Oklahoma educators fear high school history bill will have 'devastating' impact

[marmar]

(Guardian UK) The battle over how US history is taught in classrooms across the American south is coming to a head and may even fall apart in Oklahoma, pitting a sea of students and educators against a conservative lawmaker who believes the advanced placement course in its current form teaches only what’s “bad about America”.

Oklahoma Representative Dan Fisher proposed an “emergency” bill this month that would cut funding to the history course, joining culture conservatives in several other states who believe the revised framework undermines “American exceptionalism” and isn’t patriotic enough.

But as the row over the legislation got it sent back for just as urgent revisions late this week, students and teachers across the nation insisted it was overwhelmingly beneficial to be exposed to a range of views on American history.

“I don’t believe that the government should be censoring what’s taught in history because you want strong leaders, and the future presidents of tomorrow are probably currently in AP US history – or will take it at some point – and you want to emphasize the negative parts [of history] so they know what to fix,” said Moin Nadeem, a junior at Jenks High School in Jenks, Oklahoma, speaking to The Guardian during his fifth period. ...................(more)

The complete piece is at: http://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2015/feb/20/oklahoma-ap-history-bill-devastating-dan-fisher

[One_Life_To_Give]

1. Heaven forbid the children learn our founding fathers were real people with faults and blemishes.

How can we revere Franklin once learning of his supposed membership in the Hellfire Club. Or that Washington's adjutant and Father of Revolutionary War Drill, had an unusually intimate relationship with his aides.