The late Charlton Heston, a vociferous president of the National Rifle Association,
which could become compulsory study
Posted on 03/12/2010 2:43:06 AM PST by bruinbirdman
Country and western music, the leadership of the Confederate General Stonewall Jackson and the work of America’s most powerful gun lobby will all have to be taught in Texas schools if conservatives prevail at a highly charged meeting of the state’s board of education.
A total of 48 of the 50 states have signed up to a plan being promoted by the White House for new, higher national educational standards but Texas and Alaska have opted out, in order to keep control of what is taught in their state-funded schools.
The late Charlton Heston, a vociferous president of the National Rifle Association,
which could become compulsory study
The effects will be felt far beyond Texas, because of its dominant influence over US textbook publishing. According to one estimate, 90 per cent of all American schools use the books approved by Texan officials. Social studies texts are likely, therefore, to give new prominence to Ronald Reagan, Newt Gingrich’s “Contract with America” and the role of Christianity in US history.
With more than a thousand school districts serving 4.5 million pupils, the Texas Education Agency is the second largest body of its kind in America, after its California counterpart, and by far the biggest to be overseen by elected conservatives.
Don McLeroy, chairman of the Texas Board of Education, is a Creationist who believes that the world was created 10,000 years ago and claims that history has vindicated Senator Joseph McCarthy, the instigator of the anti-Communist witch-hunts of the 1950s. Dr McLeroy, a dentist, will not be able to stand for re-election in November but says he intends to use his remaining time in office to leave his mark on Texas curriculum.
An amendment he proposed in January complained that the curriculum was “rife with leftist periods
(Excerpt) Read more at timesonline.co.uk ...
“Dr McLeroy, who has also said he believes that mankind and dinosaurs once cohabited on Earth,...”
I’ve never read of any credible evidence to support this conclusion.
Let’s not make this an evolution thread! He was right about McCarthy!
That is social justice...apparently the website didn’t even like me typing the term.
He was right about everything, but...
That is a strawman thrown in there by the left. Nowhere does it state the textbooks would have that prehistoric record, but without that guy in question, Reagan is out etc.
“That is a strawman thrown in there by the left.”
As is the picture of Heston.
Kudos to Texas.
I often thought of teaching history after I retire. I am so sick of the revisionist dribble running through the schools now.
“...I’ve never read of any credible evidence to support this...”
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And you never will.
History HAS vindicated McCarthy. Even the commies admit that and the KGB records prove it. Next.
This guy sounds like a certifiable nutjob and a Huckatard voter.
The only textbook needed in American History class is “A Patriot’s History of the United States”. I purchased it years ago when I first “met” you here on FR and I plan to read through it again completely this summer with my kids.
Outstanding book!
Thank you ma’am. Best thing I’ve ever written, that’s for sure.
Is it just me, or does anyone else have a problem with putting a heavy ingrained influence on either ideology in school is wrong-headed ? Turning out robotic righties is just as wrong as with the left, it’s CRITICAL THINKING that should be taught above all else, and a truthful, non-partisan take on history. We don’t teach critical thinking today.
I thinking teaching children to be able to pick apart the ideologies, seeing what spurred them on, and how they ultimately led to positive/negative results is very important. Teaching kids that leaders wanting to reform/transform society or solve societal ills often has a very negative end result. Kids shouldn’t have to be hammered with “Reagan was great !”, they should review Reagan’s policies and actions and draw the conclusion for themselves.
If you taught critical thinking, they wouldn’t be liberals. And that’s bad for business, at least for the ‘rats.
You’re right that critical thinking skills are the most important skills you can teach anyone. But teaching the constitution and the founding fathers, and real science vs junk science could hardly be described as ‘robotic right’ education. Every child in America should know the Constitution and the Declaration of Independence. They should know the basic workings of their own government. Maybe they can start teaching it in Kindergarten in place of sex-ed.
A deeper issue is that the nature of history itself involves bias. It cannot be otherwise, for the selection of this fact to present over that fact (and time or reading attention is limited) involves "value judgments" of what is important. So the very fact that I COVER battles in my Civil War or US History classes presents a very different approach to history than, say, Howard Zinn who never discussed a single battle.
So, when I give my speech on why Patriot's History is the best book, I note that one alternative---the one taken by most public schools---is a "food court," where every group is represented and discussed, but nothing is very tasty or satisfying. Our approach is a great steak restaurant, where we admit we do steaks (i.e., we do "America is a great country") and we try to avoid overcooking the meat.
Very well put.
Public schools in Texas ping
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