Too much negative about former President George W. Bush, too much positive about Hillary Clinton and way too much coverage about Moses. Those were among a long list of problems cited by critics – from both sides of the political spectrum – during an all-day hearing Tuesday on new history and social studies books for Texas public schools.
Most of the complaints centered on alleged biases in the textbooks and e-books that will be up for adoption by the State Board of Education in November. The materials will be distributed to schools in the fall of 2015.
Among those who testified was long-time SMU history professor Kathleen Wellman, who told board members that several of the books on U.S government and U.S.history exaggerate the influence of the biblical figure Moses on America’s Founding Fathers.
“These books make Moses the original founding father and credit him for virtually every distinctive feature of American government,” Wellman said. “Moses shows up everywhere doing everything.”
She said publishers are trying to follow an ill-conceived curriculum requirement approved by the state board four years ago that called for more coverage of Moses and Mosaic Law in textbooks. “This epitomizes the wrong-headed idea that the U.S.was founded on biblical law. The publishers are trying to conform to a standard without knowing how to do it,” Wellman said. If the books are adopted as now written, she added,Texas schoolchildren will grow up “believing that Moses was the first American.”
On coverage of political figures, Emily McBurney of Temple said the Worldview World History book has virtually nothing good to say about former President George W. Bush, including the “increasingly low approval ratings” during his tenure and his continued resistance to global warming evidence.
Former Secretary of State and First Lady Hillary Clinton, on the other hand, receives 38 lines of glowing descriptions in the book, according to an analysis presented to the board by McBurney. “Her roles as secretary of state (2009-2013) has often been seen as having a dual purpose: to improve the image of the United States and its relationships with foreign nations that were seen as damaged by the Bush administration, and as an advocate for the impoverished and the hungry around the world,” the high school textbook read.
Criticism of the Worldview books by others led board members David Bradley, R-Beaumont, to remark: “Do you own any Worldview stock, because I would recommend that you sell it.” Bradley was part of the social conservative bloc on the board that in 2010 pushed through new curriculum standards for U.S.history and other social studies courses that reflected a much more conservative tone than the previous standards.
Several speakers who criticized the books now before the board blamed many of their problems – including factual errors – on the standards adopted four years ago over the objections of Democrats and mainstream education groups. Texas last adopted new social studies books in 2002. As one of the largest textbook purchasers in the nation,Texas has a strong influence on books marketed in other states.