More McLeroy Malarkey, Part 2

Last week, we brought you some choice selections from cryptic, hand-scribbled memos Texas State Board of Education member Don McLeroy wrote to curriculum writers preparing the latest draft of social studies standards (“More McLeroy Malarkey, Part 1”).  Here is Part 2. To the “World History Studies” writing team, McLeroy suggests a few additions to the […]

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More McLeroy Malarkey, Part 1

Yesterday we explored the latest strange twist in Texas State Board of Education member Don McLeroy’s ongoing crusade against the National Academy of Sciences — this time in bizarre, hand-scribbled memos he wrote to social studies curriculum writers who met in Austin last week. Well, McLeroy’s  curriculum advice wasn’t restricted to his well-documented problems with […]

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Don McLeroy vs. National Academy of Sciences

I’m not sure what the National Academy of Sciences (NAS) did to get on Don McLeroy’s bad side, but the deposed chair of the Texas State Board of Education has renewed his assault on the most prestigious science academy in the world. Only this time, he’s trying to insert his grievance in the state’s social […]

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Don McLeroy on Civil Rights: Not Pretty

It just gets worser and worser. [youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y9vJ5XTFBFU] So the countless civil rights workers who put their lives on the line and women who marched and lobbied for voting and equal rights — all of those generations of Americans who demanded that our country live up to its promise of justice and equality for all — have “the majority” to thank […]

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Debating Mediocrity and Expertise

Last week’s Texas State Board of Education meeting included an interesting discussion about who should be helping guide the revision of curriculum standards. The conversation was a perfect example of how politics and mediocrity have taken precedence over scholarship and expertise in deciding what students will learn in Texas public school classrooms. […]

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