State Begins Hearings On School Textbooks

AUSTIN – The social studies, history and government books being

considered for Texas’ 4.1 million students should be more accurate,

more balanced and do a better job instilling U.S. values and

freedoms, speakers told the State Board of Education on Wednesday.

Others stressed that textbooks must properly portray the roles

women and minorities have played in the nation’s history.

Nevertheless, many speakers at the board’s first public hearing

on proposed textbooks said the texts should remain on the state’s

“acceptable list” so individual teachers and school districts can

choose which ones best suit their classrooms.

They did ask for changes, however. And in most cases, they

complained not about what was in the books, but what was left out.

The board can only reject textbooks if factual errors are found.

State board member Mary Helen Berlanga, who helped organize

symposiums on the inclusion of Hispanic history in the textbooks,

said omissions of minorities could be considered errors, because

such omissions give students an incomplete understanding of history.

“If they go back and make the additions, of course I would be

satisfied,” Berlanga said.

Board Chairwoman Grace Shore said she believes the board will

approve the proposed textbooks.

“The public hearing gives parents the opportunity to interact

with the publishers,” Shore said during a break. “It also gives

teachers as much information as possible when choosing textbooks

for their class.”

The state is updating textbooks for a variety of high school

subjects under the broad heading of “social studies,” including

U.S. history, comparative government and politics, human geography,

psychology and sociology. English and Spanish textbooks for

elementary and middle school students also are being reviewed.

Publishers eager to earn the $344.7 million Texas will spend on

textbooks this year have already been working with some concerned

groups to correct factual errors and consider possible revisions.

And because Texas is the nation’s second-largest purchaser of

textbooks, the board’s decision will affect the education of

students throughout the nation.

Sixty-seven individuals and organizations signed up to speak at

Wednesday’s hearing, including state representatives and members of

foundations and organizations that reviewed the texts. In the past,

groups have complained about the ways textbooks portray a variety

of subjects, including God, sex, slavery, evolution, patriotism and

gender bias.

State Rep. Rick Green, R-Dripping Springs, began the hearing by

refuting the Texas Freedom Network’s claim that right-wing

conservatives are censoring Texas’ textbooks while attempting to

instill conservative values.

Green said a majority of Texans believe that instilling values is

the primary purpose of education.

“If our people don’t know their freedoms, how can they know if

they have been violated?” Green asked. “You are literally on the

front lines of freedom today.”

The Freedom Network, which started the “I Object” campaign

against textbook censorship, did not have any speakers at the

hearing.

Most speakers said they wanted to add material to the books

rather than remove offensive text.

“My request would be that no book be approved for any grade that

does not … explain that the foundation for our republic is the

biblical principle that our rights come from our creator,” said

Margie Raborn, with the Citizens for a Sound Economy.

Other speakers said they wanted the books to properly portray the

role minorities and women played in history.

For example, one text does not recognize early Hispanic settlers,

saying instead that Stephen F. Austin brought the first 300

settlers to Texas. Anthony Quiroz, assistant professor of history

at Texas A&M University in Corpus Christi, said the omissions could

have long-range repercussions.

“I encourage you to seek out books that tell a thick story that

involves the historical actions of all Americans, including

Mexican-Americans,” Quiroz told state board members. “If we settle

for this type of history, we will be doing our children an

unforgivable disservice.”

Because it has been 10 years since Texas classrooms have had new

social studies and history books, Linda Massey, a 31-year Dallas

school district teacher, said that the new texts are needed and

that teachers and districts should be allowed to choose which best

serve their teaching style.

“We are really looking forward to having new textbooks,” said

Massey, president of Citizens for Sound Economy. “They are getting

bigger, and they are getting better. If there is a mistake after

adoption, the teacher will correct that.”

Public hearings

Three more public hearings on proposed textbooks will be Aug. 23,

Sept. 11 and Nov. 14 in Austin. A final decision is expected after

the last hearing. To register to speak or for other ways of giving

input, go to the State Board of Education Web site,

www.tea.state.tx.us/sboe/input.