The Texas Board of Education is about to erase Hillary Clinton and Helen Keller from the school curriculum to replace them with the most important figure in recent American history, the Reverend Billy Graham.
History curriculum in Texas remembers the Alamo but could soon forget Hillary Clinton and Helen Keller.
As part of an effort to "streamline" the social studies curriculum in public schools, the State Board of Education voted Friday to adjust what students in every grade are required to learn in the classroom. Among the changes, board members approved the removal of several historical figures, including Clinton and Keller, from the curriculum.
The board also voted to keep in the curriculum a reference to the "heroism" of the defenders of the Alamo, which had been recommended for elimination, as well as Moses' influence on the writing of the nation's founding documents, multiple references to "Judeo-Christian" values and a requirement that students explain how the "Arab rejection of the State of Israel has led to ongoing conflict" in the Middle East.
The vote Friday was preliminary. The board can amend the curriculum changes further before taking a final vote in November.
Barbara Cargill, a Republican board member from Houston and former chairwoman, said work groups recommended removing Clinton and Keller, and the board agreed.
"In speaking to teachers and testifiers, they did not mention these specific deletions," she said.
The first woman to win the popular vote for President of the United States isn't noteworthy enough.
The Dallas Morning News spoke with two teachers from the group of board-nominated volunteers that made the recommendations. Both said the state required students to learn about so many historical figures that it resulted in rote memorization of dates and names instead of real learning.
The 15-member work group came up with a rubric for grading every historical figure to rank who is "essential" to learn and who isn't. The formula asked questions like, "Did the person trigger a watershed change"; "Was the person from an underrepresented group"; and "Will their impact stand the test of time?"
Out of 20 points, Keller scored a 7 and Clinton scored a 5. Eliminating Clinton from the requirements will save teachers 30 minutes of instructional time, the work group estimated, and eliminating Keller will save 40 minutes.
History's hard. We have to teach "Judeo-Christian values" in schools instead.
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