Language Arts

The Board decided that this course was so similar to the "Communication Applications" course, that they decided to kill this one, and voted to do so unanimously.

All of the reading/literature programs were adopted so quickly and quietly that most observers missed it. After returning from break, Ken Mercer (R-The Faction, San Antonio) gave a grand "personal privilege" speech talking about how glorious it is that we've returned to phonics. "Our governor will be so proud," he said. "This is a historic moment in time."

Geraldine "Tincy" Miller (R-North Dallas) agreed and pointed out that nobody had signed up for public commentary on Reading. She says it's clear that hard work was done on committees to make sure these were solid curricula.

Pat Hardy (R-Weatherford) moves that the Board rules REQUIRE that ancillaries be provided electronically (digital or web-based) ONLY. She thinks the fact that the pre-K call is for a "system" will protect the unique needs of that grade. She believes that eliminating all of the shipping and expense involved will help publishers deal with the need for lower prices, given the state's budget woes. It is now forbidden for publishers to include print ancillaries.

One of my personal favorite topics is arts in education. Or, more specifically, arts AS education. My first encounter with someone utilizing the arts as a way to promote the "core subjects" was when I met a graduate student at NYU. She was writing her thesis on black holes and how their construction was inherently linked to waves which we hear as sound waves. Specifically, she was studying physics and music. Together.

The answer to "are they dropped or not?" is yes and yes, meaning the real answer is too complicated for a one-word answer. I've heard so much misinformation about this topic, that I'm going to try to set the record straight. It's a complex and twisted tale of unintended consequences and having too many cooks (Legislature + State Board of Education + local districts and their boards) with fingers in the broth. So bear with me, because to understand this properly, you have to start with a seemingly unrelated topic: Texas' three-tier system of high school graduation requirements...

Proclamation 2011 is for Language Arts, Spelling and Handwriting. In this case, the bids have not YET been submitted, so the Board has some more leeway. Once more, the 15% cut needs to be met, and all other approaches (checking ordering patterns and reforecasting; ordering 103%; etc.) is not enough.

11:15 The Board is furious that the Legislature adjourned a few months ago until 2011, and directed the Board to cut textbook funding for Reading/Literature (now) and Language Arts/Spelling (next year) by 15%. That's a $60-million-plus hole to get them down to $465 million...

If you've got 2 and a half hours to spare, and you want to hear for yourself (rather than the summaries provided in my previous posts) you can download the RealPlayer file.
McElroy's part begins at about 1:20:00, and the skewering by Senators Shapleigh and Watson beings in earnest at about 1:56:15. It goes on for a couple of hours more after that...

After the lengthy questioning, it was time to take testimony from those who'd registered to speak. In some ways, what followed was a microcosm of past Board meetings: six witnesses, including perennial testifiers Texas Freedom Network's Kathy Miller and SMU's Ronald Wetherington decrying the Board's refusal to heed scientific experts and Chairman Don's role in particular; and Board Member Ken Mercer and Free Market Foundation's Jonathan Saenz speaking long and hard to defend the Chairman.

Then, Senator Kirk Watson (D-Austin) picked up where Shapleigh had left off, continually pounding the point home that whether intentional or not, McElroy had created so much controversy that he was unlikely to be an effective and believable leader, and that the Board could get "de-fanged and de-clawed" because of him. Senator Shapleigh returns at the end of this post to utter ominous threats. The lash-by-lash details of the punishment of Chairman Don follow for those who relish such intricacies...