Another Brick In The Wall

"They" say that history is written by the winners, and this week in Texas the "winners" - according to this breathless NY Times report - are "conservatives." Texas Conservatives Win Vote on Textbook Standards

After three days of turbulent meetings, the Texas Board of Education on Friday approved a social studies curriculum that will put a conservative stamp on history and economics textbooks, stressing the superiority of American capitalism, questioning the Founding Fathers’ commitment to a purely secular government and presenting Republican political philosophies in a more positive light.

The vote was 10 to 5 along party lines, with all the Republicans on the board voting for it.

Oh, no! America being portrayed in a positive light! Howard Zinn's body isn't even cold yet! To get a flavor of some of the controversial ideas that are now approved for Texas schools, the Times provides a few representative samples:

They also included a plank to ensure that students learn 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.”

...

Dr. McLeroy, a dentist by training, pushed through a change to the teaching of the civil rights movement to ensure that students study the violent philosophy of the Black Panthers in addition to the nonviolent approach of the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. He also made sure that textbooks would mention the votes in Congress on civil rights legislation, which Republicans supported.

“Republicans need a little credit for that,” he said. “I think it’s going to surprise some students.”

...

Mr. Bradley won approval for an amendment saying students should study “the unintended consequences” of the Great Society legislation, affirmative action and Title IX legislation.

...

Other changes seem aimed at tamping down criticism of the right. Conservatives passed one amendment, for instance, requiring that the history of McCarthyism include “how the later release of the Venona papers confirmed suspicions of communist infiltration in U.S. government.” The Venona papers were transcripts of some 3,000 communications between the Soviet Union and its agents in the United States.

The Times helpfully says "there were no historians, sociologists or economists consulted at the meetings, though some members of the conservative bloc held themselves out as experts on certain topics." Those darn "conservatives!" How dare they express opinions without first filtering them through the proper experts. Left unsaid is that the last time we relied on "historians, sociologists, and economists" to put together public school curricula, we ended up with the Lies My Teacher Told Me style of education we have today, with the result that there is a generation that has grown up learning more about sweat lodges, than about Mount Vernon.

More "conservative" Boards of Education, please.