A Luther Burbank High School freshman was surprised to read his full name included on a biology final. Not only that, but he was being ridiculed. “In high school, there are individuals who are cross-eyed like (the name of a fellow student) and (the name of the student previously mentioned), which is a dominant trait. We call those individuals ‘weirdoes’. So, if you crossed two weirdoes (the two students named again), that are heterozygous for being cross-eyed, what is the offspring that would result?” Many students in the class were targeted by first and last name on the exam. Teacher Alex Nguyen chose to describe these students by their ethnicities and physical features, and then paired them up, posing questions about what traits a theoretical child of these two students would have. On one question, the teacher wrote a disclaimer, saying “in no way do I promote students being sexually active,” but the student’s parents and other teachers at the school said that the implication of any sexual relationship between students is inappropriate.
I call my son a goof when he does something silly! In the UK, it just means silly. The image in my head is of Goofy, the disney character.
Good to know if i ever go to canada.
Also, weirdo is so innocuous in the UK. It wouldn’t turn a head. But then i suppose we call people a “cunt” or a “dickhead” and it can be as friendly as saying “love you” or “you are hilarious” and as nasty as saying “die in a fire”
So i suppose i shouldn’t be surprised by the nuances found in language even if we are speaking the same language, especially when there’s an ocean of space between us.
Oh yeah it’s wild! Both “goof” and “weirdo” are completely innocuous where I am as well!