Should Texas Adopt the Legislation of HB3263 and SB1348? by Mariana Aguirre

ABSTRACT __________________________________________________________________

Texas policy concerning textbooks has been criticized across the nation for adhering to political agendas on both sides of party lines. Among such accusations as liberal bias and conservative erasure, following public outcry in 2010, Senator Van de Putte and Representative Strama attempted to pass legislation that would create a higher education review panel when designing the Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills standards. These bills were designed in answer to the relative ease with which a curriculum reviewer can be appointed to the State Board of Education's "Expert Review Panel;" while the State Board utilizes several review panels, including open citizens' hearings, the Experts Panel in 2010 consisted of members who lacked higher education history credentials. This paper examines the role of conservative values, such as patriotism and citizenship, in the classroom, as well as progressive approaches to minority inclusion in the teaching of history. It also investigates the history and abilities of the State Board. American culture has lead to the perfect storm of ideological warfare in which the motion of dialogue, while essential to development of the nation, has come to a standstill, which prevents the cultivation of a global understanding essential in this pluralistic society.

TABLE OF CONTENTS _____________________________________________________________________________ _

Final Submission……………………………………………………………………………5 Works Cited………………………………………………………………………………..19 Bibliography………………………………………………………………………………..21 Submission One…………………………………………………………………………….27 Submission Two…………………………………………………………………………….39 Submission Three…………………………………………………………………………...43 Submission Four…………………………………………………………………………….51 Appendix…………………………………………………………………………………….71

Texas History: Should Texas Adopt the Legislation of HB 3463 and SB 1348 to Create a Higher Education Review Panel for the TEKS Adoption Process in Order to Curb the Influence of Political Ideology? Capstone Final Submission

7 "I don't use the textbooks," says Pamela Mathai, eighth grade history teacher, as she delicately scoops pomegranate seeds onto her fork. "I literally haven't touched the textbooks all year," she adds, nodding at the stacks of new Pearson history books in a back corner of her classroomi. Mathai, a grad student at the University of Texas at Austin, has trusted textbooks less and less the more she's worked in the classroom. Currently the US history teacher at Anne Richards School, Mathai creates her own exercises. If she uses a textbook, it's for guidance only; and even then, it won't be a state-approved book. "Thank goodness I'm allowed to do that here; we have really supportive principals." This distrust of the textbook would come as no surprise to Texans following the scandals in the realms of education. This fall, the controversial set of textbooks amended through the 2010 review process made their debut in Texas public school classroomsii. Though many of the more dramatic changes were omitted at final consideration, nonetheless, some students, parents, and teachers remain concerned. Corby Burren, an Austin ninth grader, found his textbook to reference the thousands of black slaves brought to developing America as "workers." Over a third of the state's school districts are reported to have bought the McGraw-Hill geography bookiii. Having served on Austin Independent School District's textbook adoption committee herself, Mathai explained the frustrations she encountered: "It was really a choice between a rock and a hard place; we had to choose the best of the worst, and we ended up with Pearson."iv Many textbooks' wording was also changed during the 2010 review. "Imperialism" for "expansion," and "free enterprise system" replaces use of the traditional "capitalism."v It's a slightly confusing and even oddly disappointing change for the majority of us who grew up

8 bandying about the charming epithet "capitalist pig," for instance. Yet, of course, this exactly what the State Board of Education (SBOE) was seeking to avoid. The word "capitalism" itself is entrenched in a complex network of historical blame and generally negative connotations; resentment of the country does not number among the key values American children are required to become familiar with. "I kind of feel like America is a low key version of North Korea; like, they don't want to expose the bad things, and by letting out the bad things we've done it would ruin this ideal image of what a perfect American looks like," says Esmeralda, one of Mathai's students.vi And this fear of censorship certainly has merit, considering some of the figures blotted out in the new books. They feature a decreased presence of minority figures, such as Justice Sotomayor, for example, in exchange for conservative advocates, such as Phyllis Schlaflyvii. According to a report released by the Texas Education Agency in 2013, above fifty percent of public school children belong to the Latino population alone.viii Considering the growing proportion non-white students, some scholars argue for an equally proportionate coverage of their history. Julio Noboa, a history professor at the University of Texas at El Paso, has frequently spoken out on behalf of these students, whose ancestors define the state itself. Referencing ranchero culture and the free use of Spanish language throughout the state, Noboa says "Our entire way of Texas life is infused with Mexican culture; it partly defines us as Texans".ix Proponents of the changes to the old textbooks might be demonstrating a fear of just that, however: it is destabilizing, and rather disconcerting, to think that your nation is not exclusively under your Anglo influence. Patriotism has found its way into the textbook discourse through promotion of conservative idealism, which promulgates the historically dominant white

9 hegemony. Inclusion of alternative voices threatens the status quo: as Mathai tells her students, "they don't want you to question God and question the way things are: that's devastating to them. It's disruptive to the ways things are once you start looking at it from a critical perspective."x Perpetuation of conservative ideals is what patriotism has come to mean in the educational milieu. This summer, Rep. Leach (R), proposed a bill mandating a requisite focus on American Exceptionalism and patriotism to be covered in schools.xi The bill, which failed to pass in the House, represents a deeper anxiety about a precarious societal inclination toward a rash liberalism, which, through violent inclusion of the proverbial other, is thought to lead to the dreaded laxity of morals and security. One needs only look to campus-carry laws, or the Syrian refugee crisis, to observe the good patriots' motions to cling to the solid bastion of Americanism in the face of danger, change, and dangerous change. This isn't to say patriotism itself isn't rife with its own dangers. As explained by Michael Merry, professor of philosophy at the University of Amsterdam, the "cultivation of loyal patriotism is likely to promote a myopic understanding both of one's national history as well as its contemporary role in a globalized society"xii. Or, as put by Ed Countryman, Southern Methodist University professor of American colonial history, "Patriotism means telling children who know better that America has always been right and true and just and wonderful from the beginning... That's a fairytale."xiii As we spoke, the conversation grew past Texas textbooks to encompass the cultural phenomenon of Americans' belief in their superiority. From the beginning, it seems we've fallen prey to the notion that, as citizens of a land of opportunity, opportunity must be especially belonging to us; or perhaps, that we are especially deserving. Countryman broke it down: "Theologically, the notion that God picked this country to free from the general condition of

10 human misery is garbage. We have a lot of stuff to be proud of, but there's no point in boasting, when anyone with a brain can see through the boasts." Indeed: the bizarre nature of the textbook debate itself represents this mentality. The mythic American ideal of the individualist-- the selfmade man-- has cultivated a rejection of authority. The initial efforts of the State Board were informed by large public participation. The Texas Essential Skills and Knowledge requirements, or the TEKS, have been reviewed every ten years since their formal inception in 1997. They are comprised of two general curricula, foundational, and enrichment, which cover, respectively, math, science, English and history, and then the filler to the framework, including the arts, health, PE, and foreign languages.xiv Through the 1980s, education underwent several reforms which lead to the the creation of the State Board of Education as a necessary arbiter in the political field of curriculum standards. State standardized tests have been reformed, and changed names, half a dozen times since then, with our current TAKS test (Texas Assessment of Knowledge and Skills) as the final result. These tests have evolved in conjunction with the TEKS to ensure that students graduate with a firm set of foundational understanding; prior to the creation of the TEKS, the state did not have any comprehensive, state-wide required curriculum standardsxv. Creation of the TEKS owed much to the sloughing away of an outdated and somewhat chaotic scholastic mire; as the first Essential Skills were developed, finally reaching legislative approval of its first iteration in 1984, members of the SBOE, then referred to as the Texas Board of Education, removed the excess foliage of academia and devised the minimum unit system. For example, jewelry making classes were cut statewide, while a unit of economics became required for graduation.

11 When the current TEKS were established in 1997, they were reviewed, written, debated, and read over by hundreds of participants, ranging from schoolteachers and parents to panels selected by the SBOE. Three hundred and fifty people were involved in the writing of the TEKS, and eighteen thousand provided suggestions and guidance in public hearing testimonials and written review throughout the standards' developmentxvi. The participation of the citizen in this process set the precedent for years to follow; various activist groups and organizations have successfully, throughout the 2000s, brought about change in the states' curriculum. This includes the removal of "pro-Islamic bias" and ensures only delicate references to climate change as theoryxvii. The fifteen members of the SBOE are elected by each district within the state; the chairman is selected by the governor; all members serve for four years on the board. Two recent chairs, Don McLeroy, and Donna Bahorich, have had their qualifications questioned by some; the former is professionally a dentist, and the latter, holding degrees in both counseling and financial management, is a homeschool mother. Other members of the SBOE have received some doubtful comments as well; their degrees and professional backgrounds include an attorney and a real estate salesmanxviii. Bahorich considers her administration skills and â&#x20AC;&#x153;peopleâ&#x20AC;? skills which she believes essential to the post. "I get excited when I see great work going on," she said in an interview on the Texas public radio show The Source. "I'm really good at trying to network people who should be talking to people."xix The people she avails herself of, then, hold the key to total knowledge for the wee ones. In fostering the kind of cross-divisional dialogue she refers to, perhaps her credentials aren't the issue so much as the credentials of those she draws on as resources.

12 The textbook adoption process involves not only the requisite adherence to TEKS standards, and approval of the SBOE as recommended by member-selected review panels, public committees, and advocacy groups. Preeminent among the panoply of panels is the “expert review panel.” Currently, those who serve on the six-member expert review panel must be nominated by two board members, and finally approved by the SBOE chairxx. Yet, though the name expert certainly carries the resonance of authority, actualization of the team’s creation belies the reassurance: nomination and approval are the only considerations which qualify anybody to serve on the team. Among the past review members, four of whom were actually professors, two represented another side to the education debates: David Barton and Peter Marshall. The latter is a reverend by profession; David Barton founded the organization Wallbuilders, a patriotic religious group "dedicated to presenting America's forgotten history and heroes, with an emphasis on the moral, religious, and constitutional foundation on which America was built," according to their website.xxi Barton's 2009 review of the TEKS, published through the Texas Education Agency, which is directed by the SBOE, stressed the importance of citizenship and requisite dedication to the countryxxii. Along the same line of thought, Barton accused the language of textbooks of promoting societal division; rather than focusing on the "differences" between ethnic, racial and religious groups, he claims the contributions of individuals should be studied regardless of their backgrounds. Such a position might lend itself to inclusion, however, Barton also figures among those who protest the inclusion of too many references to Islam in schoolbooks; Barton’s appointer, chairman McLeroy, was part of a successful campaign in 2010 to reduce supposed favorable reference to Islam in these books.

13 That motion, headed by an SBOE board candidate, Randy Rives, claimed that lines in the books about Islam more than doubled the number of those on subjects related to Christianity: the books “[imply] that Christian brutality and Muslim loss of life are significant but Islamic cruelty and Christian deaths are not”xxiii. Similarly, Roy White, head of the Truth in Texas Textbooks Coalition, a volunteer-based organization which compiled thousands of issues found within textbooks, has found major issue with the presence of Islam in schools and government. A veteran and retired high school teacher, White heads the Atascosa County division of ACT! For America, an organization with a mission to educate the public with regards to the dangers of encroaching Islamic culture. White was especially alarmed by the cultural education received by recruits at San Antonio’s Lackland Air Force Base: he called the efforts to familiarize soldiers with Islam proselytizing.xxiv When I spoke to him, he made it clear that truth, indeed, is exactly what his coalition seeks to ensure for the children in American schools. At least four people confirmed the factual errors found by volunteers; fifteen percent of these errors were omitted in the organization’s final report as unconfirmed. The SBOE and publishers accepted a majority of the changes proposed. White denounced the “PC” mentality that leads to omission or partial obfuscation of historical fact: “the result is a skewed view of World History and thereby a failure to understand current world events because what happens today is directly related to what happened in Islam 1400 years ago”xxv. Also echoing a sentiment of Barton’s, White described the need to include cultural history as celebrating the achievements of individuals as independent of their backgrounds: “It is difficult to understand how learning about the history of America can somehow be harmful to

14 anyone wishing to call themselves American, regardless of what ethnicity or culture they come from, after all, we’re all Americans.” Such blanketing over of the identity of important figures is problematic for Ed Countryman: "Who you are, and what you are, and what you do, it makes a difference in how you take part in a situation." The idea of neutralizing a person's background, while perhaps convenient to the conservative right, nonetheless functions poorly as a means to understand the people of a nation. "We're all humans, and we're all caught up in this," Countryman continuedxxvi. Yet Noboa, who himself has served on the panel of expert reviewers, points out, only a fraction of the KSAS, or Knowledge and Skills Areas of the broader TEKS requirements, cover non-white, non-European figures.xxvii Even when the population of the schools is taken out the question, the accomplishments of minority figures surely cannot be so minimal as to evade the magnitude of achievement here used as the standard for inclusion. Noboa’s term on the expert review panel did not come to a satisfactory close: he reported, in an open letter to his district Rep Branch, the blatant refusal of the SBOE members to sufficiently take into consideration his and other scholars’ testimonies of the errors and coverage of the 2010 TEKS. The SBOE doesn’t require a strict check of the credentials of the review panel, and neither is it required to maintain fidelity to the information provided by any academic who is serving on the panel. “Someone’s gotta stand up to the experts," McLeroy himself claimed, when confronted with his support of inclusion of creationist theory in science books.xxviii It's a sentiment difficult for many to understand. What would be the purpose of an expert review panel if their contributions are routinely ignored? "It's all for show," Pamela Mathai contends.xxix

15 "Whether you're talking about humanities, the social sciences, or hard sciences, there is real knowledge that people work hard to get, and people like McLeroy scorn the whole effort," Countryman saidxxx. Noboa's letter was accompanied by a similar entreaty by James Kracht, a professor of education at Texas A&M University, who also served on the expert review panel during the 2010 review session, and co-chair during the first drafting of the TEKS through 1997xxxi. Both Noboa and Kracht stressed the importance of disinterested, rather than ideologically selected and motivated, candidates to participate in the expert review panel; in 2011, following scandalous national attention, legislative action was attempted to remedy the apparently uncontrollable power of the SBOE. Rep. Strama proposed HB 3463, and Sen. Van de Putte, SB 1348, which remain in committee despite bipartisan support.xxxii The bills describe a process for the creation of larger expert review teams, consisting of a minimum of five university nominated members for each subject of the TEKS; in addition, each candidate must have a doctoral, terminal degree, or else at least five years teaching in higher education. Not only would these teams have a thorough practical experience in teaching to assist in the college-preparatory aspect of the TEKS standards; they would also, quite simply, have guaranteed professional familiarity with the subjects under review. In addition to the creation of the teams themselves, the bills would implement a blind review of the suggestions by the members of the SBOE. In spite of significant support of academics and the public at large, the bills have not been passed. Perhaps the anti-intellectualism of which American culture has been accused is too deeply a part of our heritage to allow the SBOEâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s enslavement to any representatives of the higher education community.

16 Ah, History, the languishing damsel of Petrarchan lore. Vacillating is the nature of this fickle chase, the dame balancing elusive coquetry and enraptured submission; the pursuer, too, can neither will the claim nor quit the attempt. At once History should be pure, whole, and unadulterated by any hand of possession; yet also, each of her followers wishes the sole total domination of the text, thereby entitling himself to the rights that falls to him in the patriarchal union. Impossible to possess, insidiously coveted yet; the dynamism behind the flow of information can neither be relied upon as pure, independent, and whole, nor as inclined to apolitical narration, given the fact, clearly, that it must always be narrated. And the auditors, of course, those prize little beansprouts, fall invisibly to the enchanting machinations of history's writers. Mathai's classroom, covered in owls and portraits of wise human-folk as well, also bears a largely sober panel titled, "Our Struggle Wall." Taped up in staggered segments is the Langston Hughes poem, "What Happens to a Dream Deferred?" "I use that as a reminder, of what it's like not be counted, not be seen as part of national community; what it's like to miss out on these opportunities. We've tended to keep an idea of what America is, and that idea is held in the hands of white, wealthy men " Mathai says. "As the year goes on, we add more to the wall, all the liberties we associate with democracy... So we can see that circle broken open, how we can reform these ideas, how we've changed the way power has been accessed."

17 i Mathai let me into her eighth grade history class on December 9th, where we discussed with students their experiences with discrimination. We also discussed the image of the “ideal American,” and manners through which they can take action to speak up about marginalization of minorities. ii See Tim Walker’s succinct coverage of the controversy, including a slideshow of the effected changes. iii Jechow reports on the discovery, and subsequent promises of the publishers to change the wording in future copies. iv Mathai and I discussed her experiences in the Austin ISD prior to meeting with her students. See my Submission Four for further quotes. v Walker, slideshow depiction vi Mathai’s students engaged freely with their experiences and observations. “We even have an ideal Texan image!” she continued. See Submission four for other student contributions. vii Walker, textbook changes slideshow. viii Tony Castro wrote an analysis of the growing minority population in schools for the Huffington Post, in which he references this study. ix Noboa, “Mexican American Studies Belong in the Classroom.” x See Submission Four xi HB 3403; see Appendix for the full text. xii Merry, “Patriotism, History, and the Legitimate Aims of American Education.” xiii See my Submission Four for the full conversation with Countryman. xiv Noboa, “Missing Pages from the Human Story: World History according to Texas Standards.” xv See Bridgman’s news report on the changes in standards xvi Noboa, “Missing Pages from the Human Story.” xvii See Hallman for full coverage of the issue. xviii See the website for the Texas Education Agency for full biographies of each of the SBOE’s members. xix See Flahive’s interview on Texas Public Radio xx Texas Education Agency xxi See the Mission Statement on the Wallbuilders’ official website. xxii Barton’s full review is available online at the TEA’s website. xxiii See Hallman for the full story. xxiv White’s public speaking event was posted on the Atascosa’s County Tea Party Facebook page. xxv See Submission Four for the full interview. xxvi See Submission Four for the full interview. xxvii Noboa, “Missing Pages from the Human Story.” xxviii Texas Freedom Network features a dozen articles dedicated to coverage of the issue, throughout which this infamous gem is scattered. xxix See Submission Four for full interview. xxx See Submission Four for full interview. xxxi Kracht and Noboa’s letters can be found on the Texas Freedom Network’s coverage of the history of the Texas textbook controversy. xxxii See Appendix for the bill’s full text.

WOKRS CITED

19 _____________________________________________________________________________ _

Barton, David. "2009 TEKS Review." Texas Education Agency. June 18, 2010. Bridgman, Anne. "Texas Board Approves 'Essential Elements' For Schools' Curricula." Education Week, Editorial Projects in Education. February 22, 1984. Castro, Tony. "Hispanics Now Majority in Texas Public Schools, Districts Assess If They are Ready for Challenge." Latino Voices, Huffington Post. June 12, 2013. Countryman, Ed. Interview. November 24, 2015. Hallman, Tristan. "SBOE OKs Resolution Alleging Muslim Bias in Textbooks." The Texas Tribune. September 24, 2010. Web. Jechow, Andy. "Publisher plans to change controversial textbook." KXAN News. LIN Television of Texas. October 5, 2015. Web. Kracht, James B. Letter to Senator Zaffirini, SB 1348. Texas Freedom Network. April 12, 2011. Leach, Jeff. “An Act Relating to Public School Curriculum and Textbooks,” H. 3403. 84th Legislature, 2015-2016. Mathai, Pamela. Interview. December 9, 2015. Merry, Michael. "Patriotism, History, and the Legitimate Aims of American Education." Education Philosophy & Theory, Vol. 41 Issue 4, p 378-398. August, 2009. Noboa, Julio. "Mexican American studies belong in Texas classrooms." El Paso Times. March 23, 2014. Web. Noboa, Julio. "Missing Pages from the Human Story: World History According to Texas Standards." Journal of Latinos & Education, Vol. 11 Issue 1, p47-62. 2012.

20 Tea Party Patriots of Atascosa County. "Tea Party Meeting." Facebook. August 24, 2014. Web. Wallbuilders. Organization Website. Walker, Tim. "Don't Know Much About History." National Education Association, NEA Today Magazine. Website. White, Roy. Interview, 31 October 2015.

21 BIBLIOGRAPHY _____________________________________________________________________________ _

Barton, David. "2009 TEKS Review." Texas Education Agency. June 18, 2010. Bridgman, Anne. "Texas Board Approves 'Essential Elements' For Schools' Curricula." Education Week, Editorial Projects in Education. February 22, 1984. Brockman, David. "6 Overlooked Takeaways from a Reviewer of Controversial Texas Textbooks." Religion Dispatches. University of Southern California. December 17, 2014. Website. Brown, Emma. "Texas Officials: Schools Should Teach that Slavery was a 'Side Issue' to Civil War." Washington Post. July 5, 2015. Website. Castro, Tony. "Hispanics Now Majority in Texas Public Schools, Districts Assess If They are Ready for Challenge." Latino Voices, Huffington Post. June 12, 2013. Countryman, Ed. Interview. November 24, 2015. Davies, David Martin. "Sorting Out Truth and Fiction in the CSCOPE Controversy." Texas Matters, Texas Public Radio. April 1, 2013. Dunham, Richard. "Are Latinos missing from Texas History Textbooks?" Texas on the Potomac, Chron. November 22, 2009. Website. Eichenwald, Kurt. “A Textbook Case of Bad Textbooking.” Newsweek Global, Vol. 163 Issue 13, p22-25. 3 October 2014. Web. Flahive, Paul. "The Source: Texas' State Board of Education and Textbooks." KSTX, Texas Public Radio. July 2, 2015. Web.

22 Gabbay, Tiffany. "CSCOPE: Exposing the Nation's Most Controversial Public School Curriculum System." The Blaze. March 7, 2013. Website. Hagen, Kirk; Morano, Lisa. “The Texas Textbook Wars.” Skeptic, Vol. 11 Issue 1, p18-20. 2004. Hallman, Tristan. "SBOE OKs Resolution Alleging Muslim Bias in Textbooks." The Texas Tribune. September 24, 2010. Web. Haq, Husna. "Liberals and Conservatives both Object to New Texas Textbooks." The Christian Science Monitor. September 18, 2014. Hope, Merrill. "Progressive Bias Rampant in Texas Textbooks." Red Hot Conservative. November 10, 2014. Web. Jechow, Andy. "Publisher plans to change controversial textbook." KXAN News. LIN Television of Texas. October 5, 2015. Web. Kracht, James B. Letter to Senator Zaffirini, SB 1348. Texas Freedom Network. April 12, 2011. Leach, Jeff. “An Act Relating to Public School Curriculum and Textbooks,” H. 3403. 84th Legislature, 2015-2016. Mathai, Pamela. Interview. December 9, 2015. McKinley, James C. Junior. "Texas Conservatives Win Curriculum Change." New York Times. 12 March, 2010. Website. Mendina, Jose. "The Experts Speak." TFN Insider, Texas Freedom Network. April 18, 2011. Merry, Michael. "Patriotism, History, and the Legitimate Aims of American Education." Education Philosophy & Theory, Vol. 41 Issue 4, p 378-398. August, 2009. Michel, Patrick. "A New Conservative Watchdog's Big Textbook War Debut." Texas Observer. November 25, 2014. Website.

23 Noboa, Julio. "Mexican American studies belong in Texas classrooms." El Paso Times. March 23, 2014. Web. Noboa, Julio. "Missing Pages from the Human Story: World History According to Texas Standards." Journal of Latinos & Education, Vol. 11 Issue 1, p47-62. 2012. Paulson, Amanda. "Texas Textbook war: 'Slavery' or 'Atlantic Triangular trade'?" Christian Science Monitor. May 19, 2010. Web. Pierard, Richard; McDaniel, Charles. "Reappropriating History for God and Country." Journal of Church and State, 52 no2, p193-202. 2010. Stewart, Philippa H. "The Great Texas Textbook Debate." Aljazeera. 11 March 2014. Tea Party Patriots of Atascosa County. "Tea Party Meeting." Facebook. August 24, 2014. Web. TEKS Watch. "Participants in the Revision Process." Web. Texas Education Agency. 2007-2015 Website. Texas Freedom Network. Website. Wallbuilders. Organization Website. Walker, Tim. "Don't Know Much About History." National Education Association, NEA Today Magazine. Website. Walt, Stephen M. "The Myth of American Exceptionalism." Voice, Foreign Policy. October 11, 2011. Web. "What is TEKS?" Texas A&M University. 20 July 2011. Web. White, Roy. Interview. October 31, 2015. Wiley, David; Barr, Elissa. "Health Education Textbook Adoption in Texas: A Lesson in Politics and Morality." American Journal of Health Education, Vol. 38, Issue 5, p295-300. September-October 2007.

24 Worthen, Molly. "Texas Textbooks: A Case Study for Creationism's Staying Power." Religion & Politics, Washington University in St. Louis. January 14, 2014. Website.

PREVIOUS SUBMISSIONS _____________________________________________________________________________ _

SUBMISSION ONE ___________________________________________________ _

I. Topic Question: Should Texas adopt legislation proposed in HB 3463 in order to form a professional higher education committee to review the TEKS? II. Underlying Social Problems: A. Social Problems: Texas students receive an education founded upon conservative principles of individual liberty, religious freedom, an awareness of the free market economy, and heteronormative sexualities restricted to marriage. Texas State Board of Education members focus on the necessity of maintaining strong patriotism, without which students are inclined to rebel, to participate in deviant behavior, and question policy makers and traditional authority models. However, actualization of these goals of order within the school system leads to the omission and recasting of history, science, and health information to serve a conservative religious ideology, and students receive instead a partial understanding of their agency, culture, and global position, in addition to other that of other people. B. Scope of the Social Problems: The Texas textbook market is the second largest in the nation, behind California; any standards set by Texas will effect students across the region as well. Many of the changes promoted by the State Board of Education, and the standards currently in place, leave out a good portion of minority history and achievement, especially problematic considering that above 40% of Texas students belong to Latino ethnicities alone.

III. Proponent Stakeholders

30 A. Proponents’ Position: That textbooks have had a thoroughly liberal left leaning which needs correction to promote American values of free enterprise, religious morality, and patriotism B. Religious conservatives, teachers, parents, school board members. C. Conservative Teachers of America, Texas State Board of Education

IV. Proponents’ Issues, Arguments, Evidence, and Plans/Actions A. America is founded on Western Protestant principles and should adhere to this cultural heritage B. Students should be taught to value conservative relationships status and maintain a sense of deferential duty to the family, country C. Students should be exposed to various scientific theory on the origins of the universe, based on both secular research and belief systems, including creationism and intelligent design A. Pro Stakeholder:Values: family, liberty, free enterprise, heteronormative behavior, national reverence

VI. Opponent Stakeholders A. Opponents’ Position: Texas standards skew history and vital information and create an ignorant public B. General con stakeholders: historians, parents, teachers, scientists, health professionals VII. Opponents’ Issues, Arguments, Evidence, and Plans/Actions A. History standards seek to blur out the United States' history of racism, sexism, and secular thought through rhetorical bias and blatant omission and obfuscation of fact B. Scientific standards are decreased by the inclusion of non-scientific theory as valid

31 C. Students are insulated against vital health information concerning sexuality, sexually transmitted diseases, and pregnancy prevention

VIII. Examples of Opponentsâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; Values: knowledge, importance of history, freedom to question and dissent

IX. Definitions/Explanations: 1. Texas State Board of Education (SBOE) comprised of fifteen district representatives, not required to have professional experience in academia/ education 2. Texas Education Agency (TEA), of which SBOE is a division 3. Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills (TEKS): the curriculum standards to which published textbooks must adhere. 4. Knowledge and Skills Areas (KSAs): the specific requirements for curricula in the various disciplines. 5. Texas Education Code (TEC) which is an overarching mission statement X. Limits: will not investigate current health/ science issues as much as history, for patriotism is the emphasis of this paper: however, both topics will be covered as the founding principles for the adoption of HB 3403 include religious standards which also affect these two areas.

Brown, Emma. "Texas Officials: Schools Should Teach that Slavery was a 'Side Issue' to Civil War." Washington Post. July 5, 2015. Website.

32 This news article details the fact that new Texas education curriculum standards do not include fundamental knowledge on the nation's race history. Students are required to read the inauguration speech of the Confederate president Jefferson Davis, while at the same time, the textbook standard totally omits any information on the Ku Klux Klan and Jim Crow laws. The American Historical Association is referenced in citing slavery as an integral impetus in the cause for the Civil War, as states' rights-- currently taught as the reason for the war-- were naturally an extension of the argument for slavery. While the histories of the North and South divide over the causes of the war even a century and half after the fact, the historical bias and skew of information began at the war's end: textbooks with conflicting information were beginning to enter schools for the North and South separately. This general locally inclined understanding of national phenomena feeds into the argument against district-set standards, or "home rule" of districts within states. Many conservative educators seek home rule, rather than national curriculum standards, to better influence the information local students receive.

Eichenwald, Kurt. “A Textbook Case of Bad Textbooking.” Newsweek Global, Vol. 163 Issue 13, p22-25. 3 October 2014. Web. Eichenwald begins his article by framing the issue of textbook regulation within the “anti-elitist” mindset of some conservative textbook revisionists. This idea falls under the general discomfort of some Americans with educated professionals, a symptom of our country’s rampant anti-intellectualism. He argues that the writing of history textbooks should be left to the historians: opponents of current history textbooks are concerned with the often unfavorable casting of American history and national figures. By including some of the nation’s less than honorable moments, such as displacement of and violence towards native peoples, and by

33 refusing to depict the Founding Fathers as impeccable scions of unquestionable morality, the textbooks make some people fear a generation that will grow up to hate the United States. This group of people believes that history textbooks should celebrate the country’s achievements and promote patriotism. Though the article covers the fact that some proposed textbooks include chapters emphasizing the constitutionality of prayer in school and claiming Moses’ role in the writing of the constitution, Eichenwald points out that not all religious conservatives believe in inserting politicized ideology into history books.

Hagen, Kirk; Morano, Lisa. “The Texas Textbook Wars.” Skeptic, Vol. 11 Issue 1, p18-20. 2004. The article covers a public hearing on the topic of “science errors” in school texts held by the Texas State Board of Education. The writers point out that the only claimed revisions to the texts involve actual rectification of scientific errors, such as the conclusiveness of a report on CO2 emissions which bolstered support for preventative regional emission measures; these changes were cited by members of the Discovery Institute (a creationist organization) as victory. The writers of the article are quick to point out the most absurd of the anti-evolutionist’s arguments: the current existence of dinosaurs, that starlight takes a “shortcut” across the galaxy, that Satan corrupted herbivores into quasi-cannibals. Generally, the tone is dismissive at best, and while acknowledging a long “battle” ahead for scientists, Hagen and Morano seem confident that there are no grounds for fear of a religious overthrow.

Merry, Michael. "Patriotism, History, and the Legitimate Aims of American Education." Education Philosophy & Theory, Vol. 41 Issue 4, p 378-398. August, 2009.

34 Michael Merry is a professor of philosophy at the University of Amsterdam, and in his article examines the implications of American education's grounding in a moral framework that emphasizes patriotism. He distinguishes between loyal patriotism, though which citizens blindly accept and support their country's politicians and the status quo as inherently perfect and righteous, and critical patriotism, through which understanding of the nation and its exalted principles of government promotes discussion, dissent, and "moral outrage" at any political or cultural transgression of those principles. He argues that while some degree of patriotism is probably necessary to maintain social stability, history, which is inherently incomplete and relatively taught, must also include a thorough investigation of a nation's injustices to further enhance a consensual patriotic love. Merry's position supports both sides of the court.

Noboa, Julio. "Missing Pages from the Human Story: World History According to Texas Standards." Journal of Latinos & Education, Vol. 11 Issue 1, p47-62. 2012. This article is based on an analysis of the Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills standards for history, which are heavily Eurocentric and fail to deliver even a basic understanding of any world culture; this is especially problematic considering that 45% of Texas students are of Mexican descent, and the current standards do not allow any comprehensive knowledge of this population's past. Noboa is a historian at the University of Texas at El Paso, and while he does not contend that the textbooks contain factual errors, he argues that the content is detrimentally narrow in scope. Opponents of a more inclusive curriculum, ie the religious right, argue that the United States is founded on Western principles (and from the religious perspective, on Christian tenets), and therefore history standards should include a partiality to this basis. An awareness of heritage is exactly what Noboa argues for; though the white

35 Protestant writing of history has taken precedence in schools for the last two centuries, this view not only fails to account for the growing minority population's cultural history, but also neglects to foster a globally informed public, which is naturally pluralistic at this time.

Pierard, Richard; McDaniel, Charles. "Reappropriating History for God and Country." Journal of Church and State, 52 no2, p193-202. 2010. The Journal of Church and State is part of the Oxford Journal series, and addresses debates and issues that arise within the context of government and religion intersection. The authors of this piece discuss the efforts of textbook revisionists to alter the language of history texts to eradicate stigma against capitalism and the conservative right. Aside from rhetorical alterations, the piece also addresses the fact that the Texas State Board of Education is comprised of members who frequently do not have any professional experience in education, much less any academia; their real professions range, as the authors state, from dentist and real estate agent to housewife. The board's proposed series of history textbook changes (frequently minimalizing if not eradicating minority achievements and secular moral relativistic statements from national heroes) sparked the vehement protest of the American Historical Association, among various teacher's unions, historians and politicians.

Walker, Tim. "Don't Know Much About History." National Education Association, NEA Today Magazine. Website. The National Education Association is generally concerned with the state of the American public school system, and in this article Walker discusses the power of the State Board in effecting changes in the curriculum standards. He particularly focuses on Don McLeroy, a

36 dentist and "self described Christian fundamentalist," member of the board, who effected changes in standards to mark the inclusion of figures such as Thomas Aquinas in place of Jefferson, Newt Gingrich rather than Sonia Sotomayor, and minimalization of cases of government endorsed racism, homophobia, and sexism (they board supported the removal of the word "slavery" in favor of the term "Atlantic triangular trade"). The changes cast America as a bastion of free-enterprise investment and downplay if not erase any history not in accord with the board's conservative ideology.

Wiley, David; Barr, Elissa. "Health Education Textbook Adoption in Texas: A Lesson in Politics and Morality." American Journal of Health Education, Vol. 38, Issue 5, p295-300. September-October 2007. The journal from which this piece is taken is founded with the intention of promoting health knowledge for disease prevention; the writers are clearly concerned with Texas's health textbook censorship as it maintains the ignorance of adolescents on vital health knowledge such as the prevention of the spread of sexually transmitted infections and pregnancy prevention. Current board members seek to alter health information to only include heteronormative, martial sexual relations. The authors then point out that textbook standards are decided by the state board, and then textbook companies, which frequently receive much criticism for omitting or slanting information, are only adhering to the demands of the buyers. In addition, textbooks that do adhere to the state requirements (oftentimes a mere single mention of the required information, even if only appearing in the teacher's edition, and thus not readily available to students, satisfies the state standard) are selected for purchase by individual districts; yet, as usually only one brand of book will adhere totally to the standard (instead of those given the

37 "nonconforming" label, which are still published and available), and as schools only receive state funding when using those standard textbooks, they will choose the "conforming" textbook. This system promotes the careful maneuvering of textbook companies to obscure important information so that they might publish according to state standards, which, in turn, promotes the exclusive use of these poor quality textbooks in public schools.

Worthen, Molly. "Texas Textbooks: A Case Study for Creationism's Staying Power." Religion & Politics, Washington University in St. Louis. January 14, 2014. Website. This website bills itself as a neutral news outlet and scholarly discussion board for issues that arise with the frequent convergence of church and state. The article by Worthen, who is a history professor at the University of North Carolina, examines the history of modern creationist theory from its Enlightenment era proponents to its radical, aggressive contemporary incarnation. Worthen points out that proponents of any breed of intelligent design are not completely and staunchly opposed to science and theoretical inquiry, but rather believe that God, through the writings in the Bible, is perfect in his revelation: that what we see is purposeful and regulated, and that God made the world in a manner that cannot conflict with science. As Worthen states: "The Christian is not only a scientist, then; he is a much better scientist than the nonbeliever, for he grasps the most basic truth of God's order."

SUBMISSION TWO _____________________________________________________________________________ _

Introduction: The history of Texas textbook debates is long and horrifying. From health and science to history, somehow political ideology's infiltration into the education system has culminated in serious transgressions on the part of the State Board of Education which essentially changes and destabilizes information to suit their ideology. The members of the State Board have frequently been cited espousing anti-intellectual sentiment, so while proponent stakeholders support the creation of a higher education review panel, conservatives are against being obliged to follow the lead of the "liberal elite." Exigence: Texas controls the second largest textbook market in the state: considering the fact that public school is often the only time many Americans are exposed to such breadth of knowledge, it's critical that the topics covered are covered well. The controversial 2010 textbooks hit schools this fall, and while none are completely satisfactory to teachers, these issues can be addressed in the next review session to improve the material covered in the TEKS curriculum. Key Terms: State Board of Education (SBOE) consists of 15 district elected members, and one chair selected by the state governor, and approved by Congress. Texas Essential Skills and Knowledge (TEKS) the standards by which textbook curriculums must adhere to gain acceptance on the market. They cover foundational (math, sciences, English) and supplemental (foreign language, fine arts, music).

42 Expert review panel: a six member committee selected by the SBOE which is supposed consist of members with specialized knowledge; in the past, members have not been subjected to much screening for valid qualifications to the role. Scope: This paper shall cover Texas history textbooks particularly. It shall investigate patriotism in the role of fostering a historical cultural understanding of American citizenship, and shall also investigate the portrayal of minority figures in the coverage of important historical events. Narrative: Many of the changes of the 2010 textbook review process came under national scrutiny when the board came out with several proposed amendments to the history TEKS. These included the altering of several terms to give them a more ambiguous or otherwise confusingly inaccurate meaning. For example, "free market" replaces "capitalism;" "Atlantic Triangular Trade" replaces "slave trade." Also, Thomas Jefferson, whose letters included his support of a separation of church and state, has been downplayed. The books also promote the "effectiveness" of McCarthyism, in addition to minimizing the hardships faced by Japanese Americans at internment camps during WWII. Public outcry followed the announcement, and several members of the expert review committee of the time published testimonials that depicted their inability to make their voices heard (Noboa and Kracht). Despite major national attention, and the proposal of the bills which this project covers, the same legislation governing the management of the TEKS review process remains in place and unaltered.

SUBMISSION THREE _____________________________________________________________________________ _

Normative question: Should Texas pass legislation of HB 3463 in order to create a higher education review panel for the TEKS adoption process, in order to curb the influence of political ideology?

Issue #1: Magnitude of Historical Events and Weight of its Figures Proponents argue: There is limited time for instruction in the school year, so magnitude of historical events should match the attention they receive. The United States, and the Western civilizations at large, were founded by Christian leaders following Enlightenment principles, so it is only natural that they should receive more attention. Opponents argue: What is of great magnitude is clearly important to enhancing student knowledge of cause and effect within history, however, history of the West has been largely shaped by a white, Eurocentric perspective, so naturally what is chosen to represent historical events of great magnitude will reflect this lens only. Critical analysis: While it is true that not every minority account may be examined thoroughly throughout the school year, this definition of “what is of great magnitude” includes only the Western lens; Islamic and Asian scientific achievements, however, are of equal magnitude in their scope of effect, and would therefore necessarily be included within the curriculum. Ethical analysis: Human capacity for thought, reason, and intellectual achievement is given as a universal, and therefore any attention paid to one region, or population’s history and artistic

46 achievements should be matched in attention paid to the peoples of other origins. To fail to cover the accomplishments and major historical events of other cultures diminishes their presence in the students’ awareness, and therefore understanding. Kant’s formulation of the value of the individual is transgressed through the attempt to posit one group’s history as more important than another.

Issue #2: Patriotic grounding Proponents argue: Students must be educated in an environment that promotes love of country. Opponents argue: Students should not be educated in this kind of environment as education in a patriotic setting fundamentally alters the content and presentation of materials. Critical analysis: When patriotism has been used in the education sphere previously, it has been to explain the rhetorical alteration of specific information, for example, the replacement of “capitalism” with “free enterprise” in order to avoid the negative connotations of the former. Actualization of the efforts to promote patriotism has been, in both the United States and in other countries globally, tied up in maneuvers to censor history and to indoctrinate the student body. The feature of patriotism that the proponents focus on is that result of such an education leads to a population will actually care about, and defend, the community to which they belong in order to promote order and justice. Omission and alteration of history, however, does not allow for comprehensive ability to understand, and therefore love; while the ideal is not inherently problematic, the manner in which proponents of the bill seek to attain it is flawed—rather, the word is used as a cover for intentions contrary to the features of the original idea. Ethical analysis: According to the communitarian, and generally Kantian schools of thought, the good of the community comes before that of the individual; promoting a value system in which

47 the need to protect oneâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s country is paramount to a successful character of the individual falls within the acceptable morality structure of these systems. Without a proper sense of the whole, the student cannot be expected to deliver of themselves an active and just character to further the good of the country. However, it is just within this rationalization that the argument falls in on itself. For it assumes that the education of the individual will include a fair representation of all component cultures within that framework, in order to allow for a total understanding of that national fabric. Also, within the Kantian system, every human, and every marginalized member of society, is equal and deserving of the same kind of respect and attention as the majority; public presence and lack of access to the same kinds of benefits aside, the main issue with the proponentsâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; argument is that the actualization of the teaching of patriotism is often skewed, failing to include adequate coverage of the histories of minority populations, and therefore implicitly failing to give those populations the due individual respect that their mere existence merits. The promotion of patriotism within the education system also inherently bolsters the position of the United States above any other nation; this gives rise to the idea of American exceptionalism, which posits the States as morally superior, more advanced, and generally in a place of cultural authority when contrasted with the rest of the globe. Such a manner of presentation neglects another aspect of Kantian philosophy, which is that no individual, or set of individuals, has a higher intrinsic worth than another. American exceptionalism goes hand in hand with this kind of dangerously entitled thinking, which, naturally, when applied within Kantâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s universal law; chaos, war, and unending ill will would breed in a world where every nation views itself superior to the others; essentially this view has already wreaked havoc on people throughout history the world over.

Issue #3: Use of TEKS adhering materials Proponents argue: The Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills were specially formulated to fit the most recent educational models, and undergo rigorous processing through review, revision, and expert testimony; textbooks conforming to these standards are licit, and extra material is not conducive to student understanding. Opponents argue: The use of textbooks exclusively focused on answering the preset models for student knowledge limits the resources teachers have access to; the standards themselves are written with an agenda in mind, and any supplemental material should not be disregarded as adverse to student understanding. Critical analysis: Within context, use of State approved materials is a safe route to choose, as the student body is purportedly guaranteed specific grade level knowledge adhering to mandated criteria. This guards against any biased information that teachers could potentially bring into the classroom from ulterior, unregulated resources which could potentially skew the education the students receive in either political direction. In application, this strict adherence to the standards led, a few years ago, to the CSCOPE ordeal, in which some public school parents objected to their students being taught using outside resource textbooks which specifically had a left-leaning, comprehensive view of history and historical figures (including asking students to question whether the Boston Tea party was an act of terrorism). Such materials, in provoking thought and discussion, contrary to proponentsâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; view, do spur further education through complex presentation of history.

49 Ethical analysis: The main goal of the education system is to prepare a population that can answer to the demands of the era in a politically responsible manner; complete ability to question oneâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s nation, history, and identity is clearly crucial to the formation of an able citizen. Yet, though the cited example is a demonstration of the process through which that effect may be achieved, the state standards are in place to ensure that students across the state receive the same essential grounding, without extreme bias. The main issue with the regulation of approved textbooks is that State standards are currently problematic; while the proponents do have a point in that schools should have access to textbooks that have been approved, comprehensive knowledge trumps narrow, regulation-approved knowledge.

Discussion and Conclusion Much of the phrasing of the recent changes to Texas textbooks has to do with using apparently obvious or generally laudable principles to bolster claims that the educational system is in need of reform, and yet both the motives and the means, on either side of these principles, go against the actual goals of the implementation of such ideas as proportional historical significance and inspiration to act through love of country.

SUBMISSION FOUR _____________________________________________________________________________ _

Interview with Ed Countryman, Doctor of American History at Southern Methodist University, on November 24th.

M: Julio Noboa and James Kracht both complained that their submissions during their time on the expert review panel were blatantly ignored or changed. How is it possible for the SBOE to ignore the testimony of higher education professionals?

We're talking about a process that is highly politicized. There's a Hispanic woman from

Fort Worth that came to SMU a few weeks ago, and she's very impressive and she's on the board and trying to change it; but on the whole, what the what I call the "crazy right" has done, is organized to win elections that nobody's turned out for, so they've created a board which is the combination of intense politicization and just plain ignorance of what history's all about. When you've got deniers of evolution or climate change teaching, we're not going to get very far, are we? What I'm getting at is the serious organization of these people to win these elections.

M: On the subject of the ignorance of the board members, Don McLeroy has and others seem to have a distrust of professionals in general.

54 C:

If I needed brain surgery, I'd be happy to have Ben Carson as my surgeon, but that doesn't

mean I want that man as president of the United States. I think this is a good point, whether you're talking about humanities, the social sciences, or hard sciences, there is real knowledge that people work hard to get, and people like McLeroy scorn the whole effort.

M. I listened to your interview, where you reference South Carolina's Native American population, and Noboa, who has informed a good deal of this project, advocates Mexican American studies: can you tell me about demographics when treating history textbook creation?

It's what the people I just mentioned to you moments ago think that we need to know.

Back in the 30s the major text for college level students in American history was by two professors, one at Harvard and one at Columbia, and in selecting their times, the discussion of slavery of African Americans was buried deep in the discussion of the Old South: it was only six pages long; the book was 1200 pages long. We're all humans, and we're all caught up in this. Who you are, and what you are, and what you do, it makes a difference in how you take part in a situation. If you were to try to study northern New England without trying to understand that a awful lot of people came from Quebec, and brought north Canadian values with them, you'll never understand modern New Hampshire or Maine. In Maine for example, a lot of people will say "How French" to mean "How stupid." Here in Texas, it's Hispanic people, Tejanos, who, first of all, were here long before the Anglos came on, and actually joined Sam Houston in the Texas revolution because they didn't like Santa Anna, and you see them get marginalized-- Arizona is the worst case-because we don't want to pay any attention.

M. I investigated a bill proposed over the summer, Rep Leach's HB 3403, which promotes patriotism in the classroom. Does it have a place there?

Patriotism means telling children who know better that America has always been right

and true and just and wonderful from the beginning. If you're a Navajo you know better, and if your people were taken over by the war of aggression against Mexico you know better, and if your people came from slavery you know better. That's a fairytale. Nobody's going to believe it-who has any brains at all. I'd say the story of American history is truly great. Because its a story where not everything is always wonderful, but like every other place on the face of the earth we've got our challenges and our problems and our horrors, and maybe the best thing about this country is that we try to do something about those things.

M: When I was speaking to Roy White, he mentioned his strong belief that American Exceptionalism should definitely have place in schools, as America has always been an exceptional nation.

Such is the kingdom of heaven. I have a real problem with American Exceptionalism.

One of the problems is that it is largely theological. It implies that God said to Americans "you're free from the general human condition of misery--" and there are things we've been free from. We've never had Nazism... although the worse Trump gets, the more I'm seriously frightened. There have been others like him in the past, and they've never gotten close to power, and its scary! We've never had a Stalin: hurray, hallelujah. When we had our revolution we never had

56 the bloodbath of the Terror that happens in France: okay that's a good thing. On the other hand we've had seven hundred and fifty thousand lives spilled out over problem of getting rid of slavery in this country, when the rest of the hemisphere, except for Haiti, got rid of it without a war. There's nothing exceptionally exceptional to that, I think. So, theologically, the notion that God picked this country to free from the general condition of human misery is garbage. We a lot of stuff to be proud of, but there's no point in boasting, when anyone with a brain can see through the boasts.

M: Who was it that spoke of this country, before the War of Independence, saying "We shall be the city on the hill.."?

C: That's John Winthrop, way back in 1630, he's the founder of Massachusetts, and what he meant was, he did believe that his people had been chosen to be the New Israel, but he did warn them: if you guys mess up God will punish you. And guess what: they did mess up, and I could go on. Secondly, think James Madison, you've obviously studied him a little bit at St. Edward's... I had my students look at this: Madison looked around just before the Constitution and he said, what's wrong? Because there was a lot wrong, and this is what he called the "crisis of the American political system." And he asked, what if the problem is the people themselves, what if we can't really govern ourselves, what if we're no different from anybody else? Which is the conclusion he came to, and he opened a brilliant response in a real moment of political wisdom, that no, we cannot expect to be any better than anyone else, we're on the same course of misery as anyone else.

57 M: What can be done at the moment about the textbook issue, considering that the bill for a higher education panel didn't pass?

They don't want people who know what they're talking about to be involved in this,

which leaves it open for people who just have a bad agenda or who are just plain ignorant to pass off what they know. This is the only exposure to history a lot of kids are going to get. These 8th graders are supposed to read Abraham Lincoln's inaugural address and Jefferson Davis' inaugural address, and they're going to see, hey, these guys don't say anything about slavery. So a lot of these kids will never learn that when Davis addressed his congress about the same time, he said flatly we're going to protect slavery, we're going to keep it. Lincoln was keeping quiet because he had a lot of people in the north he had to keep on his side, so it's a political move. [The kids] will think that slavery wasn't really an issue, and that's a total historical flaw.

M: What do you think of these citizens' grassroots movements, such as Roy White's TTT Coalition? What does this reveal about the American image of the "self-made man," bound up with individualism and individual agency?

When you're talking about people's children, if you're saying "I'm the expert and because

I'm the expert, you've got to believe this," I think that's wrong. And in my own classrooms and in outside events, I don't say, "Listen to me because I have the credential", but rather, "Let's explore this together." I think that's a much better way to do it. Second thing, is that over politics, the most conservative and liberal traditions have their strengths, there's nothing wrong with either one. For either side to try to indoctrinate the people,

58 that's not going to work. Yeah, there can be some political bias, and you've got to permit many voices: but that doesn't mean indoctrination. Doing what we do, what we're trying to get across, is that life is interesting, life is complex. It's not a story of goodies and baddies, it's a story of people who are caught up with one another for better or for worse, like a bad marriage... or a good marriage.

Interview with Roy White, founder of the conservative grassroots "Truth in Texas Textbooks Coatlition," on October 31.

M: What is your exact position on the Texas textbook reforms adopted in 2010, and appearing in classrooms this fall, which included attempts to correct liberal bias?

The new Texas Essential Knowledge Skills for social studies textbooks that were

established in 2010 was a good start to establishing what is required material to be covered in the textbooks/instructional materials. Much more correcting of content can be done as evidenced by the publishers push back against obvious errors they refused to change. The biggest change occurred in 1995 with SB6 that permitted school districts to choose any instructional material from any publisher and use state funds to pay for it. There is no requirement for local school districts to choose from the approved list of SBOE approved textbooks. That is problematic as now publishers can deal directly with local school districts who often times do not have the time or resources to review the large number of instructional materials (there were over 130 instructional materials/textbooks...what school district and teachers has the time to get teacher volunteers to conduct the required level of review all while they are still teaching during the school year...not extra pay!) The materials were submitted for review in 2014 of which we reviewed 33 social studies

60 and found 1500+ errors. Our report card of the textbooks give you a specific grade on each textbook. That gives you the clearest opinion of each of the middle and high school textbooks we reviewed.

M: Texas schools receive state funding for using approved textbooks (and instructional materials not approved by the SBOE because of SB 6) , and supplemental material can lead to controversy, such as the 2013 CSCOPE controversy, where an outside education collective's curriculum system included exercises such as debating whether the Boston Tea party act constitutes terrorism and instructing students to wear burqas to understand Islamic culture. What is your stance on the use of such material? Can these exercises be helpful in challenging the ways in which students approach their own and others' culture?

CSCOPE, while currently prohibitive by state law, still has elements of it found in

classrooms around the state. It comes down to having an understanding of the difference in having Type 1 vs. Type 2 standards. Donna Gardner, a wonderful Texas education advocate and blogger defines and compares these two styles very clearly in this article. I'm against Type 2/CSCOPE type teaching methods and materials. Type 1 teaching methods can also "challenge the ways in which students approach their own and other's culture", CSCOPE supporters use this type of verbiage to convince people they are the Christopher Columbus is learning, some new pathway to the Holy Grail of learning and "true knowledge"....total BS.

M: There was a bill proposed over the summer (HB 3403, Rep. Leach) that included references

61 to public school's role in fostering patriotism in students. Do you think this is a role that public schools should have? What does actualization of this goal look in the classroom?

From a personal standpoint I absolutely believe that American Exceptionalism and

patriotism should be emphasized in the classroom. The US is the most unique country in the history of the world with a form of government also as unique. Sadly patriotism is not taught and one simple reason is that the amazing accomplishments of our forefathers, military leaders, inventors, scientists, religious leaders and other amazing Americans are given slight reference and anything negative is promoted. The reviewers saw this time and time again; Gorbachev was the reason for the Berlin Wall coming down and little mention of Reagan's role; Russia wins the space race with Sputnik but no mention of Astronaut Buzz Aldrin landing on the moon; no mention or reference to Medal of Honor recipients and their accomplishments but references to Japanese internment camps and the ethical questioning of using the Atomic bomb in WWII which saved the lives of hundreds of thousands of American soldiers. etc. Yes, the agenda is clearly there, TTT Coalition pushed back restored a semblance of balance but more more needs to be done. Some books were clearly better than others but our ratings showed not a single World History textbooks was rated Acceptable...not a one. Highlighting small business owners and praising their efforts because through our economic system (the best in the world) they produce For example did you know: Page 1 Frequently Asked Questions about Small Business September 2012 Small businesses comprise what share of

62 the U.S. economy? Small businesses make up: 99.7 percent of U.S. employer firms, 64 percent of net new private-sector jobs, 49.2 percent of private-sector employment, 42.9 percent of private-sector payroll, 46 percent of private-sector output, 43 percent of high-tech employment, 98 percent of firms exporting goods, and 33 percent of exporting value. Regularly, not just on Veterans Day, bring in Veterans from all the different wars and let them talk about the heroism of the American military member and the courage they display. You want people to aspire too, how about those men and women from all ethnic groups who have sacrificed personal choices to serve others. Instead we'll bring in athletes, celebrities, etc.

M: Over forty percent Latino students currently comprise the population of public schools in Texas. How do you think the current history curriculum, which includes limited coverage of minorities, could affect this group particularly?

63 W:

The SBOE determines the information they deem necessary for students to know to be

productive citizens. Understanding one's own culture is important; knowing information that can promote the health and welfare of all Americans economically, politically, socially is even more important.I don't have a calendar in front of me but I believe there is a full month devoted to Hispanic Heritage Month, Black History Month and the SBOE included in last year's meetings related to textbooks of more inclusion of Sikh history. Teachers, administrators have been asked to put 10 pounds of information in a 5 pound bag. A bill to remove some of the TEKS was nearly passed because school officials claim there is too much content and not enough time. The next battle will be what will be removed. It is difficult to understand how learning more about the history of America can somehow be harmful to anyone wishing to call themselves Americans, regardless of what ethnicity or culture they come from, after all, we're all Americans.

M: Truth in Texas Textbooks took issue with every textbook, from anti-Semitic sentiment to excessive coverage of Islam. What should the average Texas citizen take away from your organization's review?

1. Average citizens can review social studies textbooks if they are trained to be "critical

readers". 50 reviewers of whom the vast majority didn't have degrees in social studies found 1500 errors that the 300 "experts" appointed by the SBOE didn't identify. BTW, they are prohibited from identifying errors such as "half-truths", "imbalance of materials", "omissions" and "opinions disguised as facts". That is another story completely. The recent incident of the 9th grader finding an error in the McGraw Hill World Geography proves that point when she

64 found the word "workers" was used versus the more accurate term of "slaves". Get involved and read your students textbooks and demand to get online access since the books don't come home anymore. 2. Publishers do not like to be told their facts are wrong, at least by those they deem to be conservative. They get to play judge and jury in determining what "facts" they wish to use to cover the required TEKS. TEKS make up 30% of the content of the textbooks, the remaining 70% can be filled with all sort of agenda based information that the SBOE has little or no control over because of past resolutions preventing intervention on questions of editorial comment. 3. There is unmistakable evidence that the conflict of cultures between Political Islam, the Middle East (particularly treatment of Israel, Judaism and the Palestinians) and and Western cultures and western political thought plays out in a very real and disconcerning pattern of disinformation regarding the nature of Islam in the textbooks in our classrooms. Islam's 1400 year history that is acknowledged by Islamic sources is not described in the same manner accurately by publishers and they refused repeatedly to make changes based upon Islamic sources claiming modern, more "PC" versions of Islam. The result is a skewed view of World History and thereby a failure to understand current world events because what happens today is directly related to what happened in Islam 1400 years ago. Not knowing this history will doom the current generation to make the same mistakes (which we failed to understand) our generation has IMHO.

On the TTT Webpage, your bio refers to your experience as a teacher. What can current

Texas teachers do to help their students succeed in the currently politicized educational milieu?

I taught for three years in the public school system and taught in the Air Force for 16 of

20 years. Yes, I was trained as a teacher in a day and age when textbooks were factual and what persons in positions of authority were assumed to be telling the truth. That is not the case today.

When you have professional educational organizations, interest groups and others (I include TTT in this group) lobbying for specific content to be removed or added, look to see who 1. Actually read the books. (we did) 2. How many persons reviewed the books (at least 4 sets of eyes and in some cases as many as 6 sets of eyes reviewed questionable content) 3. Look at the specific errors, chapter and verse of the questionable material (we provided precisely that) 4. Provided the documentation for the corrected information (we did that also) 5. If one group does that and others do not, then assess their findings and judge them accordingly as either viable or not. I would encourage teachers to question everything. Stick to the facts that can be validated (we threw out 15% of the errors our reviewers submitted because they couldn't be confirmed as errors), go with what works, be creative with style and delivery but not with content...stick to the facts. For example we critiqued several publishers on their one-sided coverage of "global warming", "climate change". Several publishers responded to our critiques that these topics were closed for discussion and the facts have been settled. Any claims that these "theories" were not "facts" by TTT was met with disdain and the publisher's refusal to present the other side or the publishers removed the content all together. The result is a great teaching opportunity was

66 removed from the content that teachers could've used to promote critical thinking and discussion. Less "feel" and more "facts" in the day to day teaching of the students.

Civic Engagement: Discussion with local eighth grade US history students on the importance of minority inclusion

I visited the Anne Richards School For Young Women Leaders to gain a better understanding of what the students and teachers experience concerning history books. Prior to meeting students, I spoke with the school's eighth grade history teacher, UT grad student Pamela Mathai, who also showed me student work: Mathai creates her own worksheets and has, over the last five years teaching in the subject, developed her own curriculum. She told me that it is difficult to maintain fidelity to the TEKS standards-- as teachers frequently are "punished" for low test scores, which follow TEKS-- while also teaching her students comprehensive history. She stressed the dynamism of her classroom, her inclusion of challenging traditional narratives, and the importance of encouraging her students to share personal experiences and political reflection. Her students engaged quite well with her manner of teaching she said; far more than they had when she used any other style than what she called the "critical approach." Her students demonstrated a remarkable awareness of the issues during our discussion, and frequently included their own anecdotes. The entire experience lasted an hour: the following is a selection of quotes I wrote down during that time.

67 Mathai: I don't use the textbooks. If I'm going to be sourcing material, I use History Alive books as a guide, not books informed by TEKS. Before I came here, I used the books, and would always have to supplement the curriculum with other activities and exercises. There are certain things I want in my curriculum, and textbooks just don't cover that. Thank goodness I'm allowed to do that here-- we have really supportive principals. I gave input over district adoption of textbooks: Austin ISD asks teachers in school to send a representative, they try to get all areas evenly covered... It was really a choice between a rock and a hard place; we had to choose the best of the worst, and we ended up with Pearson; better choose the devil you know than the devil you don't, right? It's such a problem, you know, they're all controlled by the same multibillion dollar industry-- and with high-stakes testing, teachers constantly get punished or get pushed out if they're without good test scores-- so they just want to teach for the tests... I literally haven't touched the textbooks all year. I've been teaching critically, getting students to question where they're getting this information from, and asking them who holds the power; at the beginning of the year, I was very explicit on who has the power, on who structures the information they're getting... I've never had this level of engagement. (On using race-identification words): I explicitly teach that we've been taught to be fearful of even saying these words. We're really open about the racial hierarchy, and during class we've identified ideologies that drive these hierarchies; and its changed over time; yes, there are more voices speaking out, but the structure hasn't changed.

68 I have my students look at Frederick Douglass' "Meaning of the Fourth of July for the Negro," and I have a family that doesn't celebrate the fourth of July, for those same reasons, that they've been historically outside of the holiday, the celebration of freedom. (On the SBOE) It's all for show. A professor will come in and explicitly say things, and they just don't listen. I had a similar experience when serving on the selection committee; I talked for four hours. We identified what it means to be a conservative in the beginning of the year... They don't want you to question God and question the way things are, that's devastating to them. It's disruptive to the ways things are once you start looking at it from a critical perspective... The word means keeping things they way they are, keeping power in certain people's hands-- it's why people living in poverty, women, minorities, tend to vote to left... It's pretty obvious [the state board] is just shutting down dialogue. One of the textbooks have students write an essay on "How does the Constitution protect us from tyranny?" and instead I changed it to, "Does the Constitution protect us from tyranny?" I have to bring in a critical lens, because it just won't be in textbooks. (When I asked about the "Our Struggle Wall") Langston Hughes, "What Happens to a Dream Deferred..." I use that as a reminder, of what it's like not be counted, not be seen as part of national community; what it's like to miss out on these opportunities. We've tended to keep an idea of what America is, and that idea is held in the hands of white, wealthy men. As the year goes on, we add more to the wall, all the liberties we associate with democracy... So we can see that circle broken open, how we can reform these ideas, how we've changed the way power has been accessed.

69 Students Esmeralda: I kind of feel like America is a low key version of North Korea; like, they don't want to expose the bad things, and by letting out the bad things we've done it would ruin this ideal image of what a perfect American looks like... It's kind of history repeating itself, like Hitler had one idea of what a perfect German was, with the blond hair and blue eyes-- and we have an idea of the ideal American. We have an ideal Texas image too! Sophia: Even if they're not teaching the mistakes, they still teach you that the American life is the ideal one... They don't want you to think about life outside of America. It's really contradictory, in a lot of ways, how we kind of look at outsiders with pity for not living a nonAmerican life, but then we don't let anyone come here. (On teachers' handling race and political correctness): Mr. --- asked me, your dad's black right? And if my dad knew about all these famous black people, I don't even know, but like, my dad is an engineer, why would he know all these random athletes and musicians and stuff, just because he's black? Sarah: (On the same as above) I've had a teacher turn to me when we're talking about ISIS and stuff, "I don't mean to offend your people." He also said people are too politically correct.. (Mathai: That's exactly what Donald Trump says!) When I was travelling to Europe with my mom, she wears a hijab, and she always tells me, don't speak Arabic, don't stand close to me, don't even call me "mom" in Arabic, even in Germany, she still gets treated differently. One time, she came to some parents' meeting for my big sister, and she was wearing the hijab, and after that teachers treated my sister differently after that; like, there was a teacher who purposefully took off points after that.

APPENDIX

By: Strama

H.B. No. 3263

A BILL TO BE ENTITLED AN ACT relating to higher education curriculum review teams to review public school curriculum standards for college readiness purposes. BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS: SECTION 1. Subchapter A, Chapter 28, Education Code, is amended by adding Section 28.0024 to read as follows: Sec. 28.0024. HIGHER EDUCATION CURRICULUM REVIEW TEAMS. (a) For each subject undergoing a review for the purpose of identifying and adopting the essential knowledge and skills of a subject of the required curriculum under Section 28.002, the commissioner of higher education shall appoint a higher education curriculum review team to review and make recommendations to the State Board of Education concerning the essential knowledge and skills to ensure that proposed essential knowledge and skills: (1) are factually accurate and aligned with contemporary scholarship; (2) serve to prepare students for college; and

73 (3) serve appropriate instructional purposes. (b) Each higher education curriculum review team shall consist of not fewer than five and not more than 10 faculty members of institutions of higher education, as defined by Section 61.003. Each member appointed to a team must have: (1) at least five years of higher education teaching experience in the subject under review and a terminal degree in that subject; or (2) at least five years of higher education teaching experience in the field of education and a doctoral degree in education. (c) For each higher education curriculum review team, a public institution of higher education may nominate one faculty member qualified under Subsection (b). A nomination made under this subsection must be submitted to the commissioner of higher education together with a document of not more than one page detailing the faculty member's experience, including specific experience with the subject under review by the team. (d) The Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board shall develop and post on the board's Internet website a blind scoring system for ranking nominations made under Subsection (c) by level of expertise in the subject under review by each higher education curriculum review team. (e) The commissioner of higher education, based on the system developed under Subsection (d), shall make the appointments to each higher education curriculum review team from among persons nominated by institutions of higher education under this section. (f) Notwithstanding Subsections (c) and (e), if the subject under review by a higher education curriculum review team is career and technical education, at least one member of the team must be selected from each of the following institutions:

74 (1) Texas State Technical College System; and (2) Lamar Institute of Technology. (g) In selecting appointees for a higher education curriculum review team, the commissioner of higher education shall attempt to achieve a balanced combination of educational perspectives. (h) Each higher education curriculum review team shall, before final identification and adoption of the essential knowledge and skills by the State Board of Education, make recommendations to the State Board of Education concerning the essential knowledge and skills. (i) The agency shall post on the agency's Internet website the recommendations of each higher education curriculum review team. (j) The commissioner of higher education shall coordinate with the State Board of Education as necessary for the administration of this section. SECTION 2. This Act takes effect immediately if it receives a vote of two-thirds of all the members elected to each house, as provided by Section 39, Article III, Texas Constitution. If this Act does not receive the vote necessary for immediate effect, this Act takes effect September 1, 2011.

By: Leach

H.B. No. 3403

A BILL TO BE ENTITLED AN ACT relating to public school curriculum and textbooks. BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS: SECTION 1. Section 28.002(h), Education Code, is amended to read as follows: (h) The State Board of Education and each school district shall foster the continuation of the tradition of teaching United States and Texas history and the free enterprise system in regular subject matter and in reading courses and in the adoption of textbooks. A primary purpose of the public school curriculum is to prepare thoughtful, active citizens who understand the importance of patriotism and can function productively in a free enterprise society with appreciation for the basic democratic values of our state and national heritage. In meeting that primary purpose, the SBOE and each school district shall ensure that: (1) the public school curriculum reflects the importance of patriotism, United States citizenship, and promotes an appreciation for our free enterprise system and basic democratic values; (2) each historical event addressed in the public school curriculum meets a reasonable test of historical significance, considering the limited amount of time available for instruction;

76 (3) each controversial issue addressed in the public school curriculum is presented in a balanced manner that reflects multiple viewpoints regarding the issue; (4) the public school curriculum reflects an overall tone that portrays the United States as a country that has overcome its mistakes and has emerged as the freest, most democratic nation in the history of the world; (5) the public school curriculum shall include the concept of American Exceptionalism and the Celebrate Freedom Week program; (6) School district generated and purchased curriculum, including Advanced Placement and International Baccalaureate social studies, must be in compliance with Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills. SECTION 2. Section 31.023(a), Education Code, is to read amended as follows: (a) For each subject and grade level, the State Board of Education shall adopt a list of instructional materials. The list includes each instructional material submitted for the subject and grade level that meets applicable physical specifications adopted by the State Board of Education and contains material covering at least half of the elements of the essential knowledge and skills of the subject and grade level in the student version of the instructional material, as well as in the teacher version of the instructional material, as determined by the State Board of Education under Section 28.002, is consistent with the requirements applicable to curriculum under Section 28.002(h), and adopted under Section 31.024. SECTION 3. (a) Except as provided by Subsection (b) of this section, this Act applies beginning with the 2015-2016 school year. (b) Section 31.023(a), Education Code, as amended by this Act, applies only to textbooks adopted by the State Board of Education on or after September 1, 2016.

77 SECTION 4. If this act passes both house and senate, it takes effect September 1, 2015.

i Mathai let me into her eighth grade history class on December 9th, where we discussed with students their experiences with discrimination. We also discussed the image of the “ideal American,” and manners through which they can take action to speak up about marginalization of minorities. ii See Tim Walker’s succinct coverage of the controversy, including a slideshow of the effected changes. iii Jechow reports on the discovery, and subsequent promises of the publishers to change the wording in future copies. iv Mathai and I discussed her experiences in the Austin ISD prior to meeting with her students. See my Submission Four for further quotes. v Walker, slideshow depiction vi Mathai’s students engaged freely with their experiences and observations. “We even have an ideal Texan image!” she continued. See Submission four for other student contributions. vii Walker, textbook changes slideshow. viii Tony Castro wrote an analysis of the growing minority population in schools for the Huffington Post, in which he references this study. ix Noboa, “Mexican American Studies Belong in the Classroom.” x See Submission Four xi HB 3403; see Appendix for the full text. xii Merry, “Patriotism, History, and the Legitimate Aims of American Education.” xiii See my Submission Four for the full conversation with Countryman. xiv Noboa, “Missing Pages from the Human Story: World History according to Texas Standards.” xv See Bridgman’s news report on the changes in standards xvi Noboa, “Missing Pages from the Human Story.” xvii See Hallman for full coverage of the issue. xviii See the website for the Texas Education Agency for full biographies of each of the SBOE’s members. xix See Flahive’s interview on Texas Public Radio xx Texas Education Agency xxi See the Mission Statement on the Wallbuilders’ official website. xxii Barton’s full review is available online at the TEA’s website. xxiii See Hallman for the full story. xxiv White’s public speaking event was posted on the Atascosa’s County Tea Party Facebook page. xxv See Submission Four for the full interview. xxvi See Submission Four for the full interview. xxvii Noboa, “Missing Pages from the Human Story.” xxviii Texas Freedom Network features a dozen articles dedicated to coverage of the issue, throughout which this infamous gem is scattered. xxix See Submission Four for full interview. xxx See Submission Four for full interview. xxxi Kracht and Noboa’s letters can be found on the Texas Freedom Network’s coverage of the history of the Texas textbook controversy. xxxii See Appendix for the bill’s full text.