Uh oh. The respected journal Foreign Policy has a new article listing the places where you will find the worst textbooks. Headlined “The World’s Worst Textbooks,” the article notes:
“As students around the world head back to school, many of the lessons they’re learning are not only false — they’re dangerous.”
According to the journal, here are the places with the worst textbooks: Iran, China, Saudi Arabia, Russia and … Texas.
Well, the magazine actually lists the United States but then devotes its U.S. summary to the Texas State Board of Education and its outrageous campaign this year to politicize social studies curriculum standards for public school classrooms. Excerpts from the U.S. section, which is headlined “Culture Wars 101”:
“The Texas Board of Education ignited an international firestorm last spring when members approved a controversial new social studies curriculum. The new standards skew hard to the right — championing American capitalism throughout and suggesting religious intentions on the part of the founding fathers.”
“The new curriculum hasn’t hit textbooks yet, but pop quizzes are expected to have a slightly different look — Newsweek recently published new study exercises that the Texas school board is likely to adopt:
‘Explain how Arab rejection of the State of Israel has led to ongoing conflict.’ And ‘Evaluate efforts by global organizations to undermine U.S. sovereignty.'”
Oh, this is just swell. The State Board of Education has made Texas not just a national laughingstock when it comes to schooling. Now we see that the quality of what Texas kids are required to learn in their classrooms is ranked alongside what students learn in repressive societies like Iran and China. Gosh, aren’t we proud?
