History textbooks spark hot debate

TAMPA - There is a debate in Texas that is being watched by people across the country: What should we teach our children in history books in school?

A mostly Republican Texas Board of Education is working to rewrite the history books.  They want to include more conservative ideas, including teaching America's Christian or biblical heritage.

Hillsborough County School Board member April Griffin said what goes in a textbook should be decided by educators and practitioners of a subject.

"We have to take the partisan politics out of what are children are being taught in the classroom as far as history is concerned," Griffin said.

But Terry Kemple with the Community Issues Council in Tampa agrees with what's happening in Texas. He said both sides of this issue have an agenda. The decision needs to be made which agenda is best for students.

"The thing is, which is the agenda that is most true to American history? And if you go back and review history, there's no question that the Christian underpinnings of our government is what we should be teaching our kids," Kemple said.

Some of the controversy stems from the names that are potentially being erased from the books.
In early drafts, the board looked at throwing out names like Neil Armstrong, Christopher Columbus, Thomas Edison, and Albert Einstein.

Armstrong and Columbus have been put back in, but Edison and Einstein are still out for now.

They could be replaced with names like Sen. Joseph McCarthy and Phyllis Schlafly, an opponent of feminism and the proposed Equal Rights Amendment to the U.S. Constitution.

It's a national issue because Texas is one of the largest buyers of textbooks, and what they buy may impact other states.

April Griffin said Florida has the Sunshine State Standards. Any books that don't meet those standards are turned away. She believes what happens in Texas won't affect our students.

But she said anything is possible, so she is keeping a close eye on this debate.

The Texas Board of Education is set to vote on the changes in May.