Private schools could end up with no public money if they press too hard

Private schools could end up with no public money if they press too hard

Could public money finance private-school discrimination, religion and fake history?

If states can't control what's taught with taxpayer money, the upshot could be ending charter schools and public funds for private tuition altogether.

With bills pending in more than 20 state legislatures to expand private school voucher programs, this spring could usher in the biggest transfer in funds from public schools to private schools in our nation’s history. But something more is at stake with this new round of voucher legislation: When the public pays for private schooling, will the public get to decide how taxpayer dollars are used in private settings, or will the public be forced to abandon norms as simple and fundamental as nondiscrimination?

The problem started last year when the Supreme Court held in Espinoza v. Montana that states cannot adopt blanket policies to exclude religious schools from voucher programs. The court left open the possibility that states could still place limits on what private schools do with the money. States might still prohibit them from using public money to teach religion or discriminate based on religion, race, sex, gender, sexual orientation and other protected classes.

But choice advocates argue these minimal requirements are unconstitutional, too. 

Satisfied slaves, divine intervention

This distinction is lost on a lot of states, which make no attempt to stop private schools from using public dollars to teach religion, discriminate or deliver curriculum that flies in the face of historical and scientific facts. Students in North Carolina, Florida and Indiana have tried to use their vouchers at religious schools only to be turned away because they didn't fit the CONTINUE READING: Private schools could end up with no public money if they press too hard

Is This Who We Want on the Textbook Commission? – Tennessee Education Report

Is This Who We Want on the Textbook Commission? – Tennessee Education Report

IS THIS WHO WE WANT ON THE TEXTBOOK COMMISSION?

A  national civil rights group is calling on the Tennessee Senate to reject the appointment of Laurie Cardoza-Moore to state’s Textbook Commission in light of her anti-Muslim views and her propensity to peddle conspiracy theories.

Here’s more from a press release:

The Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR), the nation’s largest Muslim civil rights and advocacy organization, today renewed its call for Tennessee to drop consideration of anti-Muslim activist and possible 9/11 truther Laurie Cardoza-Moore to that state’s Textbook and Instructional Materials Quality Commission. Cardoza-Moore leads the Franklin, Tenn., group Proclaiming Justice to the Nations (PJTN).

Last Fall, CAIR called on Tennessee House Speaker Cameron Sexton to rescind Cardoza-Moore’s appointment.

SEE: CAIR Calls on Tennessee House Speaker to Rescind Appointment of Anti-Muslim Activist to Textbook Commission

CAIR Calls on Tennessee House Speaker to Rescind Appointment of Anti-Muslim Activist to Textbook Commission

The Tennessee Senate Education Committee voted 7-1 Wednesday to move Cardoza-Moore appointment forward. Sen. Raumesh Akbari (D-Memphis) voted against the CONTINUE READING: Is This Who We Want on the Textbook Commission? – Tennessee Education Report

Opening Up the Textbook (Sam Wineburg) | Larry Cuban on School Reform and Classroom Practice

Opening Up the Textbook (Sam Wineburg) | Larry Cuban on School Reform and Classroom Practice

Opening Up the Textbook (Sam Wineburg)

Sam Wineburg is a professor of education and history at Stanford University, He along with Susan Ramiraz and Peter Stearns authored Human Legacy, a high school world history textbook.This appeared in Education Week, June 5, 2007

History textbooks have long merited special scorn. Thicker than a Duraflame log (and weighing more), today’s books feature pages that rival news Web sites (think CNN) for busyness and clutter. Artwork with multiple call-out boxes, tricolored pictures with captions of “How to Read Me,” and pointers to end-of-chapter test questions cued to state standards (with special editions produced for your state) dominate the text like the bun that smothered the patty in that famous burger ad.

Years ago, when I first started teaching future history teachers, I urged them to do what I had done as a young teacher: Ditch the book in favor of primary sources. Now, with Google, the job of finding sources is infinitely easier than in my day.

I soon found, however, that of my yearly crop of 30 future teachers, maybe one was practicing anything remotely like what I preached. The vast majority were just trying to survive. Enough desks for each student, a working computer (Apple IIs do not count), a blackboard: This was a high bar. But in 2004, things got better in California. That’s when Eliezer Williams et al. v. State of California, a CONTINUE READING: Opening Up the Textbook (Sam Wineburg) | Larry Cuban on School Reform and Classroom Practice

Laurie’s Last Stand? – Tennessee Education Report

Laurie’s Last Stand? – Tennessee Education Report

LAURIE’S LAST STAND?

Laurie Cardoza-Moore, an anti-Muslim activist and participant in the January 6th insurrection at the U.S. Capitol will be considered for an appointment on the state Textbook Commission at a hearing in the House Education Instruction Committee on Wednesday, March 24th, at 11:00 AM.

Moore was appointed to the Textbook Commission by House Speaker Cameron Sexton. While most such appointments are approved with little debate or discussion, Moore is expected to generate at least some opposition.

In fact, Moore’s anxiety over losing out on the opportunity to shape Tennessee’s textbook choices was reflected in a column she wrote for the Tennessean:

I pray for a day, when parents in the Volunteer State can send their children to school with the knowledge that they are receiving a wholesome, accurate and unbiased American education.

She’s also a fan of encouraging her followers to “take back” America’s schools, as demonstrated in this letter about Dominion voting machines.

Apparently, taking back the schools has become a great source of profit for Moore. Just look at 2017, when:

. . . she paid herself $130,000. Then, she paid her husband’s business $67,000. There was a business “office expense” for occupancy at just over $49,000. She runs PJTN from her home, so that means she’s paying her CONTINUE READING: Laurie’s Last Stand? – Tennessee Education Report

Rebecca Klein: These Textbooks In Thousands Of K-12 Schools Echo Trump’s Talking Points | HuffPost

These Textbooks In Thousands Of K-12 Schools Echo Trump’s Talking Points | HuffPost

These Textbooks In Thousands Of K-12 Schools Echo Trump’s Talking Points

Their religion-centered, anti-Democrat, anti-science, anti-multicultural message mirrors the Christian nationalism seen at the U.S. Capitol riot.

Christian textbooks used in thousands of schools around the country teach that President Barack Obama helped spur destructive Black Lives Matter protests, that the Democrats’ choice of 2016 nominee Hillary Clinton reflected their focus on identity politics, and that President Donald Trump is the “fighter” Republicans want, a HuffPost analysis has found.

The analysis, which focused on three popular textbooks from two major publishers of Christian educational materials ― Abeka and BJU Press ― looked at how the books teach the Trump era of politics. We found that all three are characterized by a skewed version of history and a sense that the country is experiencing an urgent moral decline that can only be fixed by conservative Christian policies. Language used in the books overlaps with the rhetoric of Christian nationalism, often with overtones of nativism, militarism and racism as well. 

Scholars say textbooks like these, with their alternate versions of history and emphasis on Christian national identity, represent one small part of the conditions that lead to events like last week’s riot at the U.S. Capitol, an episode that was permeated with the symbols of Christian nationalism. Before storming the Capitol, some groups prayed in the name of Jesus and asked for divine protection. They flew Christian and “Jesus 2020” flags and pointed to Trump’s presidency as the will of God. The linkage between Christian beliefs and the violent attack on Congress has since pushed evangelical leaders to CONTINUE READING: These Textbooks In Thousands Of K-12 Schools Echo Trump’s Talking Points | HuffPost

Mozert v. Hawkins County Public Schools (The Tale of the Troubling Textbook) - Part Three | Blue Cereal Education

Mozert v. Hawkins County Public Schools (The Tale of the Troubling Textbook) - Part Three | Blue Cereal Education

Mozert v. Hawkins County Public Schools (The Tale of the Troubling Textbook) - Part Three

his Is Not About Monkeys

While researching what I hope will be an upcoming book about the “wall of separation” as it relates to public education, I came across as case which has fascinated me far out of proportion to its actual importance. Since I try to keep the published stuff concise and balanced and semi-professional, I’m getting the rest of it out of my system here.

You’re welcome.

I’ve already written about Mozert v. Hawkins (6th Circuit, 1987) in Part One and Part Two, and fully intend to wrap it up here in this final post – so you can realistically expect Part Four sometime early next week. *sigh*

The Story So Far

Parents in Hawkins County, Tennessee, led by Vicki Frost, objected to a literature textbook being used in their kids’ public school. The families were fundamentalist Christians, and the stories in the reader were all about imaginary places and events, appreciating different cultures, and asking important questions about what’s truly important – the antithesis of their faith, they insisted. When the school refused to let their kids opt out of using this particular book, they took them to court.

The case began in the Eastern District of Tennessee under Judge Thomas Hull. He rejected a number of their complaints as outside the purview of the federal bench, CONTINUE READING: Mozert v. Hawkins County Public Schools (The Tale of the Troubling Textbook) - Part Three | Blue Cereal Education

Mozert v. Hawkins County Public Schools (The Tale of the Troubling Textbook) - Part Two | Blue Cereal Education

Mozert v. Hawkins County Public Schools (The Tale of the Troubling Textbook) - Part Two | Blue Cereal Education

Mozert v. Hawkins County Public Schools (The Tale of the Troubling Textbook) - Part Two

Tell Him About The Twinkie, Ray

In researching cases for the follow-up to “Have To” History: Landmark Supreme Court Cases, I came across a case from Tennessee that simply fascinates me, despite being a relatively minor decision in the larger scheme of things. Unable to resist chasing this particular rabbit trail, I posted last time about the basic complaint (fundamentalist parents didn’t like a literature textbook) and the summary dismissal by a federal judge in Eastern Tennessee. The case was appealed to the Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals, however, which is where we pick up today.

I’m simply giddy, aren’t you?

Let’s Phrase That Differently…

Part of the appeal of digging through the written records of this case as it bounced around the courts is that we lack easy access to the specific complaints, the textbook itself (although I’m working on that), and any verbal arguments made in various courts. Those things may be public record in Tennessee or Ohio somewhere, but short of a road trip (“Hey, honey? I know you were looking forward to seeing your parents over the holidays, but I’m super-curious about some obscure court transcripts from 35 years ago, so… can we go the other direction instead?”), all we have are the CONTINUE READING: Mozert v. Hawkins County Public Schools (The Tale of the Troubling Textbook) - Part Two | Blue Cereal Education