Whenever the State Board of Education revises the public school curriculum standards, the new standards should be clear, rigorous, and flexible enough to allow for classroom innovation. Unfortunately, the Social Studies TEKS just approved by the SBOE meet none of these objectives.
Instead, the new Social Studies TEKS offer:
* a cumbersome list of names and dates that will stifle creativity and encourage "teaching to the test";
* individual standards that favor political posturing over sound scholarship;
* individual standards that are virtually unteachable in a real-world classroom environment because they are incoherent or hopelessly vague; and
* individual standards that are plagiarized from dubious sources.
If one of my Trinity University students handed in this work, then he or she would receive a D for the quality of ideas and an F for academic dishonesty. Texas schoolchildren deserve a first-class education, not plagiarism or politics-as-usual from the SBOE.
Throughout my campaign and, should I be elected, once I am seated in public office, I will consult with concerned parents, teachers, scholars, community and business leaders, and textbook publishers. Together we can and will work to identify and correct the errors that were incorporated into Texas' new Social Studies TEKS.
As a member of the State Board, I will work tirelessly to repeal and revise the the Social Studies TEKS so that our schools position Texas students for college and career success. And I will insist that social studies textbooks are based on sound scholarship; they must reflect the rich diversity of Texas and U.S. society as well as the intricate and splendid past that is Texas and U.S. history.
This morning, the SBOE began their session with a prayer. I'll let the Texas Freedom Network take it from here -- the video pasted below is theirs, from their post, "Christian Land Governed by Christian Principles":
Even before the Texas State Board of Education took up its expected debate today over what students will learn about separation about church and state in their social studies classrooms, board member Cynthia Dunbar, R-Richmond, made her position clear. She offered the board’s opening prayer this morning and removed any doubt about what she and other far-right board members want students to learn: America’s laws and government should be based on the Christian Bible.
The Texas Freedom Network caught video of Dunbar's prayer:
The May 4-12 statewide poll by the national firm of Greenberg Quinlan Rosner Research for the TFN Education Fund shows that 68 percent of likely Texas voters agree that church-state separation is a key principle of the Constitution. Agreement extends across party lines, with 59 percent of Republicans, 76 percent of Democrats and 74 percent of political independents believing it is a key principle. (The question wording and poll results are available here.)
In addition, 72 percent of Texas voters – and 78 percent of parents – say that teachers and academic scholars should be responsible for writing curriculum standards and textbook requirements for Texas public schools. Only 19 percent prefer that elected members of a State Board of Education do so.
The Texas Freedom Network has been knocking it out of the park with their ongoing coverage and action on the State Board of Education. What began with a hugely successful rally and has continued with excellent liveblogging and reporting, the Texas Freedom Network has merged sophisticated communication with grassroots activisism that should make any Texan proud.
We continue to march forward until tomorrow's final votes on textbook standards by the Texas State Board of Education. As mentioned yesterday, you can also follow the #SaveHistory and #SBOE hashtags on Twitter for the latest updates. Again I encourage readers to take action by tweeting the sample tweet below and helping Democratic SBOE candidates Judy Jennings and Rebecca Bell-Metereau by donating to their campaigns.
Today the Board defeated on a 10-5 party line vote an attempt to restore Henry Cisneros to history curriculum standards. A former San Antonio Mayor, former HUD Secretary, and later CEO of Univision, Cisneros is one of the leading Hispanic figures and leaders in America.
The Board also rejected attempts to return Dolores Huerta to the 3rd grade standards. A co-founder of the United Farm Workers and a Democrat, Huerta was removed based upon honorary affiliations with the Democratic Socialists of America, which is not a political party. Helen Keller, an actual socialist, remains in the 3rd grade standards.
Martha gives some context on Education Commissioner Robert Scott's comments on bloggers and activists "distorting" the efforts of the SBOE. And Elise Hu give us some video from the Texas Tribune including former Education Secretary Rod Paige's comments to let history speak for itself.
When Empower Texas and Bill White agree, it is... well... surprising. Empower Texas, Texas Association of Business, and Bill White (talk about strange bedfellows) all agree Texas schools are failing, and after 10 years as Governor, it is pretty obvious who's the culprit.
Empower Texans and the Texas Association of Business today joined groups from across the state and political spectrum to weigh in on the state of our schools.
The Texas Association of Business's report (pdf) states that "our state faces a true Texas-sized crisis...that will destroy our good business climate, prosperity and growth if its goes ignored."
Empower Texans, a conservative political action group, reported that Texas taxpayers are "not getting our money's worth" in Texas' education system.
In his 2003 State of the State address, Perry proclaimed, "There is no greater cause than the education of our children - all of our children."
"Only seven states have done a worse job than Texas in developing a well-educated young workforce, those workers who are farthest from retirement age." (p. 2)
"Currently, at least one-third of Texas ninth graders drop out of school before earning a high school diploma." (p. 4)
"Based on the current performance levels, more than 50 percent of Texas students will never acquire the level of skills needed to successfully function in a competitive, knowledge-based 21st century economy-- and are not ready to participate." (p. 4)
"Even if Texas were performing at national best levels in getting students to graduate from high school, enroll in college and graduate from college, our stated 55 percent goal could not be attained." (p. 5)
"All age groups in Texas are educated at lower levels than their peers nationally." (p. 7)
"Texas' 25-34 year olds are the least educated group of Texans in two decades." (p. 8)
We've been following the State Board of Education all week and it is clear there are problems, but Rick Perry has a proven track record of not caring.
"Rick Perry has had 10 years to make our education system competitive and he has failed," said Katy Bacon, campaign spokesperson.
He doesn't care that Texas is becoming one of the least educated states in America. He doesn't care that only seven states are doing worse than Texas in creating a new, well-educated, innovative work force. Rick Perry has been in office for 25 years and he doesn't care that taxpayers are wasting their money on a flawed school system because he is too busy wasting our money on a rental mansion for himself.
Simply, Rick Perry's priorities are flawed. Not a surprise really.
Luckily, Bill White understands.
"We need a governor who will prioritize educating Texas' future workforce," Bill White said. "Texas deserves a governor who is more focused on the future of our state than his own political future."
Rick Perry has a 25 year career blotched with failures. Even Empower Texas and the Texas Association of Business can see changes need to be made to fix our education woes. It's time to put Texans first. It's time to fix the problems with this state and not just ignore them. Rick Perry continues to fail as Governor.
Yesterday, the State Board of Education began its meeting at around 9 A.M. On the schedule: public testimony regarding the proposed social studies curriculum. In response to a rally at the March meeting of the State Board, Chairwoman Gail Lowe complained that none of the members offered testimony.
Oh, people need to give testimony for their concerns to be heard? Alright, then. Over 200 people signed up to testify at yesterday's meeting. It started out slow, and many left in frustration. But 120 still walked to the podium to speak their minds.
So, about 14 hours after the meeting's beginning, they finally wrapped up...
Will they listen?
There were over 70 people who signed up officially in support of the standards, but the opposition had its day. While a smaller number signed up "against" than in support, many who registered as "other" were really activists in disguise who also were upset with parts of the proposed curriculum. Eight state representatives arrived unscheduled, too. As per usual, they were offered an opportunity to speak -- but six of them were Democrats upset about the standards, too.
Those who spoke against the curriculum were from all levels of society -- from a former (Republican Administration!) Secretary of Education (Rod Paige) to high school students who drove in from Corpus Christi. They came from everywhere -- one student flew in from El Paso. They had different backgrounds -- African American leaders, Asian-American leaders, Mexican-American leaders, and even the whitest of white people spoke against the proposed standards.
Most significantly, though, the problems they referred to were far and wide. Whether there was a problem portraying the significance of a cultural movement in America (for example, Dolores Huerta was mentioned many times) or a less racial problem (as a personal example, I mentioned the standard that implores students to "understand the poor record of collectivist, non-free market economic systems") -- time and time again a concerned citizen would testify on a specific part of the proposed standards where the board clearly messed up.
Conservative board members kept asking for specifics. They acted as if their standards could not be wrong unless the wrong was pointed out in a specific place. Many specifics were given, such as the examples above. A lot of those specifics will likely be visited today and tomorrow, and some may even be amended for the better. But as the large and diverse set of testimonies showed, this isn't a game of specifics. The problems with the proposed curriculum are not simply errors here and there. They are a trend.
And that, perhaps, is the main reason why a chunk of those against the amendments requested a further delay in the adoption of the standards. After all, the textbook timeline will not likely be harmed...not with the current budget crises already doing so. And you simply can't fix that many problems in just two days, can you? Representative Trey Martinez-Fischer gave another reason to delay the process and let the experts take another look: the law, after all, calls for "direct participation" between the State Board and those experts. Is this direct participation? And is this legal??
Setting up a structure so that teachers can teach their students history should be easy. It should be boring and uncontroversial, too. There should be the basic points that students are expected to cover. Besides that, though, just let them study history. And just let teachers educate.
But it's not like that. If the national media attention didn't already alert the board members to the fact, over 200 public testifiers should have: the people have problems with the state board of education. The people are complaining to their elected officials about it, too. I've had Les Miserables' music stuck in my head, and I think a quote is appropriate: "Do you hear the people sing? Singing the songs of angry men [and women]?"
Alright...about those elected officials...Will they listen? (tune in at 9 AM to find out!)
After a break the SBOE is back to hearing testimony about proposed changes to textbook standards. Below are some resource to follow the goings ons which readers can check out to stay up to date on the latest developments. I also encourage readers to take action by tweeting the sample tweet below and help Democratic SBOE candidates Judy Jennings and Rebecca Bell-Metereau by donating to their campaigns.
Be sure to follow the University Democrats who have been testifying. Martha posted a page from an 1895 textbook which should illustrate how far we (supposedly) should have come on textbook standards in the last 115 years. And of course the TFN Inside blog has had great coverage.
And below are three videos from Democratic SBOE Nominees Michael Soto, Rebecca Bell-Metereau, and Judy Jennings from their press conference at the TDP headquarters.
The Texas Freedom Network, for those unfamiliar with their work, is an organization here in Texas dedicated to serve as a mainstream voice to counter the religious right. Their efforts over the years have been instrumental in recent years, perhaps none more importants than their ongoing battle against the Texas State Board of Education.
Don't let the SBOE white-wash history! Rally with the Texas Freedom Network on May 19 in support of new social studies curriculum standards that are based on sound scholarship and factual history, not political agendas. This is your chance to stand up to political extremism on the State Board of Education. The rally begins at 1 p.m. at the William B. Travis Building, 1701 Congress Ave., in Austin.
The Texas Freedom Network's blog, TFN Insider, is an excellent place for all information about the SBOE. In fact, starting tomorrow, they will be live-blogging the SBOE meetings each day:
The board will hear public testimony on the proposed standards beginning at 9 a.m. on Wednesday. Board members will debate and consider amendments to the standards on Thursday. A final vote on the standards is scheduled for Friday. TFN Insider will blog from the meeting all three days.
If you live outside of Texas and want to stay up to date with the latest action of the SBOE meetings this week, I strong recommend following the TFN Insider blog. I will do all I can, during the day, to capture what they have online and offer up reports myself -- but stay with TFN Insider to know the latest.
Additionally, if you are on Twitter, here are some good people to follow if you want to stay up to date:
@museblogger -- Martha Griffin, one of our netroots leaders here in Texas, is an expert activist on all matters education, especially on the SBOE. She has already been doing excellent tweeting on updates today -- if you follow one person on Twitter for the SBOE information, make it Martha.
@RaRapoport with the @TexasObserver -- Abby Rapoport has gone to write for the Texas Observer. She's been following the SBOE very closely, and is well-versed in a number of their rulings and procedures. Follow her for sure.
Finally, for anyone looking for additional resoruces, I offer you some from BOR and some important resources provided by the Texas Freedom Network. Happy reading -- we'll check back on this issue tomorrow.
Just when you thought it couldn't get any crazier, Don McLeroy -- who lost his bid for re-election in the Republican primary but appears hell-bent on inserting as much insanity into Texas' textbook process as possible -- is proposing that Susan B. Anthony, among others, espoused negative information about America.
One of McLeroy's proposals is for students to question the separation of church and state as they study the First Amendment.
Another would amend the standards to cast muckrakers and reformers such as Upton Sinclair, Susan B. Anthony, Ida B. Wells and W.E.B. Dubois as figures espousing negative views of America. McLeroy said such figures should be contrasted with optimistic immigrants that include Jean Pierre Godet as told in painter Thomas Kinkade's book "The Spirit of America."
A Republican from College Station, McLeroy lost his bid for re-election but he remains in office until January.
Conservative members of the board have already added measures such as one that would require high school students to learn more about the "conservative resurgence of the 1980s and 1990s, including Phyllis Schlafly, the Contract with America, the Heritage Foundation, the Moral Majority, and the National Rifle Association."
“Payback?” That’s a remarkable admission, whether Mr. Scott realizes it or not, that the board is politicizing the standards and — by extension — our children’s public school classrooms. We repeat our concern here: this curriculum revision process shoudn’t be about politics or whatever political majority controls the board. Decisions about what public schools teach should be based on sound scholarship and should prepare our kids to succeed in college and their future careers.
The Commissioner of Education in Texas is appointed, not elected. The Governor makes the appointment. Today, at a legislative hearing over the proposed social studies standards, Governor Rick Perry's appointee, Robert Scott, unwittingly made the case for the Mexican American Legislative Caucus (MALC):
"This inspires passion," Texas Education Commissioner said. "When you push out a particular group and say, 'we don't care about you' over time that creates a problem."
Scott added: "And when the pendulum swings back, you know, there's - whether you call it payback or a shifting in the alignment - I think that we need to be mindful as we deliberate to try to prevent the pushing out of any group, regardless of who they are. And that's what I think this process needs to be about."
Now, what he was talking about was the poor, oppressed religious right who got themselves elected to the State Board of Education for one reason only - to inject religion into the new science and social studies standards. They "snuck" onto the Board in plain sight when Texas Democrats were asleep on the job and didn't run anyone against them.
No one is sleeping this election cycle. Help our great SBOE candidates immediately!
Rick Perry appointee and Texas Education Commissioner Robert Scott described the process involving the curriculum changes under consideration by the SBOE as "payback" while testifying at a hearing at the Texas State Capitol.
The Mexican American Legislative Caucus is in the middle of a six-hour hearing at the Capitol about the controversial curriculum changes the State Board of Education (SBOE) is considering to implement. The SBOE curriculum controversy has made national news for weeks now -- from the Newsweek piece, "The Texas Curriculum Massacre" to a series of editorials across the state as early as January of this year, as documented by the Texas Freedom Network.
The first person to testify during the hearing was Robert Scott, Texas Education Commissioner. During his testimony, questions were raised about the curriculum process and why certain decisions were made. Scott responded to the questions by justifying the SBOE's controversial changes as "payback."
I transcribed the key part from his testimony -- video archive will be available after the hearing:
“One of the things, I think, that has been a problem in all of our deliberations regarding – whether it’s education or anything else – is that when you push out a particular group, and say we don’t care about you, when you push out, regardless of who that is, over time that creates a problem. And when the pendulum swings back, you know, there’s – whether you call it payback or a shifting in the alignment – I think that we need to be mindful as we deliberate to try to prevent the pushing out of any group, regardless of who they are. And that’s what I think this process needs to be about.”
Scott's remarks are disgusting. Unequivocally disgusting.
Rick Perry's appointee, Robert Scott, has admitted the true purpose of the outrageous changes conservatives on the SBOE are considering: this is about political payback and placating the extreme wing of Republican Party of Texas. Scott is essentially saying that political payback is a justifiable reason for allowing a political agenda to determine what is being taught in our children's classrooms.
People across the country should be outraged at these ridiculous remarks. We need to elect new SBOE members who will put our kids above any political agenda. To help that right now, please donate to the following SBOE candidates who are working hard to put our kids first.
