Archive for category Education
Has the AP or the Denver Post Read the New Texas Curriculum?
Posted by Joshua Sharf in Education, Media Bias on May 23rd, 2010
Probably no more than Janet Napolitano or Eric Holder has read the new Arizona SB1070. Ann Althouse has described the Washington Post‘s dereliction of duty in its description of the Texas curriculum. The AP articles are no better.
In two articles over the last two weeks, the AP has written the following (sometimes more than once) about the new Texas curriculum:
A far-right faction of the Texas State Board of Education gained a giant step forward Friday in injecting conservative ideals into social studies, history and economics lessons that will be taught to millions of students for the next decade. (Emphasis added. Nothing like setting the tone up front.)
Teachers in Texas will probably be required to cover the Judeo-Christian influences of the nation’s Founding Fathers — but not highlight the philosophical rationale for the separation of church and state.
Curriculum standards also will describe the U.S. government as a “constitutional republic,” rather than as “democratic.”
Students will be required to study the decline in value of the U.S. dollar, including the abandonment of the gold standard.
Students [will] be required to explain the origins of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and its impact on global politics
Former Israeli Prime Minister Golda Meir [will] be required learning (these last two are listed together, as though to imply an excessive interest in Israel; if only the AP applied the same standards to the UN)
Amend or water down the teaching of the civil rights movement, slavery (“amend” is a neutral term; here it’s used to mean “water-down”)
They also required that public school students in Texas evaluate efforts by global organizations such as the United Nations to undermine U.S. sovereignty
Looking at the actual curriculum documents (elementary school, middle school, high school, and economics), here’s what they actually say about these issues:
Teachers in Texas will probably be required to cover the Judeo-Christian influences of the nation’s Founding Fathers — but not highlight the philosophical rationale for the separation of church and state.
Curriculum standards also will describe the U.S. government as a “constitutional republic,” rather than as “democratic.” (In fact, we are a “constitutional republic,” and the term, “democratic” is all through the curriculum, as in, “democratic process.”)
Students will be required to study the decline in value of the U.S. dollar, including the abandonment of the gold standard. (In the context of a discussion of the Fed and the monetary system; assuming students can read a paper, they know that prices go up, which means that dollars buy less)
Economics. The student understands the role of the Federal Reserve System in establishing monetary policy. The student is expected to|
(A) explain the structure of the Federal Reserve System
(B) analyze the three basic tools used to implement U.S. monetary policy, including reserve requirements, the discount rate and the federal funds rate target, and open market operations
(C) explain how the actions of the Federal Reserve System affect the nation’s money supply; and
(D) analyze the decline in value of the U.S. dollar, including the abandonment of the gold standard.Students [will] be required to explain the origins of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and its impact on global politics (wrong; this mis-states what’s required, and although one might argue that the actual requirement is biased, there’s nothing about the “impact on global politics,” just a discussion of the conflict in context)
explain how Arab rejection of the State of Israel has led to ongoing conflict
Former Israeli Prime Minister Golda Meir [will] be required learning – this is in a section on important women in history, not tied to Israel, and in fact, does not require that the students learn about Golda Meir; she’s listed as one of a number of possible subjects of study
Culture. The student understands the roles of women, children, and families in different historical cultures. The student is expected to:
- (A) describe the changing roles of women, children, and families during major eras of world history; and
- (B) describe the major influences of women during major eras of world history such as Elizabeth I, Queen Victoria, Mother Teresa, Indira Gandhi, Margaret Thatcher, and Golda Meir.
Amend or water down the teaching of the civil rights movement,… (if this is watered-down, how much time were they spending on it before?)
History. The student understands the impact of the American civil rights movement. The student is expected to:
(A) trace the historical development of the civil rights movement in the 19th, 20th, and 21st centuries, including the 13th, 14th, 15th, and 19th amendments;
(B) describe the roles of political organizations that promoted civil rights, including ones from African American, Chicano, American Indian, women’s, and other civil rights movements
;(C) identify the roles of significant leaders who supported various rights movements, including Martin Luther King Jr., Cesar Chavez, Rosa Parks, and Betty Friedan;
(D) analyze the effectiveness of the approach taken by some civil rights groups such as the Black Panthers versus the philosophically persuasive tone of Martin Luther King Jr.’s “I Have a Dream” speech and his “Letter from the Birmingham Jail”;
(E) describe presidential actions and congressional votes to address minority rights in the United States, including desegregation of the armed forces, the Civil Rights Act of 1964, and the Voting Rights Act of 1965;
(F) describe the role of individuals such as governors George Wallace, Orval Faubus, and Lester Maddox and groups, including the Congressional bloc of southern Democrats, that sought to maintain the status quo;
(G) evaluate changes and events in the United States that have resulted from the civil rights movement, including increased participation of minorities in the political process; and
(H) describe how litigation such as the landmark cases of Brown v. Board of Education, Mendez v. Westminster, Hernandez v. Texas, Edgewood I.S.D. v. Kirby, and Sweatt v. Painter played a role in protecting the rights of the minority during the civil rights movement.…slavery (no, it’s in there, in both the state and national curriculum)
identify the causes of the Civil War, including sectionalism, states’ rights, and slavery, and the effects of the Civil War, including Reconstruction and the 13th, 14th, and 15th amendments to the U.S. Constitution;
…
explain reasons for the involvement of Texas in the Civil War such as states’ rights, slavery, sectionalism, and tariffs;
…
(B) compare the effects of political, economic, and social factors on slaves and free blacks;
(C) analyze the impact of slavery on different sections of the United States
They also required that public school students in Texas evaluate efforts by global organizations such as the United Nations to undermine U.S. sovereignty
analyze the human and physical factors that influence the power to control territory, create conflict/war, and impact international political relations such as the United Nations (UN), the European Union (EU), or the control of resources
…
(D) explain the significance of the League of Nations and the United Nations
Describe the fundamental rights guaranteed by each amendment in the Bill of Rights, including freedom of religion, speech, and press; the right to assemble and petition the government; the right to keep and bear arms; the right to trial by jury; and the right to an attorney;
Compare the causes, characteristics, and consequences of the American and French revolutions, emphasizing the role of the Enlightenment, the Glorious Revolution, and religion;
Culture. The student understands the impact of religion on the American way of life. The student is expected to:
(A) trace the development of religious freedom in the United States;
(B) describe religious motivation for immigration and influence on social movements, including the impact of the first and second Great Awakenings; and
(C) analyze the impact of the First Amendment guarantees of religious freedom on the American way of life. (Intermediate school)
Destination Imagination
Posted by Joshua Sharf in Colorado Politics, Education on May 13th, 2010
This evening, the Republican 1st Congressional District held its assembly over at Hill Middle School, placing Dr. Mike Fallon on the primary ballot as the presumptive nominee. Given Rep. Diana DeGette’s long (many would say overly-long) tenure in her seat, some might be forgiven for thinking that the headline for this posting applies to him, but Mike brings confidence, energy, enthusiasm, and a winning personality to the campaign.
One of the most fun parts of the evening was the total lack of air conditioning, which at least contributed to people wanting to conclude business in an orderly fashion. It also meant that the 8th-grade Destination Imagination team, selling cookies and water for their trip to the Global Finals in Tennessee in a couple of weeks were doing a brisk business in water.
Destination Imagination is an international program that sets out engineering and scientific challenges each year at the Elementary, Middle, and High School levels. Hill’s 8th-grade team chose the robot challenge, and finished 2nd at States in April, so are preparing for their competition at globals.
It is, perhaps, an additional point of pride that Hill Middle School is an Arts & Sciences magnet school located in HD-6.
Have a safe trip, and good luck at Globals!
The Cartel
Posted by Joshua Sharf in Education on April 30th, 2010
Where does all the money we spend on schools go? And why do we continue to sink tens of thousands of dollars per student into a district school system that is clearly failing our kids?
Those are the questions that Bob Bowden, in the new tour through the house of horrors that is public school funding the US, The Cartel, opening Friday at the Chez Artiste here in Denver. I was lucky enough to attend the press screening, courtesy of the Colorado League of Charter Schools, and there’s a reason they sponsored the screening. The film is a powerful indictment of how our schools are funded, and the politics of how those funds are allocated.
The public schools and public school teachers in this country have unfathomable reservoirs of goodwill. I myself spent all but one year of my primary and secondary education in the northern Virginia public schools, and think they did a pretty good job. Up until recently, public schools routinely got capital building bonds they requested, and when polled, most Americans still don’t think we spend enough on schools. In large part, that’s because the teachers’ unions have done such a good job of equating teacher salary with overall school spending, when fact, it’s only a fraction of classroom spending.
But there are signs that some of that goodwill needs to be written down. The so-far successful campaign of New Jersey Governor Chris Christie to put a spotlight on the NJEA, the popularity of charter schools here in Colorado, as well as the progress of tenure reform through the state legislature, are all evidence that dissatisfaction is turning into action.
The reason for this is the administrative overhead and waste, high-paying jobs-for-the-boys attitude that pervades so much of public education. That money translates into highly politically-motivated teachers. Their influence in off-schedule, lightly-attended school board elections often means that they get to pick the people with whom they negotiate. (It’s that dynamic that the Democrats’ current financial reform efforts seek to replicate on national scale in private industry.)
Bowden also takes us through a number of thought experiments about keeping our children trapped in failing schools, comparing that modus operandi with some of the alternatives: vouchers, charter schools, and magnet schools. I don’t want to spoil the effect, but the charter school examination features a lottery that is truly heartbreaking, even as it’s hopeful. Parents, whose kids are trapped in truly awful schools are forced to attend these lotteries because the demand for decent schools far outstrips the supply. They react as though they believe that their children’s futures hang in the balance.
The reaction, obfuscations, and evasions of the head of the New Jersey Education Associate to all of this are both infuriating, and jaw-dropping in their condescension.
This isn’t to say the movie is flawless. There are a couple of occasions where the filmmakers put their thumb on the scales, asking us to assume that a firing or a failure to renew is a result solely or primarily of pressure from the teachers’ union. It’s not that that isn’t believable, it’s that when stories like that are believable that the greatest scrutiny is called for.
Bowdon also skirts the issue of teacher pay. One of the first misconceptions he takes on is the proportion of school spending that goes to teacher pay, and the widespread belief that more spending equals higher pay. Most citizens take it on faith that teachers are underpaid, but an increasing number of studies show teacher pay competitive with comparable private sector careers. Without a true market in teachers, and without effective means of evaluating them, fair pay remains an elusive concept.
From a technical level, the digital recording stutters enough to be distracting. Either digital still isn’t on the level of film, or this headache-inducing editing technique needs to stop.
But these are details.
While Colorado probably doesn’t have the worst excesses of New Jersey, that doesn’t mean the underlying dynamic doesn’t exist. This is, after all, a national problem. Towards the end of the film. Joe Williams of Democrats for Education Reform says, “I used to wonder not why parents weren’t protesting, but why they weren’t lighting fires and breaking windows.”
After you see The Cartel, you’ll wonder that, too. Especially if you’re a parent.