It’s not a secret that pseudo-historian David Barton has no use for the academy. Barton clearly prefers to play like he’s a historian and self-publish his amateur (and heavily politicized) opinions in tract form rather than bother with the whole peer-review process typical in real scholarship. But Barton’s scorn is not limited to college professors — […]
social studies
History Profs to SBOE: Please, Just Stop
Warning that the “integrity of the curriuclum revision process has been compromised,” university historians are are circulating an open letter calling on the Texas State Board of Education to postpone final adoption of the new social studies curriculum standards. The letter asks the state board to allow curriculum teams and academic experts to review hundreds of changes […]
Yet Another Historian Corrects Barton
We long ago lost count of the number of times self-styled “historian” David Barton has been caught perpetuating historical inaccuracies or outright lies. (The man is nothing if not prodigious.) But on his radio program earlier this week, Barton delivered a doozy when discussing the Texas State Board of Education’s revision of social studies curriculum […]
Barbara Cargill Is Whitewashing History
Let’s revisit the success of Texas State Board of Education member Barbara Cargill, R-The Woodlands, in requiring social studies students to analyze Confederate President Jefferson Davis’s inaugural address. The Texas Education Agency has posted the revised American history curriculum standards (as of the January changes) here. The relevant standard for eighth-grade American history reads: “(A)nalyze […]
Does the SBOE Think Treason Is Patriotic?
The Texas State Board of Education‘s approval in January of a requirement that students study the ideas in the inaugural address of Confederate President Jefferson Davis hasn’t received a lot of attention. Far-right board member Barbara Cargill, R-The Woodlands, proposed that addition to the eighth-grade American history curriculum standards. In states that once made up the […]
