This is a letter from one of Tennessee Rising’s leaders, Jackie Archer of Murfreesboro.
Dear friends and colleagues,
For seven years I have been aware of the ideological bias in our TN public school textbooks. I have seen most of the material in the social studies books used in our schools over three adoption cycles; first in 2012 just prior to the 2013-14 adoption cycle, we (the Tennessee Textbook Advocates) reviewed 90% of the books in the 2013-14 adoption cycle, and reviewed again in the 2018-19 cycle with the aid of Lt. Col. Roy White of Truth in Textbooks and his multi-state team. I can attest to the indoctrination-by-design contained in those books, …much of it by omission.
It was a young student that originally brought to our attention errors in his world history textbook back in 2012. Without his extraordinary wisdom, we might never have discovered the extent of the pervasive bias throughout all of the curriculum; American history and civics being two of the most offensive.
What I have not seen are the end-of-year standardized assessments which are, presumably, based on the material in the textbooks; both of which are supposed to be based on *Tennessee standards. When asking to see what is on the assessments, we are told that no one is allowed to see them; not parents, teachers, principals, administrators, nor even TN DOE staff. Presumably, only the developers and the students, while taking the test, are privy to what is on the test.
Recently I came into some evidentiary information that convincingly indicates that the assessments are even more pointedly and egregiously biased than the textbooks. Not many children would be well-enough educated to recognize bias, but some children have received a parallel education at home from parents that understand the difference between a constitutional republic with free market capitalism, versus central planning and socialism (or by any other name: progressivism, communism, Marxism…)
Assessments drive curriculum and teachers teach to the test. They must, if they want evaluations that secure their job, –as do principals and administrators. Entire schools depend on test scores for survival.
With no access, we can only guess what is on the federally mandated standardized tests. That is a problem for most parents. Over are the days of trusting that everything in public education is in the best interests of the child. We know that education is a multi-billion-dollar industry and the players want to protect their profits. We know that control has been taken away from classroom teachers; that they have become increasingly disenchanted with a system that does not allow them to fulfill their commitment to their students and is stressful for both student and teacher.
· When a teacher is not allowed to see the test that they are administering to their students, something is very wrong.
· When children are subjected to weeks of prior preparation and then 5 to 7 days of tests, which their parents are not allowed to see, something is very wrong.
· When students take lengthy and rigorous tests but get nothing back but a score, something is very wrong.
· When out-of-state publisher’s (sometimes out-of-country) can characterize your state standards in ways that fit a perverse ideological agenda, something is very wrong.
*The Tennessee standards were carefully crafted with unlimited input from the public. There is nothing wrong with the Tennessee standards; standards being a list of subjects: historic places, figures, eras and events that must be covered. It is the way that these figures and events are characterized that is problematic. Less noble bits of our history are inflated without context. More noble bits are glossed over. Complex characters are devalued or inflated by highlighting either only the negative or positive aspects of their lives, as it supports the agenda-driven perception desired by the producers of the material.
There are a staggering number of high-profile and influential officials that have publicly stated their desire and intent to “fundamentally transform America” and our children have been indoctrinated to believe that it is a good and necessary idea.
We are losing the hearts and minds of our young. They are being stolen with words and pictures online and in textbooks that almost nobody inspects or questions. Apparently, standardized testing just puts a huge exclamation point at the end of all those words and pictures.
Quoting one of the few who have seen an entire test: “The student will come away thinking America sucks!”
We demand transparency! …Sunshine is the best disinfectant.
The following code is law in Tennessee:
T.C.A. § 49-2-211. Every LEA shall have a policy that allows a parent or legal guardian access to review all surveys, analyses or evaluations, prior to being administered to the parent or legal guardian’s child. The policy shall enable a parent or legal guardian to opt their student out of participating in a survey, analysis, or evaluation. The policy shall require a parent, legal guardian or student, in the case of students eighteen (18) years of age or older, to provide written consent before the collection of individual student biometric data. The LEA shall also disclose to the parent or legal guardian of the student the purpose for the survey, analysis, or evaluation materials as well as who will have access to the results.
This link will reinforce everything I have said here, but more eloquently and comprehensively, and it offers a solution:
I firmly urge you to take the time to watch/listen. When you decide that something has to be done, call, text, or email me. …We’ll plug you in to the next step. We have a lot happening spontaneously; groups forming in East and Middle Tennessee, people calling from out-of-state, plans to hold a summit exclusively on education.
We want you to be a part of this potentially historic movement.
