Texas ranks at bottom among border states on standards for Mexican history (cry me a rio)

http://www.lubbockonline.com/stories/060606/sta_060606058.shtml ^ | Tuesday, June 6, 2006 | Associated Press

[WestTexasWend]

DALLAS (AP) - Texas ranked lowest among the nation's four southern border states in its standards for teaching Latin American and Mexican history, according to a national study released Monday.

The study by the Thomas B. Fordham Institute, a Washington, D.C.-based think tank, said on a scale of zero to 10, Texas scored a five - just above the national average of 4.2.

California, meanwhile, scored a 10. Arizona scored a six and New Mexico scored an eight, said Walter Russell Meade, a senior fellow for the council on foreign relations who conducted the study based on a review of state education standards.

"It's likely that the state of world history education is a little worse than the standards since there isn't required testing," Meade said. "The subject might not be getting the kind of emphasis that it deserves."

Pat Hardy, a member of the state board of education and a history and geography teacher for the Weatherford Independent School District, disagreed with the analysis.

She said Texas uses a "spiraling curriculum" to teach world history which has more depth than most states because it introduces concepts at different levels and expands on them later.

"They have to understand that our standards are written in strands," Hardy said. "Students have been exposed all along the way to all aspects of the history, the government, the economics, the culture of the world. I think it's brilliant. The Fordham Institute doesn't know jack about teaching."

But at least one Texas lawmaker said the state still needs to increase its standards.

"It's a sad commentary that Texas, a border state, that's history is so intertwined with Mexico and Latin America, ranks so low on the scale," said Rep. Ruben Hinojosa, D-Mercedes.

Many states fared even worse than Texas, where Hispanics made up about 35.3 percent of the populace in 2003, according to the U.S. Census.

Thirty states have vague education standards for world history and Latin American and Mexican studies, said Michael Petrilli, vice president of the Thomas B. Fordham Institute.

Alaska, Idaho, Missouri and Montana each received a score of zero for having "superficial or cursory" standards on how to teach World History.

"It's as if many states were not aware that there are countries and cultures south of the Rio Grande," Petrilli said.

[Fruitbat]

"It's a sad commentary that Texas, a border state, that's history is so intertwined with Mexico and Latin America, ranks so low on the scale," said Rep. Ruben Hinojosa, D-Mercedes.

Hey Ruben, how many of the illegals invaders that come here do you think have a fraction of a clue about U.S. History other than crying up a river over how we "stole" their land. (PS To the winner go the spoils)

This sounds like a set-up to get Americans to begin tailoring our society to illegals! Next it'll be how Texans, Americans, whatever, don't know a second language, and of course Spanish will be the one that we should all know. Then they'll have "Mexican Home-Ec" classes, and who knows what else.

Let's get our students understanding American History before we start worrying about the history of one of today's most corrupt and next-to-worthless nations on the planet. When you sole resource is your people and even then primarily as unskilled labor, it's simply not good.

[NoTaxTexas]

Of all people, Krazy Kinky Friedman makes good sense about immigration:

Here's what Kinky told the Texarkana Gazette about the illegal Mexican alien problem:

"Mexico is not a poor country...all of these politicians are afraid of offending Hispanics. I want the border off the evening news until we get something resolved."

Kinky's been saying that Mexico ain't poor for better than a year now. Here's a another story out of the Kilgore News Herald, where Kinky says "Mexico is not a poor country."

Here's some other interesting stuff out of that story:

"He proposes auctioning Texas sports funding to the highest bidder -- Nike or Coca Cola or Adidas or some other corporation that would like the opportunity to “get their hooks into the athletes while they’re still young.”

...

“I am going to see non-denominational prayer and the Ten Commandments put back in the schools.”

Friedman said the Ten Commandments might have to be called the ten rules or something similar but they need to be back in the schools. “They say this is part of my wussification campaign but, as my spiritual advisor Billy Jo Schafer says, “If you don’t love Jesus, go to hell.”

One of Friedman’s most unusual ideas addresses border security.

He proposes creating what he calls the Five Mexican Generals plan. As he lays it out, the border with Mexico would be divided into five pieces with a Mexican general responsible for each. A $1 million trust fund would be created for each general.

“When I talk about the five Mexican generals, people think I’m joking but I’m dead serious,” said Friedman. “I will divide the border into five jurisdictions, assigning one Mexican general to each and providing a trust fund for that general. Every time a person crosses illegally, we subtract $5,000 from the trust fund.”