "demonic" part would have been especially hurtful to the transgender/non-binary instructor reading the essay.

That’s fair. I think when it comes to controversy, both sides of the issue must be presented in an unbiased, non-emotional manner. If I’m making any sense.

If an instructor is going to give students an assignment to read and write about a controversial topic, then, yes, the focus needs to be on how to construct an argument and clearly lay it out in writing. If the topic is so emotionally charged that students and instructors aren't going to be able to set aside their emotions long enough to construct and evaluate arguments, then maybe pick a different topic for the assignment.

 

[RileyG]

And the "demonic" part would have been especially hurtful to the transgender/non-binary instructor reading the essay.



If an instructor is going to give students an assignment to read and write about a controversial topic, then, yes, the focus needs to be on how to construct an argument and clearly lay it out in writing. If the topic is so emotionally charged that students and instructors aren't going to be able to set aside their emotions long enough to construct and evaluate arguments, then maybe pick a different topic for the assignment.

Yes, it can be hurtful, I understand, but I can understand why the student may have felt that way. It’s not nice to call people “demonic,” but people should be free to express their opinion in a kinder, milder way? I don’t know if I am making sense?

 

[camille70]

How college assignment became latest battle in the culture wars

“She reacted to an imagined version of the article, not the research in front of her," Josh Olds says of Samantha Fulnecky.

baptistnews.com

...Nowhere in their research do Jewell and Brown discuss transgender identity, nonbinary identity, gender transition, pronouns or anything adjacent to contemporary culture-war debates. Rather, their focus is gender typicality — how closely a child’s visible behavior matches peer expectations...

...Fulnecky’s reflection misreads the article by assuming it is about transgender or nonbinary ideology, when in fact the article does not address those topics at all. Terms like “gender atypicality” refer to children liking non-stereotypical activities — boys who enjoy art, girls who prefer sports (and this is where we should note that Fulnecky is a member of OU’s women’s tennis team) — not to children questioning their gender. The reflection attributes views to the article the authors never express....

...Another misunderstanding arises when the reflection frames the article as advocating for “eliminating gender.” The study does not argue this. Its only claim is that children fare better when they are not punished for liking activities outside traditional stereotypes. Affirming that a boy can enjoy reading instead of football or that a girl can prefer science to dance is not a call to abolish gender. It is a call to stop harming children for being themselves....

...Fulnecky also denies the article’s central finding that gender-based teasing harms children, writing that teasing “is not necessarily a problem” and suggesting men and women are not pressured to conform. This contradicts the research directly, which links teasing to anxiety, depression, low self-esteem, negative body image and school avoidance. Dismissing these data because they conflict with personal ideology is not an academic critique — it is a refusal to understand or engage the material.

In short, Fulnecky’s reflection on Jewell and Brown’s article is not actually a reflection or reaction to the article. She does not meaningfully engage the article’s variables, data or methodology. She misunderstands its central premise and contradicts without rationale its central conclusion.
Instead of analyzing the study, Fulnecky critiques an ideological position unrelated to the article’s content. She reacted to an imagined version of the article, not the research in front of her. And that is the larger issue....

...Fulnecky’s response does not merely misunderstand Jewell and Brown’s findings; it reinforces the very harm the researchers documented. And this is not an isolated misreading but a textbook example of a broader pattern within contemporary conservative ideology, where empirical questions are routinely reframed as theological battles or moral panics.

Instead of engaging the study’s clear evidence that shame and teasing damage children, Fulnecky substitutes an entirely different issue: Gender panic and culture-war rhetoric.

By shifting the conversation away from the well-being of children and toward a manufactured ideological threat, she protects the systems of ridicule and social pressure the article identifies as harmful. In the end, Fulnecky’s reaction doesn’t just miss the point, it becomes part of the problem by perpetuating the very patterns of bullying and coercion she insists are acceptable for others while demanding validation for herself....

 

[2PhiloVoid]

A Christian pre-med student has gone viral in recent days for filing a religious discrimination complaint with the University of Oklahoma after a trans-identified teaching assistant allegedly flunked her for an essay stating that gender ideology is "demonic."

Samantha Fulnecky, a junior at the University of Oklahoma who is majoring in psychology, received a zero out of 25 for a 650-word opinion essay she was told to write in her "Lifespan Development" class in response to an article about social gender expectations, according to The Oklahoman.

According to a copy of her essay published by the local outlet, Fulnecky asserted that God created two distinct genders with different roles, and that the idea of changing one's gender is a satanic assault against that design.

Continued below.

Christian OU student flunked after calling gender ideology 'demonic'

A Christian pre-med student has gone viral in recent days after filing a religious discrimination complaint that claims a trans-identified teaching assistant flunked her for an essay stating that

www.christianpost.com

Didn't the professor inform students about how to construct and justify a reaction/opinion essay? If not, then the professor needs to add that into the curriculum and the rubrics of the class so the writing exercise itself doesn't become a socially engineered "gotcha" moment. Moreover, I don't think mere opinion essays are useful in a classroom, which is one reason I never assigned them when I taught.

Secondly, as a sophmore student of Psychology (of all things) at a secular, state university, Fulnecky should know what she's getting herself into by choosing that as a major. If she's planning on becoming a 'licensed' psychologist, she's not going to be able to earn the degree and also go into practice with rules that she, herself, makes up. She's going to have a tough time when she finally gets to engage the E.R.B.

Thirdly, the writing assignment was to be a response piece to an article dealing with Developmental Psychology (which is what the course she is enrolled in is supposed to be about, generally). [Link to the article abstract she was to respond to: https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1111/sode.12042 ]
She needs to know that she's not going to pass simply because she throws Bible verses alone onto a written page; no, she needs to show she has the ability to rationally demonstrate that she can have appropriate empathy for potential patients and medical sensibility. That is, if she's planning on going into professional practice as a psychologist.

This video from CBN provides a short interview and feedback from Fulnecky on the situation:

 

[seeking.IAM]

Interesting video. For those who don't want to take 13 minutes to watch it...instructor placed on administrative leave; University decision that her "0" will not be averaged into her final grade for the class. University posted messages that it will not tolerate religious discrimination.

 

[The Barbarian]

Students don't lose their religious liberties in attending college. That includes the right to express beliefs that many would find to be despicable.

 

[PloverWing]

The baptistnews.com article helps fill in some of the missing information. It's hard to evaluate the grading of the essay without a) reading the essay itself, b) reading the exact wording of the assignment, and c) reading the article she was responding to. The article fills in some of those pieces, though information is still incomplete here. The main question should be whether the essay met the requirements of the assignment.

The CBN video was informative to listen to. At the end, there's this exchange:

"I assume that, you know, you wouldn't change things if you could. Knowing everything you do now, you would do the same thing, right? I mean, I would assume that's true."
"Yes, absolutely."

This far into it, she probably needs to make that statement when speaking in public. But privately: if she could do it over, would she improve the essay in any way? Construct a more compelling argument, or address the research article more directly, anything?

 

[seeking.IAM]

I think a possible bias of the transgender teaching assistant is also in play here. One should grade a paper against the assignment requirements, not one's personal views. I believe the fact that the university placed the TA on administrative leave indicates they think so too.

 

[Yarddog]

A Christian pre-med student has gone viral in recent days for filing a religious discrimination complaint with the University of Oklahoma after a trans-identified teaching assistant allegedly flunked her for an essay stating that gender ideology is "demonic."

Samantha Fulnecky, a junior at the University of Oklahoma who is majoring in psychology, received a zero out of 25 for a 650-word opinion essay she was told to write in her "Lifespan Development" class in response to an article about social gender expectations, according to The Oklahoman.

According to a copy of her essay published by the local outlet, Fulnecky asserted that God created two distinct genders with different roles, and that the idea of changing one's gender is a satanic assault against that design.

Continued below.

Christian OU student flunked after calling gender ideology 'demonic'

A Christian pre-med student has gone viral in recent days after filing a religious discrimination complaint that claims a trans-identified teaching assistant flunked her for an essay stating that

www.christianpost.com

There's nothing to indicate that this is demonic in nature.

 

[camille70]

The baptistnews.com article helps fill in some of the missing information. It's hard to evaluate the grading of the essay without a) reading the essay itself, b) reading the exact wording of the assignment, and c) reading the article she was responding to. The article fills in some of those pieces, though information is still incomplete here. The main question should be whether the essay met the requirements of the assignment.

The CBN video was informative to listen to. At the end, there's this exchange:

"I assume that, you know, you wouldn't change things if you could. Knowing everything you do now, you would do the same thing, right? I mean, I would assume that's true."
"Yes, absolutely."

This far into it, she probably needs to make that statement when speaking in public. But privately: if she could do it over, would she improve the essay in any way? Construct a more compelling argument, or address the research article more directly, anything?

The essay is linked in the article via another site.

OU student says essay grade was a violation of her rights. Read the essay

In the essay, she wrote traditional gender roles should not be considered stereotypes. What do you think? Read the full essay and professor responses here.

www.oklahoman.com

There is also a google drive link to the instructions.

Reaction Paper Requirements crop.png

drive.google.com

I haven't found a non paywalled article for it but if you search Relations Among Gender Typicality, Peer Relations, and Mental Health During Early Adolescence Jennifer A. Jewell, Christia Spears Brown the ai options will provide a summary.

Edit: Instructor comments are also linked at the Oklahoman.com url.

​

 

[Yarddog]

I certainly wouldn't want this premed student looking at me. I would say that the paper that the student wrote should flunk.

Medical school is about science, not one's religious beliefs may be.

 

[PloverWing]

The essay is linked in the article via another site.

I haven't found a link that would successfully load in my browser.

I haven't found a non paywalled article for it but if you search Relations Among Gender Typicality, Peer Relations, and Mental Health During Early Adolescence Jennifer A. Jewell, Christia Spears Brown the ai options will provide a summary.

I may be able to get to the article through my university's library. I'll try later today.