10 Lessons From Creationist School Books

On its website, PBS has a story, "10 Interesting Lessons from Creationist-Inspired School Books," inspired by The Revisionaries, a documentary film about conservatives on the Texas State Board of Education and their drive to introduce creationism into the school curriculum. The documentary airs this week at various times on KERA 13. According to PBS, "Don McLeroy, a dentist, Sunday school teacher, and avowed young-earth creationist, leads the Religious Right charge." McLeroy was defeated in 2010 in his bid for re-election to the SBOE, but that hasn't kept him from continuing to lead the charge for creationism.

If you're a regular reader of this blog, you know what I think of Don McLeroy. I think he's still enough of a threat to good public education in Texas to warrant keeping an eye on him. After the jump, what's McLeroy up to now?

Should Public Schools Promote Godly Character?

How Christian Were the Founders?

Was Jesus one of America's Founding Fathers? If you care about what your children are taught about science and history in Texas public schools, then you'll want to pay attention this election year not only to the governor's race but to some obscure races down the ballot for the State Board of Education (SBOE). According to Unfair Park:

"This could be the election that decides exactly how much power religious ideologues hold over the board that shapes the education for 5 million public school students in Texas."

Last year, the seven members of the religious-right faction on the SBOE successfully steered the science standards to include wording that undermines evolution. This year, the SBOE is tackling social studies, seeking to include language that revises American history to promote Christianity. For the fundamentalists, takeover of education is but a step towards a larger goal, takeover of government. In an article this week, The New York Times explains the fundamentalists' strategy:

"As Cynthia Dunbar, another Christian activist on the Texas board, put it, 'The philosophy of the classroom in one generation will be the philosophy of the government in the next.'"

After the jump, what the SBOE candidates themselves had to say at a League of Women Voters forum in Richardson Wednesday evening.

State Board of Education Recommendations

The Dallas Morning News has made its recommendations for the State Board of Education (SBOE) District 9 and 12 races in the GOP primary. The SBOE is an elected 15 member board responsible for setting curriculum standards for Texas public schools. The three Rs. 1492 and 1776. Ho hum, right? Not if you care about Texas kids. Unless you've spent the last decade living on Pluto (not a planet anymore, by the way), you know that the SBOE has become the front line in the culture war over evolution, climate change, religion, everything from the Indian Wars to the Indian festival of lights, Diwali. (By the way, the argument over Diwali taught me that there are over 50,000 Hindus in north Texas. I didn't know that. Maybe my education, which didn't include Diwali, was deficient.)

After the jump, why one DMN recommendation is merely OK and the other patently obvious.

"Keep parents as far from the schools as possible"

That philosophy may soon be represented on the State Board of Education (SBOE). Two seats on the SBOE changed hands Tuesday as a result of the GOP primary election. In District 12, which includes north Dallas, Richardson and Plano, the challenger George Clayton beat long-time SBOE member, social conservative Geraldine "Tincy" Miller. In District 12, which includes northern Collin County and counties east of Dallas all the way down to Bryan, challenger Thomas Ratliff beat former SBOE chairman, young-Earth Creationist Don McLeroy.

Tincy Miller has been on the SBOE since 1984. She is a social conservative whose viewpoints have gradually come to be considered moderate as the SBOE has veered farther and farther right. Don McLeroy is leader of the far-right conservative faction on the SBOE who favored science standards that discredit evolution and social studies standards that promote his belief of America as a Christian nation.

After the jump, some lessons from the election results.

24 Questions for Elementary Physics

The State Board of Education (SBOE) has been meeting in Austin to set the curriculum standards to be used in Texas schools for the teaching of social studies. The board is split, with eight of the fifteen members solidly or frequently in the conservative camp. And by conservative, I'm talking Texas conservative. For example, former chairman of the board Don McLeroy wants to rehabilitate communist witch hunter Joseph McCarthy in our children's history books ("Read the latest on McCarthy. He was basically vindicated."). Read the Washington Monthly article for scary details about this powerful faction setting standards not only for Texas schoolchildren, but for textbook publishers who will sell into states all across the country.

After the jump, what century-old math questions can tell us about teaching social studies in the 21st century.

SBOE Cannot Be Trusted With Money, Either

You might remember that the Texas State Board of Education (SBOE) has been one of my favorite topics, usually because of its over-the-top thinking regarding school curriculum (e.g., demoting Thomas Jefferson, questioning separation of church and state, balancing Lincoln's Gettysburg Address with Jefferson Davis' speeches, rehabilitating the reputation of Senator Joseph McCarthy, etc.). The Dallas Morning News' Jacquielynn Floyd described the SBOE as a "whacked-out troop of underqualified ideologues ... [who] make us look like a bunch o' goobers in the eyes of the whole nation."

Not content with being goobers regarding school curriculum, now the SBOE insists on being goobers regarding money, too. Last week, the SBOE voted to raid the piggy bank for their pet cause. The SBOE voted to allow tapping into the Permanent School Fund, taxpayers' money that's been entrusted to them for investment, to make loans to charter schools.

After the jump, what others think of this latest move by the SBOE.

SBOE: Tincy Miller and Bill Ames

Recently, I quoted some statements by Gail Spurlock, candidate for the GOP nomination for Texas State Board of Education (SBOE) District 12, which includes Richardson. I wasn't too impressed with her opinion that the Pilgrims were communists and sex education isn't needed because kids can figure out on their own how to have sex. I said that I'd take the other candidates, either George Clayton or Tincy Miller, in a heartbeat over Spurlock.

After the jump, what I've learned since that further narrows the field.

Races I've Been Watching

It's primary election night in Texas. I've been watching a few races. The polls are still open, but some of the results appear clear already.

After the jump, my last prognostications before the results are announced.

Checking In With The SBOE

Let's check in with the SBOE - the Texas State Board of Education - you know, that government body that The Dallas Morning News's Jacquielynn Floyd once called a "whacked-out troop of underqualified ideologues ... [who] make us look like a bunch o' goobers in the eyes of the whole nation." That was thanks in large measure to SBOE chairman Don McLeroy, the Bryan dentist who once argued that the good fit between humans' upper teeth and lower teeth is evidence of Creationism (apparently, he never saw my children's orthodontist bills). Texan voters and their schoolchildren scored a rare victory at the ballot box in 2010 when McLeroy was defeated by Thomas Ratliff in the Republican primary, who went to win the general election.

After the jump, catching up with Thomas Ratliff.

Good Luck, Amie Parsons

You'll need it.

Four months ago, GOP party primary voters denied nominations to two members of the State Board of Education (SBOE) representing north Texas. Don McLeroy in District 9 (northern Collin County and much of east Texas) and Tincy Miller in District 12 (much of north Dallas and Richardson) were rejected by Republican Party voters. McLeroy and Miller continue to hold their seats until the November general election. A month ago, the SBOE approved changes to the social studies standards used in Texas public schools. The lame duck far-right majority on the board dictated far-right changes, seemingly against the primary voters' wishes.

With the damage done, the SBOE has been out of the news lately and is likely to remain that way through the November elections. After the jump, why we should still care.

Around Town: The "Real" Richardson

Each night, at the end of "The Late Late Show," there's a little jingle that asks host Craig Ferguson, "What did we learn on the show tonight, Craig?" And Craig, with his feet up on his desk and his coiled-snake coffee cup in hand, reviews the lessons learned.

After the jump, "What did we learn on the blogs this week, Mark?"

SBOE Waits for Right-Wing Reinforcements

It looks like the Texas State Board of Education (SBOE) is going to kick the can down the road, deciding to wait until next term to rewrite the Texas social studies curriculum (what we know as the TEKS). Why? It appears that the SBOE caved to pressure from right-wing Republican lawmakers who objected to the standards coming out of the curriculum committee. When the SBOE decided to delay, Republican lawmakers celebrated on Twitter, "The board voted to scrap the wokeified proposed changes to the TEKS." The likely explanation for delay is that right-wing Republicans hope that they can increase their majority on the SBOE next term and get proposals more in line with their politics.

Repeat Tweets: Being 27 and Not a Real Person Yet

Repeat tweets from July, 2014:

• Jul 6 2014: Frances Ha (2012): Young dancer in NY struggles with career, rent, friends. Compelling look at being 27 and "not a real person yet." B+
  
• Jul 8 2014: The Time That Remains (2009): Palestinian family's life from 1948-present. Visually lush. Story is absurd, surreal, numbing all at once. C+
  
• Jul 10 2014: Nebraska (2013): Aging, confused father travels with hapless son to Nebraska to claim $1 million prize. Poignant. Small town black humor. A-
  

After the jump, more repeat tweets.

Repeat Tweets: Here Lies Mark

Repeat tweets from January, 2018:

• Jan 1 2018: RT @azalben: "How about we use predictive text to write our own epitaphs? Write 'Here lies [YOUR NAME]. [preferred pronoun] was...' and let your phone finish the rest."
  Here lies Mark. He was going to be so awkward.
• Jan 1 2018: RT @EmilyRCWilson: "My Odyssey translation is ... $3.99 RIGHT NOW ON KINDLE."
  If your New Year resolutions involve supporting scholarship in the humanities, this is a no-brainer (and they should, d'oh).
• Jan 1 2018: RT @jaketapper: "Trump's first 2018 tweet: Pakistan has 'given us nothing but lies & deceit'".
  Trump is a textbook case of psychological projection.

After the jump, more repeat tweets.

Repeat Tweets: Our Sophomoric State Senator

Repeat tweets from June, 2015:

• Jun 1 2015: RT @KonniBurton: "No longer Freshmen!" Now merely sophomoric. @DonHuffines
  
• Jun 1 2015: Headline: "RISD school bus involved in chase, recovered in Louisiana." Yikes! kltv.com
  
• Jun 2 2015: Headline: "Ratliff not seeking re-election to SBOE next year." No! Please don't let Creationist Don McLeroy back in. trailblazersblog.dallasnews.com
  
• Jun 7 2015: Is there a way the NBA could redesign their product so that bad officiating isn't an inherent part of the game? Or do they just don't care?
  
• Jun 8 2015: "The most informed voters are often the most badly misled." Why "citizens' town hall" meetings" will lead you astray. vox.com
  

After the jump, more repeat tweets.

My Dialog with George Clayton

George Clayton

This week, The Dallas Morning News recommended Geraldine "Tincy" Miller for the GOP nomination for District 12 of the State Board of Education. I unenthusiastically went along. I wasn't enamored of Miller, but saw nothing in her opponent, George Clayton, for me to entrust the post to him. Clayton commented on the DMN's website, which led to a dialog between him and me concerning his position on science education. The upshot is that my doubts about his candidacy only deepened. I had hoped that a qualified, informed candidate who I could trust would put education above ideology would emerge to challenge Miller (like Thomas Ratliff has challenged Don McLeroy in District 9), but George Clayton is *not* that candidate. Miller may not be my ideal candidate, but George Clayton would be much worse.

After the jump, the transcript of my dialog with George Clayton.