More Texas shit:
A new Texas law aimed at restricting discussions of race and history in schools has some educators second guessing themselves and forgoing civics-related activities to avoid running afoul of it.
edition.cnn.com
San Antonio, Texas (CNN) - A new Texas law aimed at restricting discussions of race and history in schools has some educators second guessing themselves and forgoing civics-related activities to avoid running afoul of it.
HB3979, one of the legislative efforts to ban critical race theory in American classrooms, went into effect Wednesday as schools in the Lone Star State continue to be embroiled in debates over mask mandates. While some school districts are waiting for official guidance on what the law means for them, others are making curriculum changes "out of caution."
The law states that social studies teachers can't "require" or include in their courses, the concept that "one race or sex is inherently superior to another race or sex" or the concept that "an individual, by virtue of the individual's race or sex, is inherently racist, sexist or oppressive, whether consciously or unconsciously."
It also notes that "a teacher may not be compelled to discuss a particular current event or widely debated and currently controversial issue of public policy or social affairs." Teachers, according to the bill, can't require or give extra credit for a student's political activism.
CNN spoke to nearly two dozen school districts across the state of Texas about how HB 3979 already was impacting their plans for the school year. In College Station, some government teachers won't be asking students to take notes at city public meetings for a grade. Elementary school students in Leander won't be asking students to write letters addressing lawmakers anymore. In Keller, some resources offered online to students, including ebooks and news articles have been temporarily removed.
Officials at a school district about 30 miles north of Dallas decided to stop offering course credit to middle school students participating in a renowned nationwide civil engagement program "out of an abundance of caution." The change was first reported by the Texas Tribune.
For the past couple of years, students in two middle schools at the McKinney Independent School District were enrolled in an elective course that allowed them to spend several days a week researching and writing legislative bills that could fix issues in their communities. They would then present and debate their bills in a mock legislature and election process organized by the YMCA's Youth and Government program.
After HB3979 passed this summer, school officials decided the schools should only offer the Youth and Government program as an extracurricular activity as five other campuses in the district have been doing, said Cody Cunningham, the district's chief communications officer.