Posted on 03/11/2010 11:17:09 AM PST by a fool in paradise
Here's the press release:
...Here are the facts. The direct quotes come from the March 10 broadcast of Fox & Friends.
Fox: "Texas board of education begins hearings today on proposed changes to textbooks..."
The truth: The State Board of Education today is expected to take a preliminary vote on updated social studies curriculum standards... New social studies textbooks are not scheduled to be selected until 2011.
Fox: "So one of the proposed changes is to start history class in the year 1877."
The truth: Texas has and always will teach U.S. History from the beginning until present day....
Fox: Abraham Lincoln and George Washington have been removed from the textbooks.
The truth: The standards, not textbook, are before the board this week. Lincoln is required to be included in the first and eighth grade history classes, as well as in the U.S. government class. Washington is required to be taught in kindergarten, first grade, fifth grade and eighth grade... Additional modifications are still possible to both lists as the board debates the standards during its March and May meeting.
Fox: Independence Day and Veteran's Day are being deleted from the textbooks.
The truth: Again, the new history textbooks have not been written yet but they will be based on the curriculum standards adopted by the board...
Fox: References to Christmas have been deleted.
The truth: A TEKS review committee briefly recommended removing Christmas from a list that mentioned one major holiday for each of the world's religions...
Fox: Textbooks adopted in Texas will be used classrooms across the country.
The truth: Each state has its own textbook selection process. Publishers may offer other states the Texas edition of a book but they are not required to select it...
(Excerpt) Read more at blogs.chron.com ...
This is the board of education. Elected figures.
If you had bothered to read the resumes of the Board Members you would see how far off you are. Texas has an open meetings process that is sacrosanct. Any fool can go into the meeting and suggest a change.
Fox picking and choosing items to scare people with is NOT F&B.
Lacunae is a great word. I admit I had to look it up but will now take every opportunity to slip it into conversations.
I’ll believe Fox News before I’ll believe the pinky-ring union thugs every time.
FNC is getting this info from other news organizations and their affiliates.
“Sorry. I don;t beleive it and I believe FOX.
I think they got caught with their fingers in the cookie jar and were planning to do just this but FOX spoiled their party.
I don;t trust Educators and I don’t give a damn WHERE they came from.
They are, for the most part, anti-Western, Anti-Judaeo-Christian, ant-American, and pro-cultural relativism.”
Yes, agreed! I won’t believe a work of these truths until proven.
They don’t mention what they consider “the beginning”.
I stand corrected.
They also noted that a lot of the people on the state board appeared to oppose it.
Stop being so defensive.
Based on what I know of the NJEA and the National Teachers Association and the opinions of their members, I plain just don't trust them.
If you do, its your choice.
But I think being forewarned is being forearmed.
In this, FOX is correct. Although other states may adopt their own standards, because of the size of Texas, textbook publishers will produce books to the Texas standards. Many other states do not generate enough textbook sales for the publishers to generate a specific edition for them. Consider that Texas has over 20 million people, whereas Wyoming has about half the population of Austin. Dittos for North Dakota. The TEA is correct, though, that Texas imposes no mandates on other states.
As to other stuff, the Texas adoption process is very thorough. They've caught many factual errors in textbooks and required that publishers change them. IIRC, one textbook stated Harry Truman dropped the atomic bomb on the Germans.
It's also common for American History courses to be taught in two segments, with the break being after reconstruction in 1877.
I'm not saying either side is 100% correct, cause there are always some Marxists in the woodwork in education, but FOX sensationalized this beyond what's really going on.
OH don’t get me wrong. That is why Tx is so obsessed with the OML. Make them take a public stand.
I just didn’t like the tone that somehow because Tx has influence on the texts that there must be a bunch of Red Necks wearing six shooters and chewing tobacco involved in the process.
Granted these people are definitely, A personality and over-achievers, but they certainly are qulified. Tx takes this process very serious, and understands the ramifications.
They don’t mention what they consider “the beginning”.
Some point after the word...
I’ll believe FOX.
“I’ll believe FOX.”
Even if I didn’t, I’d want them to run with any story that calls for scrutinizing anything to do with schools...the freaking agitprop that gets pushed onto kids today is sickening...
Many high school students think Texas was.
Many high school students think Texas was.
For those of us who did not have the advantage of attending your public school we recognise that based upon the way the sentence was structured that the “beginning” refers to the beginning of US history.
” just didn’t like the tone that somehow because Tx has influence on the texts that there must be a bunch of Red Necks wearing six shooters and chewing tobacco involved in the process.”
And what is wrong with red-necks wearing six shooters and chewing tobacco? :)
See my tagline.
My problem is NOT with red-necks. As a matter of fact, I have been called that at times.
While other states can ADAPT their books, the starting point is the Texas textbook. So options for other states' textbooks are highly minimized.
Second, the author doesn't quite have the 1877 stuff accurate. Texas schools in lower grades teach all U.S. history, but the high school requirement is, and has been, 1877 forward. That is no change.
It is true they are only discussing curriculum, but I spoke to two of the Board members and an activist who knows the stuff, and the textbooks follow the curriculum by about 3 years.
Ok then your cool!!!!
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