On Fox and Friends Tomorrow: Freeper help with Texas Textbooks?

self | 3/7/2010 | LS

[seowulf]

Texas and textbooks are very important for the entire country.

The large markets of Texas and California pretty much determine what textbooks are available to the smaller markets.

It is cost prohibitive to tailor textbooks to each state.

[I still care]

Lynn Cheney used to do a lot of stuff with textbook revisionism. Back when Reagan was president and I didn’t even know who she was, I found an abridged article by her in Readers Digest from I think the Wall St Journal.

It’s the only thing I ever cut out and saved, and it’s basically about how so much is left out of history texts because somebody is always insulted. It inspired me.

I read a book by Diane Ravitch about how both the left and right so waters down literature as to destroy its value. Here is also an interesting article.

http://www.eagleforum.org/educate/2004/july04/history.html

This is a subject that interests me very much. Years ago I began homeschooling because my son brought home a Steck-Vaughn AMERICAN geography book where all they could do was talk about Africa and the Aztecs, and they chose a person from each region of the country to teach geography - incredible choices like Rosa Parks, Elinor Roosevelt, Abraham Lincoln, John Muir, Sequoya.... not that they weren’t remarkable people, but is the list a little... one-sided?

Also his history book. The chapters on the pilgrims started out with that they didn’t allow women’s rights, and there was no mention of religion at all.

I decided I didn’t want my kids learning that kind of history.

[mware]

Interesting because I was just at a curriculum meeting for the middle school where I teach. (NJ)

Beginning Sept 2010 middle schools are going to be permitted to teach only history going up till 1860.

All the US history after that date is set aside for 9th-12th grade.

I went ballistic asking how are the students expected to understand the events of today if they have no background on the events that lead to it.

[mware]

LS, I don't know if this will help you but it is from the most recent curriculum meeting at our school.

Our curricula is broken into four main standards.

1. civics, government, human rights

2. geography, people, environment

3.economics, innovation, technology

4. history, culture, perspectives.

By 8th grade these areas are to be covered.

I. Standard 6.1 US History America in the World

* Three Worlds Meet (beginning to 1620)

*Colonization & Settlement (1585-1763)

*Revolution & Reform (1754-1820)

*Expansion & Reform (1801-1861)

*Civil War& Reconstruction (1850-1877)

II. Standard 6.2 World History/Global Studies

*Beginning of Human Society-Paleolithic and Neolithic ages

*Early Civilizations & emergencfe of Pastoral Peoples (4000-10000BCE)

*Classical Civilizations of the Mediterranean World, India & China (1000BCE-600CE)

*Expanding Exchanges & Encounters (500 CE-1450CE)

III. Standard 6.3 Active Citizenship in the 21st Century.

* Recognize causes and effects of prejudices on individuals, groups, and society

*Recognize the value of cultural diversity as well as potential for misunderstanding.

Let me tell you I let them know that it would be extreamly difficult to follow that last standard without teaching the time periods between the 1920-2001.

[wolfcreek]

There was an idiot in the paper today who said, “30% of the people in Texas believe dinosaurs and humans existed at the same time”.

Don’t bring that up.

[wolfcreek]

http://realhistoryreform.org/sign-our-petition/

[gitmo]

What time will your interview be aired?

[SoCalPol]

In certain parts of England they are also cutting their History. Starting at 1700.

Tought luck about that 1215 thing.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/education/educationnews/7215895/History-of-England-starts-at-1700-says-university.html

[Aggie Mama]

Here is a link to what is required right now per TEKS http://ritter.tea.state.tx.us/rules/tac/chapter113/index.html

The dreaded TAKS tests are based on these required skills.

I would imagine that the textbooks would follow those required TEKS.
I haven’t heard a word about the change regarding US history.

[freekitty]

Will be rooting for you LS.

[hocndoc]

Try these websites and (possibly) you may be able to contact the (elected, but volunteer, unpaid) SBOE members:

http://www.tea.state.tx.us/index4.aspx?id=3803

http://votekenmercer.com/ Won a tough Primary against a convenient Republican who was backed by Red McCombs - no one knows why. He faces a Democrat in November.

http://www.joaniemuenzler.com/ (This is one of those twilight zone stories. http://www.mysanantonio.com/opinion/86675592.html Joanie lost to a man that doesn’t seem very bright. None of us can figure the results of this Republican Primary, not at all. The man actually told local reporters that some one handed him an application and promised he’d get paid. He won’t say who gave him the promise. His qualifications? He claims that he’s qualified because he ran for office in college student government.

The only clue is that some anti-Republicans crossed over to skew our Republican Primary results http://scienceblogs.com/dispatches/2010/03/texas_sboe_wingnuts_lose_prima.php)

I believe that there is still ongoing controversy about the final form of our Social Studies TAKs, our minimum standards or knowledge set, but our kids will be taught about Christmas, the Liberty Bell, and Independence Day here in Texas.

[hocndoc]

http://scienceblogs.com/dispatches/2010/03/texas_sboe_wingnuts_lose_prima.php
It was probably these guys.

[wolfcreek]

I have a costumer, a younger man, who was asking me if I read the Bible. I said yes and he went on to say how he always laughs when people start talking about things that happened 1 million years ago.

I stopped him there, telling him I wasn’t a New Earther. He seemed really disappoint.

I’m not saying it’s an impossibility but, from what I’ve seen and researched, it isn’t very likely.

[RWGinger]

Was it on a local Fox atation ? if so what city in Texas? If it was a Texas coty Fox station that can easily be checked
I watch local Fox in Dallas and it was not on here.
I have never read or heard Texas is considering this but I did read North Carolina is

Are you sure Fox said it was Texas doing this? ( starting American History at 1877?)
Could it have been the national Fox broadcast?

[hocndoc]

OOOOH, what you said!

I’ve long held that it looks like the Lord used evolution, that we don’t know the time line other than that Man was probably a special creation, and to assume that the Earth is only 6 thousand years old is to assume that the Lord built lies and deception into it. (Adam and Eve probably didn’t have belly buttons, but they sure didn’t have the equivalent of an appendectomy scar - a physical manifestation of a false history - at their creation.)

In other words, the Lord showed Moses what happened and he did his best to tell us. The Judeo-Christian tradition has been able to accept the literally Earth-shaking idea that the world is not flat and the sun doesn’t revolve around us. We can take the knowledge that time did not begin a few days before the Fall.

[LS]

yep, I know what you mean. I did an analysis of one elementary school book and there were literally equal numbers of words given to European settlers, Indians, and AFRICANS in 1600!!! OUtrageous.

[LS]

Between 6:30 and 7:00 am tomorrow. The Tues. segment will be different, and I don’t know when the Tues. segment will run; then a second, different interview will run Tues. night sometime.

[wolfcreek]

Amen.... to what you said.

[gitmo]

Setting my DVR. I’m sure you’ll do great.

[gitmo]

Is that Eastern Time?