Do teachers normally have this much freedom in making up assignments?

[Platapus]

http://www.cnn.com/2013/04/12/us/new...html?hpt=hp_t2

An upstate school system apologized Friday after students got a writing assignment in which they were instructed to prove their loyalty to Nazi Germany by arguing Jews are "evil" and the source of that government's problems.....

Don't assignments need to be approved by some one other than the teacher? I was under the impression that teachers needed to submit lesson plans and such.

This is in High School.

When I was going through my advanced analysis courses in the military, we had to do such exercises and they do have their purpose, but not in high school

So we got some teachers here. Is it common for a teacher to have such freedom to make up assignments and not have them reviewed by anyone else in the school?