Yesterday the Washington Times posted a short article on the changes the Texas State Board of Education has made in the history and social studies curriculum. The Washington Post posted an article on the subject today. Texas textbooks are significant because they generally end up being used in most school systems in the nation.
The Washington Times reports that some of the discussions involved using B.C.E. and C.E. instead of B.C. and A.D. to classify historical periods. The more traditional B.C. and A.D. were kept. The students will also learn that America is a "constitutional republic"--not a democracy (that is something that should have been taught all along!).
The Washington Times reports:
"During the monthslong process of creating the guidelines, conservatives successfully strengthened the requirements on teaching the Judeo-Christian influences of the nation's Founding Fathers and attempted to water down rationale for the separation of church and state."
The Judeo-Christian roots are America are seen in every constitution of the states that made up the original thirteen colonies. To deny them is to deny the roots of America. These roots are also seen in the Mayflower Compact and many of the original charters of our major colleges and universities.
The Washington Post reports:
"The new standards say that the McCarthyism of the 1950s was later vindicated -- something most historians deny -- draw an equivalency between Jefferson Davis's and Abraham Lincoln's inaugural addresses, say that international institutions such as the United Nations imperil American sovereignty, and include a long list of Confederate officials about whom students must learn."
I will admit I have no idea why students have to learn about Confederate officials, but I really don't think it will damage them. To say that McCartyism was vindicated is an interesting idea--when the Soviet Union fell and we had access to their documents, we did find that there were Communist agents planted throughout our country and our government. That was a fact. However, I'm not sure if that vindicates some of the things that went on during the Congressional hearings of the era. On the other hand, there are many things that have gone on in Congress over the life of our country that are not neccessarily things we can be proud of!
It sounds to me as if the ideas in the new curriculum will provide some interesting discussions for students. If I am being honest, I have to say that when I was in high school, social studies was not one of my priorities. It was not until after I got out of school and began reading on my own that history became something interesting. I am grateful for the foundation that my high school teachers laid, but I think the real value of a social studies textbook is to encourage a student to investigate and think on his own.
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