Oklahoma tries to ban APUSH (& possibly others AP classes)

[Sprouts Farmers Market ✘]

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http://thinkprogress.org/education/2015/02/17/3623683/oklahoma-lawmakers-vote-overwhleming-ban-advanced-placement-history-class/

#MuhLocalEducation
#MuhFreedomOfSpeech
#OklahomaTop5InFreedom

Apparently even private groups like College Board are as bad (or worse!) than Common Core.
So much for Oklahoma ever turning itself around.

It's amazing how far backwards the extremes actually want to regress.

At least, students are still permitted to take the exam - for the time being.

[RFayette]

I'm surprised they haven't voted to ban AP Biology, given that it teaches evolution & the Earth being billions of years old.

Ironically, many Oklahomans in academically-competitive schools would breathe a sigh of relief with this ruling.  APUSH, while an easy exam, is a very difficult course.

EDIT:  The Mercatus index giving Oklahoma #5 in freedom seems heavily biased toward economic issues.

[DrScholl]

Why don't they just pass a law authorizing Sunday school only?

[RFayette]

Why don't they just pass a law authorizing Sunday school only?

If it weren't for Supreme Court rulings about separation of church and state, Oklahoma would probably be teaching science based on the KJV and Ken Ham/Kent Hovind young-Earth creationist lectures.

What a problem.......

[Frozen Sky Ever Why]

What exactly are they teaching that is "bad"? Our country has a pretty decent history. The only thing I can think of are the atrocities committed against Native Americans, which cannot and should not be ignored. Maybe if they taught more about that we wouldn't have a genocidal murderer on our twenty dollar bill.

[Cory]

The right-wing anti-intellectual crusade continues.

[Negusa Nagast 🚀]

If only Sherman was still alive, to put these rednecks in their place.

[Sprouts Farmers Market ✘]

Why don't they just pass a law authorizing Sunday school only?

If it weren't for Supreme Court rulings about separation of church and state, Oklahoma would probably be teaching science based on the KJV and Ken Ham/Kent Hovind young-Earth creationist lectures.

What a problem.......

The Okies really respect those rulings too. That's why they voted to ban Sharia Law 70%-30%

[RFayette]

Why don't they just pass a law authorizing Sunday school only?

If it weren't for Supreme Court rulings about separation of church and state, Oklahoma would probably be teaching science based on the KJV and Ken Ham/Kent Hovind young-Earth creationist lectures.

What a problem.......

The Okies really respect those rulings too. That's why they voted to ban Sharia Law 70%-30%

Yeah, Oklahoma has joke politics.  All I was saying was, without the Court putting a little pressure to retain sanity, the state would go utterly off the deep end, likely teaching things like this or perhaps even this even in traditional public schools.

[DemPGH]

Well, the shame is that there are possibly brilliant people being robbed of their potential in an environment like this. That's the loss.

Why don't they just pass a law authorizing Sunday school only?

If it weren't for Supreme Court rulings about separation of church and state, Oklahoma would probably be teaching science based on the KJV and Ken Ham/Kent Hovind young-Earth creationist lectures.

What a problem.......

Yeah, out in the middle of Pennsylvania we had the Darwin on trial business back in 2004-05 where a school board tried to insert religion into the science curriculum, and the school board lost in court. NOVA did a documentary on it. Ken Ham is making up fiction that isn't science at all, but it fits how these people want to see the world.

[Türkisblau]

This is disturbing. APUSH actually attempts to do what real history courses are supposed to which is present different ways to interpret and analyze our country's history.

Surprised this hasn't happened earlier.

[Grumpier Than Thou]

This is exactly why no one in their right mind could support "states' rights"

[All Along The Watchtower]

This is disturbing. APUSH actually attempts to do what real history courses are supposed to which is present different ways to interpret and analyze our country's history.

Surprised this hasn't happened earlier.

You think the Right in this country wants people to even know of "different ways to interpret and analyze our country's history"?(nevermind whether students agree with them or not).

The purpose of education from the Right's perspective is to create loyal citizens and employees. They think questioning anything is a useless luxury at best, dangerous subversiveness at worst. This is nothing new.

[Zioneer]

This is disturbing. APUSH actually attempts to do what real history courses are supposed to which is present different ways to interpret and analyze our country's history.

Surprised this hasn't happened earlier.

I agree with you, plus as an aspiring professional historian, this whole mess makes me angry.

[Cassius]

Seems like a step in the right direction.

[Badger]

My only surprise is that Oklahoma hasn't been beaten to this by other astates. The South sucks, exhibit number 378 12

[Badger]

Seems like a step in the right direction.

You're effing kidding, right? Care to elaborate?

And for extra masochism on my part, what would be the next 'right' step.

[Antonio the Sixth]

Seems like a step in the right direction.

You're effing kidding, right? Care to elaborate?

It's Cassius. See my quote in his sig.

[Chunk Yogurt for President!]

This is disturbing. APUSH actually attempts to do what real history courses are supposed to which is present different ways to interpret and analyze our country's history.

Surprised this hasn't happened earlier.

You think the Right in this country wants people to even know of "different ways to interpret and analyze our country's history"?(nevermind whether students agree with them or not).

The purpose of education from the Right's perspective is to create loyal citizens and employees. They think questioning anything is a useless luxury at best, dangerous subversiveness at worst. This is nothing new.

I'm very much right-wing and I strongly believe that we should teach both the good and the bad about any country, including America.  I remember when I was 13 and my history textbook talked about some of America's actions in the Middle East and I remember being so appalled that America could possibly do anything wrong.  It's probably why I have my views on foreign policy today.

[TDAS04]

Disgusting.

[Panda Express]

Disturbing stuff, and it takes a lot to disturb me these days.

[Snowstalker Mk. II]

The American Freikorps movement is growing.

[Representative MJM]

How is this even happening? I can't even understand how such chauvinism exists in this country. This goes against free speech no matter how you look at it. Besides, I took APUSH, and it never caused me to hate America. I guess I'll leave that to these far-right Oklahomans that cannot even point to any inaccurate information in the curriculum. There is no place for censorship or bias in education.

[Mechaman]

Fools!

Anyway, I can't say I am at all a fan of this.  This idea that kids should be taught American history without it's bad qualities is just well wrong.  Teaching an exceptionalist view of History is not History.  It's Propaganda.

I know it's cliche, but if you don't learn your History you're doomed to repeat it.  If you are a remotely intelligent and rational individual your understanding of History informs your politics.  Getting rid of classes because they teach actual history instead of the feel good mail stamp version of it causes real damage to the psyche of this current generation.

This is not good at all.  In fact I am going to write a letter to the Oklahoma Legislature telling them exactly what I think in no small words about  their recent vote.  I hope that some wise guy in a federal court has the balls to strike this sh*t down.

Seriously, this is just wrong.

[SteveRogers]

This is disturbing. APUSH actually attempts to do what real history courses are supposed to which is present different ways to interpret and analyze our country's history.

Surprised this hasn't happened earlier.

You think the Right in this country wants people to even know of "different ways to interpret and analyze our country's history"?(nevermind whether students agree with them or not).

The purpose of education from the Right's perspective is to create loyal citizens and employees. They think questioning anything is a useless luxury at best, dangerous subversiveness at worst. This is nothing new.

The Texas GOP literally added opposition to the teaching of critical thinking skills to their platform a few years back.