Texas State Board of Education votes on changes to social studies curriculum
FORT WORTH (CBSDFW.COM) - On Monday afternoon the Texas State Board of Education gathered for a meeting, and to vote on the state's social studies curriculum moving forward for grades K-12.
Board members were tasked with making sure any change to the curriculum aligned with the Senate Bill 3, a state law passed during the last Texas legislative session. The law provides guidelines for how social studies can be taught in public schools.
SBOE members voted 8 to 5 to confirm recent changes to the curriculum were in fact in alignment with SB 3.
Those who voted against the motion criticize the changes as not being enough to reflect modern day instruction of social studies.
Board Member Rebecca Bell-Metereau of District 5 in San Marcos spoke about her opposition to the motion saying the new curriculum, "means there will be nothing about the fact that we've had a black president, the fact that we've had a pandemic, the fact that we are facing global issues with climate change and immigration…all kinds of topics that people don't want to address that seems controversial."
It was a statement refuted by the Chairman of the board Dr. Keven Ellis.
In a communication sent to CBS DFW, Dr. Ellis outlined current Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills standards or TEKS that he says proves otherwise.
Dr. Ellis outlined the following with the bullet points below (excerpt taken from e-mail communication), saying:
- US History: "...2008 (election of first black president, Barack Obama)"
- Middle School Science: "...students understand that climate can be impacted by natural events and human activities."
- High School Science: "...glaciation, sea level fluctuations, mass extinctions, and climate change"
- High School Science: "...chemical reactions such as those that may result in degradation of water, soil, air quality, and global climate change."
- High School Science: "investigate and analyze evidence for climate changes over Earth's history using paleoclimate data..."
- Immigration is discussed 21 times in our standards
During the same meeting Dallas-area board member Aicha Davis tried to amend the curriculum before the ultimate vote to include instruction on Dolores Huerta, a Hispanic Historical figure in the movement for civil rights.
Davis' motion was voted down to which she later told CBS DFW: "We have a state where most of our students are of color and our history standards don't reflect that. So when we talk about students engaging in what they are learning and relating to the standards it's hard to do so."
Dr. Ellis spoke about Davis motion saying it, "is correct that this was voted down to include Ms. Huerta in 1st grade, but it was not reported that she was already included in high school US History."
Davis says she hopes individual teachers and school districts will make the changes she believes will be necessary at the local levels.
Below is a written statement given by SBOE Chairman Dr. Keven Ellis provided after the original airing of this story:
"The State Board of Education voted in early September to not continue with a full revision of the social studies standards and instead revise the current curriculum standards to comply with changes outlined in Senate Bill 3. These revisions are what took place at Monday's meeting. The changes include adding additional civics components to our social studies standards, such as understanding the founding documents, civic engagement, and an appreciation of the United States and its form of government. Monday's vote included over 75 different additions to the grades K-12 TEKS.
"Our standards are representative of the diverse population of Texas and the United States. In fact, Texas was the first state in the country to offer its students both African American and Mexican American studies courses. The SBOE has also voted to continue toward a full revision of the social studies standards in the next few years and remains committed to a mindset of continuous improvement as we move forward."