With support from the University of Richmond

History News Network

History News Network puts current events into historical perspective. Subscribe to our newsletter for new perspectives on the ways history continues to resonate in the present. Explore our archive of thousands of original op-eds and curated stories from around the web. Join us to learn more about the past, now.

Historians say state should toss proposal

Historians complained of so many problems with the State Board of Education's proposed social studies curriculum standards that they urged Texas lawmakers Wednesday to ask the board to start over.

With severe budget projections facing Texas next year, it makes sense to postpone the $800 million price tag for new history books, some legislators said....

A dozen historians and other experts took aim at the proposal, which the education board plans to adopt May 21.

Historians described the document as bloated with detail and a distortion of history that glorifies the achievements of white males. Board members made nearly 300 amendments, changing recommendations of the board's own experts so significantly that they may have violated state law, some lawmakers said....

More than 1,200 historians and professors have signed a letter asking the board to delay its process for a more transparent, fair, and inclusive curriculum.
Not much diversity

University of Texas at Austin history Professor Emilio Zamora and University of Texas at El Paso history Professor Keith Erekson circulated it among their colleagues across Texas and the United States.

Zamora called the proposed curriculum “very narrow and misinformed.”...
Read entire article at Houston Chronicle