Looks like SBOE (State Board of Education) Vice Chairman Thomas Ratliff is a little testy today. Interesting isn’t it? Please see the press release below that came out today by Ratliff. Although, before I get to that please let me connect a few dots for you with the Education Bureaucracy in Texas. The Ratliffs are the Education Clan of Texas.
Listen to this audio and then keep reading….
Let me introduce you to Daddy Ratliff – Ex-Texas Senator Bill Ratliff
Bill along with Ex-Texas Commissioner of Education Mike Moses founded the “Raise Your Hand” non-profit back in 2007 which raised eyebrows because they had a history in Education that many will not forget. Below are excerpts from Donna Garner’s 2007 article “Raise Your Hand for a Hand Out”
NEW SPECIAL INTEREST GROUP FORMED
Ratliff and Moses are continuing to swill from the education trough by forming a new organization called Raise Your Hand to pressure the people for more tax dollars for Texas’ public schools. Have these two gentlemen any credibility on the subject?
William Murchison said it best in the 2.16.07 Lone Star Report, “…keep a country mile away from Raise Your Hand, and from Bill Ratliff, and from Mike Moses, whose solution for dealing with a sinking boat is to pour some more water in the gunwales.”
Before we citizens put our trust in Raise Your Hand, let’s do a quick study of its leaders, Ratliff and Moses.
RATLIFF: ROBIN HOOD, LOSS OF LOCAL CONTROL BY TEACHERS
Not only did Ratliff author the failed and oft-maligned Robin Hood Plan, but he also drafted SB 1 in 1995 which stripped local teachers of control over what they taught.
RATLIFF: LOSS OF CONTROL BY LOCAL SCHOOL BOARDS
As the author of SB 1, Ratliff is also responsible for taking the authority away from elected local school boards and placing that power into the hands of unelected superintendents.
No longer do locally elected school board members have any real control over the all-important issues of personnel hiring and district curriculum decisions.
Local school board members’ duties have basically been reduced to (1) hiring and firing the superintendent, (2) buying and selling property, and (3) setting board policy (e.g., those items which involve board members themselves – elections, vacancies on the board, travel and reimbursement policies, etc.).
RATLIFF: LOSS OF CONTROL BY ELECTED SBOE
At the state level, Ratliff tried for years to replace the elected State Board of Education (SBOE) with an appointed one. Appointed boards really do not care what voters want. They will do the will of whoever appoints them and of the lobbyists who orchestrate from a distance.
Ratliff’s SB 1 reduced the authority of the elected SBOE and enhanced the power of the unelected Texas Commissioner of Education who at the time was Ratliff’s joined-at-the-hip ally, Mike Moses.
Ratliff always pretended that the SBOE had lost control over textbook content; and until Attorney General Greg Abbott’s 2006 opinion, the SBOE was shut out of fulfilling its lawful responsibilities. For eleven years the Board labored under Ratliff’s false interpretation; and during that time, numerous inferior textbooks were placed in front of our Texas students.
Because of Ratliff’s influence on SB 1, elected SBOE members cannot even elect their own chairperson; the Governor appoints one.
RATLIFF: TAXPAYER-ENRICHED OPPORTUNIST
Ratliff is a registered lobbyist (http://www.ethics.state.tx.us/dfs/loblists.htm) and has made large sums of money from a number of clients including the Texas Association of School Boards (TASB). Having retired from the Texas Senate in 2003, he began representing TASB on May 10, 2004. That year he received up to $99,999.99 from TASB, and again in 2005, and 2006.
We taxpayers paid Ratliff’s rich lobbying fees because the membership dues that education entities pay to join TASB come from our taxpayers’ dollars.
Because the TASB dues come from public funds, we taxpayers are actually paying TASB to lobby Legislators for more school funding so that our taxes will increase. We are paying to lobby ourselves!
It just so happens that Bennett Ratliff the youngest brother in the Ratliff clan is a Freshman State Representative that the infamous Speaker of the House Joe Straus appointed to the Education Committee. Wow isn’t that a coincidence. Oh by the way the chair of the House Ed. Comm., Rep. Jimmy Don Aycock, has a daughter who is a lobbyist for Raise Your Hand as well. No wonder Senator Dan Patrick believed there was no way that Rep. Steve Toth’s bill which gave the SBOE over-site of CSCOPE would ever pass in the house. Thank goodness for Texas Mom Kara Sands who worked the bill through and got it passed with tenacity and conviction.
THE RATLIFF CLAN AND THEIR COHORTS
“Unfortunately, the Ratliff family (Bill, Thomas, Bennett, Shannon) are heavily vested in Raise Your Hand and in other political entities that have managed to influence our Texas Legislators, particularly during this 83rd Session.”
So let’s get to Thomas Ratliff and why he may be a little testy. You see Thomas Ratliff; Bill’s son -you know the one who was ruled by the Attorney General to be on the State Board of Education illegally because he is a paid lobbyist for Microsoft, yea that one. He had a press release that came out today… see below.
He is not very happy that CSCOPE has been brought under the microscope and lessons have been pulled. Connect this dot – The RATLIFF’S ARE TIED TO BILL GATES AND MICROSOFT
You know the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation that is the lead funder for the transformation of Education in America called Common Core. It has been reported that “a Gates Foundation-funded project is storing an unprecedented amount of personal information about millions of students in a $100 million database that cannot guarantee complete security.”
Even in Texas a state that rejected Common Core just passed HB2103. This bill is sitting on Gov. Perry’s desk for his signature. HB2103 sets up three P20 education research centers that in the name of education research have access to private data on both students and teachers. Please listen to this short audio explaining it. https://soundcloud.com/alice-linahan/donna-garner-hb-2103
CSCOPE in Texas was the testing ground for the platform that is to be used in other states.
From Texas Mom Colleen Vera’s article here are Three examples from their business models:
- CSCOPE uses public funds to run a private non-profit corporation to hide its operations from the public
- CSCOPE started as a simple service to local school districts and spread to over 800 districts statewide with plans of expanding out of state.
- The legality of CSCOPE’s actions are highly suspect, access local tax dollars to give to a private non-profit corporation instead of distributing the funds directly to the ISDs as dictated by Texas Education Code 18.14.
So now the light is being shined and the Ratliff Clan is not happy. After listening to the recommendation of SBOE Thomas Ratliff for districts to download CSCOPE lessons and then listening to Sen. Dan Patrick’s response linked here. I would suggest we all call Attorney General Greg Abbott and let him know it is time for the Ratcliff clan to be held responsible. Let’s start with removing Thomas Ratliff from the SBOE.
Contact the Attorney General Greg Abbott to the following addresses: greg.abbott@oag.state.tx.us or public.information@oag.state.tx.us
Greg Abbott Campaign Office: 512.477.2002
You can tweet the AG at @GregAbbott_TX or post in the comments section on his FB Attorney General Greg Abbott
See Thomas Ratliff’s press release today – “WHAT A BULLY”
Thomas Ratliff
P.O. Box 232 State Board of Education tel: (903) 717-1190
Mt. Pleasant, TX 75456 Vice-Chairman www.thomasratliff.com
NO BULLYING POLICIES AND BURNING BOOKS
By Thomas Ratliff, Vice Chairman, Texas State Board of Education
Our country was founded on a “no-bullying” policy when our founders stood up to an English King who tried to bully us. Our military has helped other countries stand up to bullies throughout history. Even today, every Texas public school has a “no bullying” policy for protection of their students.
It’s time for parents, educators, and school board members to stand up to another bully. Senator Dan Patrick. To be fair, there are some things he has done to help public education. However, the majority of his efforts are designed to bully all of us to agree with him on things like vouchers, taxpayer savings grants, charter schools, and finally CSCOPE. Senator Patrick, who has no schools who use CSCOPE in his district, first set out to “improve” but ultimately destroyed a tool used by 80% of the school districts in Texas. I have referred to his effort as a “21st century book burning.” Let me explain.
In 1933, the German Student Association proclaimed a nationwide “Action against the Un-German Spirit”, which was to climax in a literary purge or “cleansing” by fire. The students described the “action” as a response to a worldwide “smear campaign” against Germany and an affirmation of “traditional German values.” In a symbolic act, the students burned upwards of 25,000 volumes of “un-German” books, presaging an era of state censorship and control of culture. At the meeting places, students threw the pillaged and unwanted books into the bonfires with great joyous ceremony.
Let’s fast-forward 80 years. Earlier this year, Senator Patrick held Senate hearings intended to grill supporters and creators of CSCOPE about a variety of issues. Some of the issues were legitimate, others contrived, exaggerated or taken out of context. He later went on Fox News to talk about the hearings and there was a banner below the Senator’s face that read, “Texas Lawmakers hold hearings into allegedly anti-American curriculum.” Then, just last month he held a press conference celebrating the “end of the CSCOPE era.” You could even call it a joyous ceremony. At the press conference, Senator Patrick even said, “What the legislature has learned…is we have to monitor what is being taught in our classrooms before the fact very closely with the same scrutiny as we did with our textbooks in the past.”
Back to 1933. The burning of the books represented a culmination of the persecution of those authors whose verbal or written opinions were opposed to a particular ideology. Many artists, writers and scientists were banned from working and publication. Their works could no longer be found in libraries or in the curricula of schools or universities. Sounds familiar doesn’t it?
Who were some of the persecuted authors? Albert Einstein, Sigmund Freud, Earnest Hemingway and Upton Sinclair. Not exactly radicals.
I think a quote by Upton Sinclair clearly describes what is happening here. His quote, “It’s difficult to get a man to understand something when his paycheck depends on his not understanding it.” If you substitute the word “paycheck” with “re-election” “conservative rating” or “number of Facebook friends,” you start to understand the motive behind Senator Patrick wanting to eliminate CSCOPE lessons.
Censorship is censorship, regardless of who’s calling the shots. This is a core belief of our country and we shouldn’t stand for it.
To be clear, of the 1,300 lessons in CSCOPE, there have only been a small handful of “controversial” examples talked about. Is CSCOPE perfect? No. I would doubt any curriculum of any school, public or private, is perfect. But, in an effort to get rid of the few lessons he didn’t like, Senator Patrick threatened the Regional Service Centers who created CSCOPE to pull it down or he would take his bullying to the next level.
But, apparently even after CSCOPE agreed to pull down the lessons, Senator Patrick still isn’t done. Now he is asking people to “report” school districts that want to continue to use CSCOPE lessons that they helped develop. He says he will “share” that information with the Attorney General for some sort of enforcement action I guess. This looks like the Social Studies police, or SS for short. What’s next? Will the state start barging in the door of a teacher’s room to destroy or confiscate her “controversial” lesson plans. Where does it stop?
Join me in standing up to this kind of bullying. Texas has more than 7,000 locally elected school board members who are responsible for overseeing their local INDEPENDENT school districts. We don’t need more state sanctioned censorship of our classrooms. We need the state to set reasonable standards and then get out of the way and let our local public schools do their job. We need tools like CSCOPE to be available as options for teachers to choose, not forced upon them or taken from them by a bully.
_____________________________________________________________Is Common Core in Texas? You Bet it is.
Ask the question…..Education- who is taking control over our children using our tax dollars?
Knowledge is Power~ Click and share with your friends!
Our History is what they are trying to rewrite!
“What Gets Measured Gets Treasured: SB 1724 Would Harm Our Students”
by Donna Garner
Photo courtesy of the Texas Tribune
“What gets measured gets treasured.” This is an oft-quoted statement among teachers. In other words, what gets tested gets taught. It is for this reason that I am absolutely mystified about Texas SB 1724 which is authored by some of our most insightful Texas Senators – Patrick, Birdwell, Campbell, Hegar, Lucio, Paxton, and Taylor.
Under SB 1724, Texas high-school students would not be required to pass STAAR/End-of-Course tests in World History and World Geography. (Please refer to chart on SB 1724 posted below.)
It was over the curriculum standards (TEKS) for World History and World Geography that the Texas State Board of Education members waged some of their most ferocious battles back on 5.23.10.
The end result is that Texas’ World History and World Geography standards (along with the other Social Studies standards) are the most fact-based and patriotic curriculum standards (TEKS) in the entire country. They are indeed “Type #1.”
[To learn the definitions of Type #1 and Type #2, please go to: http://nocompromisepac.ning.com/profiles/blogs/type-1-and-type-2-two-completely-different-philosophies-of?xg_source=activity ]
Below, I have excerpted a few of the elements found in the World History and World Geography TEKS (as posted on the Texas Education Agency website). Please take the time to scan over them.
As you ponder them, remember this: Unless teachers and their students are held accountable on the World History and World Geography STAAR/End-of-Course tests to teach/learn the new Type #1 TEKS, many Texas teachers most likely will continue teaching their “old” Type #2 curriculum units – revisionist history.
Also, please notice that it is in the World History and World Geography TEKS that the world’s religions are to be taught. If we lose the STAAR/EOC “measuring stick” in these two courses, how will parents and the public know whether Texas students have been taught Type #1 or Type #2 curriculum?
Some of the most troubling lessons in CSCOPE (and in other curriculum materials) are those that cover World History and World Geography (e.g., students designing Communist/Marxist flags, Islamic fundamentalism, burqas, Christianity as a cult, The Middle East, Christopher Columbus as an eco-warrior, 9/11 terrorists as “freedom fighters,” portrayal of Communism as superior to Capitalism, etc.).
Have we grassroots citizens worked so hard to disclose these egregious Type #2 World History and World Geography revisionist history lessons only to lose the “battle” by removing the accountability of the STAAR/EOC’s that will force teachers to teach Type #1? Yet, SB 1724, if passed, would remove that accountability for both teachers and students.
If the Texas Legislature does away with the World History and World Geography STAAR/EOC’s (SB 1724), how will parents and the public ever know whether TASA iCLOUD, regular public schools, charter schools, CSCOPE, Turkish Gulen Harmony Charter Schools, dual-credit courses, Texas Virtual Academy, online learning, Advanced Placement courses, International Baccalaureate programs, Web 2.0 Tools, and Safari Montage are actually moving our school children into Type #1?
Please read: 3.19.13 — “Some Texas Legislators Being Duped” written by Donna Garner –
===============
Link to SB 1724 – Legislation on STAAR/End-of-Course Tests
|
TYPE OF TEXAS HIGH SCHOOL DEGREE PROGRAM
|
STAAR/END-OF-COURSE GRADUATION REQUIREMENTS
|
| FOUNDATION |
|
| English I English IIAlgebra IBiology
U. S. History |
Take 5 tests and must pass a minimum of 4 |
| |
|
| BUSINESS & INDUSTRY |
|
| English I English IIIAlgebra IBiology
U. S. History |
Take 5 tests and must pass a minimum of 4 |
| |
|
| ARTS & HUMANITIES/STEM |
|
| English I English IIIAlgebra IAlgebra IIBiology
U. S. History |
Take 6 tests and must pass minimum of 5 |
| |
|
| English I — diagnostic only — does not count toward graduationState will pay costs for students to take SAT or ACT |
|
=============
Please scan over the following excellent World History and World Geography curriculum standards (excerpts taken from TEKS). We as Texans want all Texas public school graduates to know these and much more so that they will become knowledgeable, patriotic American citizens and voters.
=============
WORLD HISTORY – NEW TEKS STARTING IN SCHOOL YEAR 2011 – 2012
http://ritter.tea.state.tx.us/rules/tac/chapter113/ch113c.html#113.42
§113.42. World History Studies (One Credit), Beginning with School Year 2011-2012.
(c) Knowledge and skills.
(3) History. The student understands the contributions and influence of classical civilizations from 500 BC to AD 600 on subsequent civilizations. The student is expected to:
(A) describe the major political, religious/philosophical, and cultural influences of Persia, India, China, Israel, Greece, and Rome, including the development of monotheism, Judaism, and Christianity;
(4) History. The student understands how, after the collapse of classical empires, new political, economic, and social systems evolved and expanded from 600 to 1450. The student is expected to:
(A) explain the development of Christianity as a unifying social and political factor in medieval Europe and the Byzantine Empire;
(B) explain the characteristics of Roman Catholicism and Eastern Orthodoxy;
(E) describe the interactions among Muslim, Christian, and Jewish societies in Europe, Asia, and North Africa;
(F) describe the interactions between Muslim and Hindu societies in South Asia;
(I) explain the development of the slave trade;
(K) summarize the changes resulting from the Mongol invasions of Russia, China, and the Islamic world.
(5) History. The student understands the causes, characteristics, and impact of the European Renaissance and the Reformation from 1450 to 1750. The student is expected to:
(A) explain the political, intellectual, artistic, economic, and religious impact of the Renaissance; and
(B) explain the political, intellectual, artistic, economic, and religious impact of the Reformation.
(6) History. The student understands the characteristics and impact of the Maya, Inca, and Aztec civilizations. The student is expected to:
(A) compare the major political, economic, social, and cultural developments of the Maya, Inca, and Aztec civilizations and explain how prior civilizations influenced their development; and
(B) explain how the Inca and Aztec empires were impacted by European exploration/colonization.
(7) History. The student understands the causes and impact of European expansion from 1450 to 1750. The student is expected to:
((C) explain the impact of the Atlantic slave trade on West Africa and the Americas;
(D) explain the impact of the Ottoman Empire on Eastern Europe and global trade;
(8) History. The student understands the causes and the global impact of the Industrial Revolution and European imperialism from 1750 to 1914. The student is expected to:
(C) identify the major political, economic, and social motivations that influenced European imperialism;
(D) explain the major characteristics and impact of European imperialism; and
(E) explain the effects of free enterprise in the Industrial Revolution.
(9) History. The student understands the causes and effects of major political revolutions between 1750 and 1914. The student is expected to:
(A) compare the causes, characteristics, and consequences of the American and French revolutions, emphasizing the role of the Enlightenment, the Glorious Revolution, and religion;
(D) identify the influence of ideas such as separation of powers, checks and balances, liberty, equality, democracy, popular sovereignty, human rights, constitutionalism, and nationalism on political revolutions.
(10) History. The student understands the causes and impact of World War I. The student is expected to:
(A) identify the importance of imperialism, nationalism, militarism, and the alliance system in causing World War I;
(D) identify the causes of the February (March) and October revolutions of 1917 in Russia, their effects on the outcome of World War I, and the Bolshevik establishment of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics.
(12) History. The student understands the causes and impact of World War II. The student is expected to:
(A) describe the emergence and characteristics of totalitarianism;
(B) explain the roles of various world leaders, including Benito Mussolini, Adolf Hitler, Hideki Tojo, Joseph Stalin, Franklin D. Roosevelt, and Winston Churchill, prior to and during World War II; and
(C) explain the major causes and events of World War II, including the German invasions of Poland and the Soviet Union, the Holocaust, Japanese imperialism, the attack on Pearl Harbor, the Normandy landings, and the dropping of the atomic bombs.
(13) History. The student understands the impact of major events associated with the Cold War and independence movements. The student is expected to:
(A) summarize how the outcome of World War II contributed to the development of the Cold War;
(B) summarize the factors that contributed to communism in China, including Mao Zedong’s role in its rise, and how it differed from Soviet communism;
(C) identify the following major events of the Cold War, including the Korean War, the Vietnam War, and the arms race;
(D) explain the roles of modern world leaders, including Ronald Reagan, Mikhail Gorbachev, Lech Walesa, and Pope John Paul II, in the collapse of communism in Eastern Europe and the Soviet Union;
(E) summarize the rise of independence movements in Africa, the Middle East, and South Asia and reasons for ongoing conflicts; and
(F) explain how Arab rejection of the State of Israel has led to ongoing conflict.
(14) History. The student understands the development of radical Islamic fundamentalism and the subsequent use of terrorism by some of its adherents. The student is expected to:
(A) summarize the development and impact of radical Islamic fundamentalism on events in the second half of the 20th century, including Palestinian terrorism and the growth of al Qaeda; and
(B) explain the U.S. response to terrorism from September 11, 2001, to the present.
((18) Economics. The student understands the historical origins of contemporary economic systems and the benefits of free enterprise in world history. The student is expected to:
(A) identify the historical origins and characteristics of the free enterprise system, including the contributions of Adam Smith, especially the influence of his ideas found in The Wealth of Nations;
(B) identify the historical origins and characteristics of communism, including the influences of Karl Marx;
(C) identify the historical origins and characteristics of socialism;
(D) identify the historical origins and characteristics of fascism;
(E) explain why communist command economies collapsed in competition with free market economies at the end of the 20th century; and
(F) formulate generalizations on how economic freedom improved the human condition, based on students’ knowledge of the benefits of free enterprise in Europe’s Commercial Revolution, the Industrial Revolution, and 20th-century free market economies, compared to communist command communities.
(19) Government. The student understands the characteristics of major political systems throughout history. The student is expected to:
(A) identify the characteristics of monarchies and theocracies as forms of government in early civilizations; and
(B) identify the characteristics of the following political systems: theocracy, absolute monarchy, democracy, republic, oligarchy, limited monarchy, and totalitarianism.
(20) Government. The student understands how contemporary political systems have developed from earlier systems of government. The student is expected to:
(A) explain the development of democratic-republican government from its beginnings in the Judeo-Christian legal tradition and classical Greece and Rome through the English Civil War and the Enlightenment;
(B) identify the impact of political and legal ideas contained in the following documents: Hammurabi’s Code, the Jewish Ten Commandments, Justinian’s Code of Laws, Magna Carta, the English Bill of Rights, the Declaration of Independence, the U.S. Constitution, and the Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen;
(C) explain the political philosophies of individuals such as John Locke, Thomas Hobbes, Voltaire, Charles de Montesquieu, Jean Jacques Rousseau, Thomas Aquinas, John Calvin, Thomas Jefferson, and William Blackstone; and
(D) explain the significance of the League of Nations and the United Nations.
(21) Citizenship. The student understands the significance of political choices and decisions made by individuals, groups, and nations throughout history. The student is expected to:
(C) identify examples of key persons who were successful in shifting political thought, including William Wilberforce.
(22) Citizenship. The student understands the historical development of significant legal and political concepts related to the rights and responsibilities of citizenship. The student is expected to:
(A) summarize the development of the rule of law from ancient to modern times;
(B) identify the influence of ideas regarding the right to a “trial by a jury of your peers” and the concepts of “innocent until proven guilty” and “equality before the law” that originated from the Judeo-Christian legal tradition and in Greece and Rome;
(C) identify examples of politically motivated mass murders in Cambodia, China, Latin America, the Soviet Union, and Armenia;
(D) identify examples of genocide, including the Holocaust and genocide in the Balkans, Rwanda, and Darfur;
(E) identify examples of individuals who led resistance to political oppression such as Nelson Mandela, Mohandas Gandhi, Oscar Romero, Natan Sharansky, Las Madres de la Plaza de Mayo, and Chinese student protestors in Tiananmen Square; and
(F) assess the degree to which American ideals have advanced human rights and democratic ideas throughout the world.
(23) Culture. The student understands the history and relevance of major religious and philosophical traditions. The student is expected to:
(A) describe the historical origins, central ideas, and spread of major religious and philosophical traditions, including Buddhism, Christianity, Confucianism, Hinduism, Islam, Judaism, Sikhism, and the development of monotheism; and
(B) identify examples of religious influence on various events referenced in the major eras of world history.
(24) Culture. The student understands the roles of women, children, and families in different historical cultures. The student is expected to:
(A) describe the changing roles of women, children, and families during major eras of world history; and
(B) describe the major influences of women such as Elizabeth I, Queen Victoria, Mother Teresa, Indira Gandhi, Margaret Thatcher, and Golda Meir during major eras of world history.
(25) Culture. The student understands how the development of ideas has influenced institutions and societies. The student is expected to:
(C) explain the relationship among Christianity, individualism, and growing secularism that began with the Renaissance and how the relationship influenced subsequent political developments; and
(D) explain how Islam influences law and government in the Muslim world.
Source: The provisions of this §113.42 adopted to be effective August 23, 2010, 35 TexReg 7232.
§113.43. World Geography Studies (One Credit), Beginning with School Year 2011-2012.
(b) Introduction.
(7) State and federal laws mandate a variety of celebrations and observances, including Celebrate Freedom Week.
(A) Each social studies class shall include, during Celebrate Freedom Week as provided under the TEC, §29.907, or during another full school week as determined by the board of trustees of a school district, appropriate instruction concerning the intent, meaning, and importance of the Declaration of Independence and the U.S. Constitution, including the Bill of Rights, in their historical contexts. The study of the Declaration of Independence must include the study of the relationship of the ideas expressed in that document to subsequent American history, including the relationship of its ideas to the rich diversity of our people as a nation of immigrants, the American Revolution, the formulation of the U.S. Constitution, and the abolitionist movement, which led to the Emancipation Proclamation and the women’s suffrage movement.
(B) Each school district shall require that, during Celebrate Freedom Week or other week of instruction prescribed under subparagraph (A) of this paragraph, students in Grades 3-12 study and recite the following text: “We hold these Truths to be self-evident, that all Men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the Pursuit of Happiness–That to secure these Rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just Powers from the Consent of the Governed.”
(8) Students identify and discuss how the actions of U.S. citizens and the local, state, and federal governments have either met or failed to meet the ideals espoused in the founding documents.
(c) Knowledge and skills.
(14) Government. The student understands the processes that influence political divisions, relationships, and policies. The student is expected to:
(B) compare how democracy, dictatorship, monarchy, republic, theocracy, and totalitarian systems operate in specific countries; and
(15) Citizenship. The student understands how different points of view influence the development of public policies and decision-making processes on local, state, national, and international levels. The student is expected to:
(B) explain how citizenship practices, public policies, and decision making may be influenced by cultural beliefs, including nationalism and patriotism.
(16) Culture. The student understands how the components of culture affect the way people live and shape the characteristics of regions. The student is expected to:
(B) describe elements of culture, including language, religion, beliefs and customs, institutions, and technologies;
(17) Culture. The student understands the distribution, patterns, and characteristics of different cultures. The student is expected to:
(B) describe major world religions, including animism, Buddhism, Christianity, Hinduism, Islam, Judaism, and Sikhism, and their spatial distribution;
(18) Culture. The student understands the ways in which cultures change and maintain continuity. The student is expected to:
(B) assess causes, effects, and perceptions of conflicts between groups of people, including modern genocides and terrorism;
(19) Science, technology, and society. The student understands the impact of technology and human modifications on the physical environment. The student is expected to:
Source: The provisions of this §113.43 adopted to be effective August 23, 2010, 35 TexReg 7232.
2.20.13 – UPDATED LIST OF ANTI-COMMON CORE STANDARDS RESOURCES –
Click the photo to sign the Petition and Join the movement to#StopCSCOPE
Women On the Wall takes on the issues that matter. Sharing information and updates on our weekly radio show on Monday mornings at 10 am CST. You will not want to miss this show. We will have up to date information on CSCOPE and guests who are the experts on education and other issues that are effecting our children and grandchildren.
Knowledge is Power~ Click and share with your friends!
We need all hands on deck:
Next Tuesday, 2.19.13, the Senate Education Committee will hold a public hearing on standards, testing, and accountability.
The hearing most likely will start anywhere from 8:00 to 9:00 A. M. It is important to check at the following link to verify the official posting of the meeting
http://www.capitol.state.tx.us/Committees/MeetingsUpcoming.aspx?Chamber=S
Below is a link with information Donna Garner posted before the Senate Education Committee on CSCOPE; the directions on how and what to do when testifying will be very similar for the standards/assessments/accountability hearing this next Tuesday:
1.30.13 — http://educationviews.org/cscope-hearing-jan-31-900-a-m-senate-education-committee/
WHY IT IS SO IMPORTANT FOR YOU TO TESTIFY
Please read the following article and consider testifying at this very important hearing. Undoubtedly, the Type #2 education establishment will be there in force to rev up the “sympathy vote” from the legislators.
If we lose this battle for grade-level-specific STAAR and End-of-Course tests, how will parents and the public ever know whether regular public schools, charter schools, CSCOPE, Turkish Gulen Harmony Charter Schools, dual-credit courses, Texas Virtual Academy, online learning, Advanced Placement courses, International Baccalaureate programs, Web 2.0 Tools, and Safari Montage are actually moving our school children into Type #1?
Without the measuring stick – a yardstick, a ruler – of the STAAR/End-of-Course tests, how will we be able to prove that our public school students have been “pulled up” rather than “dumbed down
“On Education Precipice: Texas Could Lose It All”
by Donna Garner
I am going to do my best to explain this as simply as possible.
We who care about the 5 million Texas public school students because they will determine the future of our state and even our nation have fought to get to this place in time. We now have a New Plan for everyone, and it is fair.
Without the New Plan and its accountability mechanism (including the Type #1 STAAR/EOC’s), how will parents and the public ever know whether regular public schools, charter schools, CSCOPE, Turkish Gulen Harmony Charter Schools, dual-credit courses, Texas Virtual Academy, online learning, Advanced Placement courses, International Baccalaureate programs, Web 2.0 Tools, and Safari Montage are actually moving our school children into Type #1?
Without a measuring stick – a yardstick, a ruler – how will we be able to prove that our public school students have been “pulled up” rather than “dumbed down”?
(If you are not familiar with the definitions of Type #1 and Type #2, please stop right now and go to the bottom of the page where I have posted the definitions.)
Texas now has Type #1 curriculum standards (TEKS) for the four core subject areas in grades K through 12 (English, Science, Social Studies, Math). These standards are clear and specific for each grade level/each course.
Students, parents, and teachers all know what is to be taught/learned each school year. There is no more guessing – no more fuzzy, mushy goals – no more teachers who are frustrated by not being sure what it is that they are to teach their students each year – no more students and parents who have to live in doubt and fear about what the goals for each course are.
Texas also has new Type #1 tests in the four core areas that will gauge how much students are learning and how well teachers are teaching – at each grade level/each course. These are called the STAAR tests (given in Grades 3 – 8) and the End-of-Course tests given in high school.
Texas has a new graduation plan for all students (not just the top 10%) that will produce graduates who have a large body of knowledge and skills upon which to stand as they go into adulthood.
The problem is that a “virus” has spread through the Texas Legislature, and this virus has been exacerbated by those who are trying to escape personal responsibility.
Texas public schools have been locked in Type #2 since 1997 (and even way before). Because the 1997 TEKS and the tests built upon them (the TAKS) were Type #2, instruction in classrooms has been centered on Type #2.
It is Type #2 that has produced graduates (and drop outs) that frustrate the business community and the colleges/universities because of the lack of basic skill abilities in those coming out of our public schools.
The way to “fix it” is to do exactly what the elected members of the Texas State Board of Education, working with the Texas Education Agency, have done: Establish clear, grade-level-specific, knowledge-based Type #1 goals, expect the teachers to teach Type #1 curriculum, and measure students at each grade level to make sure teachers and students alike are held accountable.
However, there are some people who do not want to be held accountable. Some school administrators are afraid their schools cannot measure up to the New Plan; some teachers do not want to create new Type #1 teaching units; some students are afraid of being held accountable to the new Type #1 tests (STAAR/End-of-Course); some parents are worried their children cannot perform well on the new tests.
Photo of Jimmie Don Aycock courtesy of Embrace the Place
The culmination of all of this fear has been targeted at the Texas Legislature. The intent of these groups who are looking for an “escape route” from personal responsibility is to manipulate the Texas Legislature to get them to undo the New Plan.
Rep. Jimmie Don Aycock’s HB 5 is the result (announced on 2.6.13 —http://www.capitol.state.tx.us/BillLookup/History.aspx?LegSess=83R&Bill=HB5
HB 5 would take away the personal responsibility. It would undo the new graduation plan that requires all students to take core curriculum courses (i.e., 4 x 4). The new graduation plan allows students to take plenty of electives that they can choose for themselves. (Please see the article posted toward the end of this article that explains the new graduation plan.)
Texas does not need to move to a 2-track system where the top 10% get a quality education and the bottom 90% go out into the world unprepared academically for college and/or the workplace. “We have been there, done that.” That is what has been happening in Texas for the last 16 years.
What Texas must do is to “hold the ship steady” and see the New Plan through unto completion.
Let the grandfathered TAKS testers (this year’s juniors and seniors) move on through the high schools. This year’s sophomores on down are under the New Plan.
Let teachers work hard to create new Type #1 curriculum units K-12. Let them adequately teach their students the new, mandated curriculum standards (TEKS) at each grade level.
Let the students learn to master the new Type #1 standards at each grade level. Let the students experience the joy of success as they grow stronger in their Type #1 abilities. Let them see that as they master the Type #1 curriculum, they will do better each year on their Type #1 STAAR/EOC’s. Let them see that hard work will produce ever-improving test scores and greater opportunities in all areas of their lives.
Let parents see the confidence build in their children as they learn Type #1 knowledge and skills and then demonstrate that on their tests and in their daily lives.
If we in Texas ever want to see our public school children turn into well-educated adults, we must go through this transition period without losing our courage in the midst of change.
If the Texas Legislature backs down now, dumbs down the standards, waters down the expectations, and allows everyone to escape personal responsibility, we will pay the price for generations to come.
The way to make sure that everyone is held to a standard is to measure progress at each grade level on the same Type #1 measuring stick — the STAAR/EOC’s. If all involved know the measuring stick is coming, they will obviously try harder to be prepared. It is this day-to-day effort that will reap eventual rewards. Without the publicly released STAAR/EOC test scores at the end of each course (Grades 3 – 11), students and teachers will become less motivated. That is called “human nature.”
Rep. Aycock’s HB 5, unfortunately, goes right along with human nature; and if this bill is allowed to pass, in ten years we would be right back at this point trying to redeem the public schools from failure once again.
Already the present 10th graders who took the STAAR/EOC’s in Spring 2012 are improving their scores.
Last spring, just 54.4% of ninth-graders passed the English I Writing test. After two retest dates, the passing percentage is now up to 72.6%. (The English I Writing test is the lowest on the five end-of-course exams.) Algebra I has improved to 84.7%, English I Reading to 81.2%, Biology to 91%, and World Geography to 84.8%.
According to results compiled by the Texas Education Agency, the subject area with the highest STAAR passing rate at each grade level includes:
3rd Grade: Reading (76%)
4th Grade: Reading (77%)
5th Grade: Reading (77%) and Mathematics (77%)
6th Grade: Mathematics (77%)
7th Grade: Reading (76%)
Grade 8 – 80% passed the STAAR Reading test, 76% Mathematics, and 70% Science.
This has come about because both students and teachers have begun to take the Type #1 standards and tests seriously. They have begun to quit looking for an “escape route” and are settling in to focus on Type #1.
Many teachers have already told me that they really like the new Type #1 standards because for the first time in 16 years, they now know what to teach; the mushiness and lack of clear direction is gone.
English teachers have told me that the new textbooks adopted and based upon the Type #1 English standards are the best they have ever seen in our Texas schools.
Even some of the students have begun to speak out and say they like the new STAAR/EOC’s because they feel the tests actually test them more fairly on what they have been taught at each grade level. The students like the fact that most of the test questions, even though more rigorous and thought provoking, have definite answers – not mushy choices.
Who in their right mind would not want our Texas public school students to learn the following?
RESULTS OF TYPE #1
If we want our public school children to learn to read well, we must have Type #1.
If we want them to be able to speak and write English well, then we must have Type #1.
If we want them to be patriotic citizens who revere the Founding Fathers and know and honor the Constitution, then we must have Type #1.
If we want our graduates to be knowledgeable voters who know history and can analyze current events based upon the past and the present, then we must have Type #1.
If we want our public school children to recognize that they and the whole world were created by a Higher Being, then we must have Type #1.
If we want our public school children to know their math facts to automaticity, then we must have Type #1.
If we want our public school children to be able to do well in foreign languages, then we must have Type #1 that teaches the phonetic sound system and grammar/usage in English so that they can apply that to their foreign language learning.
If we want our public school children to read the great pieces of literature that have connected our country to past generations, then we must have Type #1.
If we want our public school children to have the skills and knowledge they need for college and/or the workplace, then we must have Type #1.
If we want to turn out scientists who are well read, logical, analytical, and who can write down their scientific conclusions, then we must have Type #1.
If we want our graduates to be able to write compositions built upon facts and persuasive techniques, then we must have Type #1.
If we want our high-school students to know how to research a topic and then put that information into well-written text, we must have Type #1.
If we want legislators who are well read and who have a deep understanding of world history/American history/U. S. legal system and how those apply to current events, then we must have Type #1.
I am not going to belabor the point any further. Either we as Texans want what is best for our public school students even though they may have to work harder to get there, or we are going to give them an “escape route” (Rep. Aycock’s HB 5) that will drag our state (and nation) down deeper into the abyss of wasted opportunities.
I beg you to read the following two articles in which I have given more details to help you understand the seriousness of this decision over HB 5:
12.3.12 – “To Gripers: Let New Plan for Texas Public Schools Continue” —
11.28.12 – Texas Does Not Want a Two-Track System But Wants All To Be Educated Citizens” —
TYPE #1 vs. TYPE #2
*My terminology and definitions:
(1) Type #1 Philosophy of Education: Knowledge-based, academic, clearly worded, grade-level-specific content that is tested largely through objectively scored tests — These standards (TEKS) are built from K through Grade 12 and are taught mostly through direct, systematic instruction. The new TEKS adopted by the elected members of the Texas State Board of Education since May 2008 are Type #1, and the new STAAR/End-of-Course tests built upon the new TEKS are Type #1.
Type #1 standards could be referred to as the traditional method – the method of teaching that people perhaps 50 years old and older experienced when they were in school. This included the teaching of phonics, grammar, correct usage/spelling, cursive handwriting, classical literature, expository/persuasive/research writing, the four math functions taught to automaticity, fact-based and discreet courses in Algebra I, Algebra II, Geometry, Calculus, U. S. History, World History, Botany, Biology, Physics, and Chemistry.
(2) Type #2 Philosophy of Education (adopted in July 1997 and reflected in the TEKS and TAKS) — Project-based, subjective (emphasize cognitive domain – beliefs, opinions, emotions), subjectively assessed based upon the value system of the evaluator — emphasize multiculturalism, political correctness, environmental extremism, diversity, social justice agenda — These standards are built backwards from Grade 12 down to K (similar to trying to build a house from the roof down) and are taught mostly using the constructivist (project-based) approach.
Type #2 can be seen in Obama’s social justice agenda (i.e., Common Core Standards) that includes an emphasis on subjectivity, feelings, emotions, beliefs, multiculturalism, political correctness, social engineering, globalism, evolution, sexual freedom/contraceptives instead of abstinence, environmental extremism, global warming, victimization, diversity, an acceptance of the normalcy of the lesbian/gay/bisexual/transgender lifestyle, redistribution of wealth, a de-emphasis on — factual knowledge, the Constitution, Bill of Rights, Founding Fathers, and American exceptionalism.
Key Action Steps to take to protect our children and grandchildren!
ACTION STEP: #1 ~ Join the Movement to#StopCSCOPE ~ Sign the Petition NOW – http://womenonthewall.org/cscope-petition
ACTION STEP: #2 Start helping REP. STEVE TOTH with his very important bill HB 760 — The CSCOPE Transparency Act To Ensure Consistent Oversight of Public School Curriculum –
*Note: Janice VanCleave regularly updates her CSCOPE website:www.TxCscopeReview.com
Women On the Wall will be taking on the CSCOPE issue and sharing information and updates on our weekly radio show on Monday mornings at 10 am CST. You will not want to miss this show. We will have up to date information on CSCOPE and guests who are the experts on education and other issues that are effecting our children and grandchildren.
Knowledge is Power and together we can make the difference!!
Voices Empower has partnered the Freedom Trailer Teams to Educate, Inspire and Motivate.
Women On The Wall.org
Click Photo above:
Seek the Truth~
Share The Truth~
Stand for the Truth~
Protect Our Nation for Future Generations
___________________________________________
Knowledge is Power~ Click and share with your friends!
Please attribute to 
Protect Type 1 Traditional Education in Texas! Get involved. 
