This article, found in the Washington Monthly, looks inside the U.S. public school system, the dramatic changes that could take place, and who’s responsible for them. At the head of the changes is Don McLeroy who was, up until recently was the Chair of the Texas Board of Education, one of the most influential educational boards in the U.S. This is also one of the most right winged-conservative boards out there. Texas, one of the largest textbook buyers in the country, second only to California, buys a staggering 48 million textbooks annually. Pairing this with one of the largest educational endowments in the country, having a budget of $22 billion, makes Texas influential in the writing of, especially, History textbooks. California, currently under financial stress is refraining buying new textbooks until at least 2014, the one state that was able to attempt to balance out Texas in terms of size and political views, now puts almost all the power on Texas. The article explores the history of textbooks, claiming that up until 1950s, textbooks were created without question. Beginning in the 1960s, a husband and wife team, the Gablers, began to demand that textbooks make changes, away from what they saw was a biased, pro-evolution, liberal view. Throughout the times of the upheavals, some publishers would produce two copies of a book: one to satisfy the right-winged, religious views of many Texans, and another one for the rest of the country. Sadly though, this was not the case for many books, and the same remains true today. Within the board, after the 2006 elections, 10 of the 15 seats were occupied by republicans. Recently, when the board began to reevaluate the 11th grade U.S. History curriculum, the assembled team comprised of mostly history teachers and professors. McLeroy then appointed Bill Ames, an opinionated Conservative, to the team.  The group didn’t comply with many of Ames’ thoughts, so another group, a “conservative think tank”, was formed. They viewed current names that ought not be in the textbooks, such “trivial” names as George Washington and Abraham Lincoln. One women claims that there is no push to remove these names, it was a rough draft list. However, a panel of experts was brought in, among whom was Peter Marshal, a preacher from Massachusetts, who claims that wildfires in California and Hurricane Katrina were “God’s punishment for tolerating gays.” Marshall, along with David Barton, the former vice chairman of the Texas Republican Party claimed that the wall of separation between church and state is a myth. Among papers they presented was a bible printed by the Congress of the Confederation in 1782, biblical poems jotted down by John Quincy Adams. The goal of both men is that textbooks are filled with documents that link both religion and history. This however, among the many other implications, this would claim that slavery was forced on the US by Britain, and Barton wants our economic system to be referred to as “ethical capitalism”. This would also clash with Islamic culture. Within this overhaul would be a requirement for science books to mention both the “strengths and weaknesses” of scientific theories, including evolution.

http://www.washingtonmonthly.com/features/2010/1001.blake.html

When looking at our countries founding so intricately, it is hard to imagine how changing the curriculum so drastically would yield the same class. After studying the beginning of our government with Chris, it is clear that though many of the founders were religious, they made a conscious effort to separate church and state, remaining secular. Though Christianity appears in our founding, it is not something to be forced on students through a classroom. The changing of this is alarming because though a majority of Texans will appreciate it, there are some that will disagree, even within the states, not to mention the rest of the US, who most or even all, don’t feel as strongly Texas, and who will now also be using the revised textbooks. This also seems to be a breech in the original intent of what is stated in the Declaration on Constitution of personal freedoms. Because Texas holds so much economic power, controlling textbook sales, this exploits the whole basis of our founding, which is supposed to be upon a democracy, not political corruption.