Hmmm. I agree discourse is sorely needed. I also would love to know how that teacher actually delivered the exercise. I didn’t read in the article that the principle rebuked the teacher. Rather the principal “decided” the activity was not age appropriate. If I were a principal facing upset parents in this circumstance, I may well decide this is not the hill I want to fight over and tell the teacher to find a different exercise

I personally think the exercise could be a wonderful frame for young people to understand the status differentials they surely observe. They know those privileges and disadvantages exist. Because the parents are unaccustomed to actually talking about these differences , the kids now are denied an educational opportunity to understand them better. Anything feels more weighty when it’s a forbidden topic.
But as you imply, the actual delivery makes the difference.