I'm Annoyed

This project on the politics of textbooks was born because I'm about to become a teacher, and have been fascinated by the battles fought over the materials used in schools. I know that teaching is inherently political, and I'm steeling myself for that. I have a personal world view that I've worked hard to cultivate and develop, and I'm not apologetic about that--I think that everyone has the right to their own opinions. As a teacher, my goal is absolutely not to impart my opinions on students. My goal is to help kids nurture their intellect, to learn about the world and society around them in a way that allows them to formulate their own opinions, and develop into citizens making positive contributions to society. Ok, I realize that sounds kind of cheesy and totally lofty. But I'm serious!

My sights are set on becoming a great teacher, and it irritates me that I have to worry about the quality of textbooks that I'll be provided with. There is so much that teachers have to think about....first and foremost, of course, the students: building relationships, classroom time, dealing with student issues. Then, of course, there is parent involvement, lesson planning, grading...the list goes on. It's a lot to balance, and the sheer energy required to deal with all those kids is no small element of the equation. To have to use textbooks or curriculum that have a overtly political agenda....ugh. It's just another sign that as a society our focus is not so much on excellence in education.

Jekyll/Hyde

Sometimes I feel a little bit like Dr. Jekyll/Mr. Hyde in my own feelings about different education issues. On the one hand, as I learn about different battles over various topics covered in textbooks, I find myself thinking "jeez! simmer down everyone! this is not the end of the world! what a student reads in a textbook is not going to define their view of the world--teachers play a big role in guiding students through topics, there are supplemental materials, other influences, etc. etc...".

But then, I see something like this, and I snap back to the reality that just as Michael Apple and many others have said, teaching is a political act. It *does* matter what we teach, how we teach it, and what school textbooks say--otherwise entire legacies of oppression can just be swept under the rug as Rep. Michele Bachmann does so glibly here. How can we learn from the past if we rewrite what actually happened?

Top Textbook Issues

In my study of the politics of textbooks, it's become clear that there are some themes in which issues are most fought over:

*Evolution vs. Creationism

*Comprehensive vs. Abstinence-Only sex education

*Columbus: sinner or saint?

*History of : existent or non-existent?

And so on and so forth. At times it feels absolutely surreal that these are even topics of debate, when the historical and academic evidence is truly so one-sided. It feels like such an epic waste of energy to even have to defend them. (If you have any doubts about which side I fall on, here's a hint: green means go.)

Balance

Today in my yoga class, my teacher talked a lot about balance. Not necessarily the balance of standing on one leg with your foot above your head (although cultivating good balance is definitely recommended if you're going to attempt such a pose), but the idea of finding harmony between competing interests. She was relating it more to our physical and spiritual yoga practice, but I think the lesson applies to textbook and curriculum content as well. Teachers need to cover a lot of ground with students on a whole range of topics, and with all of the different stakeholders involved there is bound to be controversy about what is taught at one point or another. I totally get that. I am really making an effort (in life, not just on this blog) to be more empathetic and tolerant of different viewpoints, so when I think about parents all up in arms about creationism or sex education I try and take a deep breath, step back, and remember that they are in all likelihood perfectly well intentioned people who care deeply about what their kids are learning. And at the end of the day, I have to believe that these controversies will find their own balance--the fulcrum of which will be Truth, not Ideology.

Exhibit A: Dan Savage & Amy Richards talk Abstinence-Only sex education



Exhibit B: Family Guy on Evolution/Creationism



A whole lot of people have poured a whole lot of time, energy, and money into fighting about classroom controversies like these. I don't think that we're serving the best interests of children with all of these battles. We should be presenting them with scholastically sound materials, not ideologically whitewashed ones. Our sights should be set on cultivating engaged, curious learners, with the ultimate goal not being to brainwash them into believing one thing or another, but to facilitate their development into intellectually agile individuals who can make up their own minds.

Heroes

I mentioned in my last post that I'm reading the book Lies My Teacher Told Me by James W. Loewen. It's pretty much my new favorite book and I might be getting borderline obsessed with it. Loewen studied twelve different history textbooks used in U.S. high schools, and examines how they contribute to students understanding (or misunderstanding, as the case may be) of our society. His research is stellar, and highlights one of the reasons that I want to be a teacher: students are not encouraged to think critically, to form their own opinions, or to make connections between the past and the present. I think this shortchanges students in such a major way, and could be nothing short of disastrous for society.

In his first chapter, Loewen talks about "hero-making". Think about how historical figures are presented.....either angel or pariah. We don't really talk about how many of our beloved Founding Fathers were slave owners; we don't learn about how President Wilson was a big old racist and dragged his feet on women's suffrage; we hear only about how Helen Keller overcame her deafness and blindness as a child but nothing about her decades of activism as a socialist and communist. It's almost as if we don't trust that students can handle nuanced, multifaceted characters. What are we so afraid of? That if students find out America was founded by slave owners, they might not be loyal citizens? Will finding out that Christopher Columbus not only did not "discover" America, but also brutally raped, tortured, and murdered indigenous peoples be too difficult to wrap their heads around?

I don't think so. Students are plenty smart enough to be presented with facts that they can discuss, debate, and decide for themselves their thoughts and opinions on. I was in a 6th grade class once that did a great job of this with Minnesota history--students had to wrestle with the question "James J. Hill: Robber Baron or Empire Builder?". The teacher did a great job of guiding the students through material in a way that allowed students to make their own determination about the nature of Hill's legacy. What an important skill to have. We live in a world with flawed people, and very few things are black and white. Learning how to navigate through the shades of gray is not only important for each student as an individual, but in my opinion it's essential for a healthy society. Perhaps I'm being too simplistic, but I see a connection between students in classrooms with distinct black/white/right/wrong presentations of history and adults who accept the "you're either with me or you're against me" polarities of today's civic society. Maybe, just maybe, if we can teach students to deal with complex, nuanced situations, we won't need to have Jon Stewart dissect hyperbole for us like this:

http://www.thedailyshow.com/watch/thu-january-20-2011/word-warcraft

Or this:

http://www.thedailyshow.com/watch/tue-january-18-2011/petty-woman

Let's remember that we're all flawed characters, that nobody's all good or all bad, and treat each other with respect--whether we're in the classroom or we're in Congress, it seems like a lesson that we could all use.

P.S. Sorry I couldn't actually get the video embedded into this post--the link was broken!

In the Beginning

Greetings! Welcome to my first post to this blog. However you ended up here, I hope I entertain you with this little project of mine. I'm in a grad program to become a teacher, and have created an independent study course (with my favorite professor from the U of MN-Morris) about political research & analysis....specifically, researching and analyzing the politics of textbooks. It sounds a little wonky, I know. But just think about it....textbook content is powerful stuff. If you don't believe me, take it from this Texas school board member with an "orthodox Christian worldview". Seriously, this clip is amazing/frightening...he's done things like elevate Jefferson Davis as an equal of Abraham Lincoln, and claim that Sen. Joe McCarthy's communist witch hunts have been exonerated by history. Yowzas.



I mean, really. I totally get that people have different beliefs, and that is a-okay by me as long as we can all be adults about it. Clearly this Texas school board dude is not on board the grownup train. Someone needs to teach him the sandbox rules, especially the one about how just because you believe something doesn't mean you get to claim it as fact. Seriously, you can't. My girlfriend and I have had that fight, like when I really *believe* that I was the last one to take out the garbage but she really *believes* that she was. We've done the legwork for you. (Just don't tell him that we're gay--I'm pretty sure that doesn't fit into his "orthodox Christian worldview".)

One of the books I'm reading for my independent study is "Lies My Teacher Told Me" by James W. Loewen. My friend Joey recommended it, and I'm so glad he did--so far I'm loving it. One of the things that Loewen observes that really strikes me is that college history professors think that high school history classes are just bunk--they actually have to un-teach the bad history that students know from high school before that can start teaching actual history. How ridiculous!

When I'm a social studies (history/geography/global studies) teacher, I want to do right by my students--not only by providing them with good texts, but by teaching them to be critical thinkers...to explore nuances and complexities and wrestle with big issues and all those other lofty goals that I'm sure all new teachers have. (My glasses are not completely rose-tinted...I fully realize that I'll be molding young minds in between dealing with things like stolen iPods and mean texts and smoking in the bathroom and all that other fun stuff that happens in middle/high school).

Obviously figuring out what's in textbooks and how it got there is super relevant to me, and I think it's fascinating. Rather than keep all the stuff I'm learning to myself, I'm putting it here--just in case you think it's cool too. If you've got any thoughts/questions, comment away!