Fox news and Florida Family Association critique of chapter on Islam in World History textbook

Jim Buxton:  This controversy, again, helps us understand why it would be so difficult to develop national History standards acceptable to all.

See below for the controversy regarding a chapter on Islam in a Prentice Hall World History book, a textbook which is widely used:

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Here's the indictment:

Florida Family Association sent out an email alert on December 4, 2013 titled Pearson’s World History text book continues to push biased, imbalanced view of Islam on students.

The alert stated in part:  Prentice Hall’s World History text book with its biased presentation of Islam continues to be used in numerous school districts.  The same company that published a high school text book which embellishes Islamists and belittles Judaism and Christianity also has ownership in The Economist, a leading advertiser on Al Jazeera America. 

 

Thousands of people sent emails to Pearson officials. 

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Here's the response from Pearson Publishing / Prentice Hall

 

John Fallon, an official with Pearson, responded to some people with the following email:

On Dec 5, 2013, at 16:31, "Fallon, John" <john.fallon@pearson.com> wrote:

We’ve recently heard concerns about a Pearson high school textbook used in Brevard County, Florida, entitled Florida World History. Some have claimed that this text, used in a 10th grade course, is biased towards Islam at the expense of Judaism and Christianity.  We’d like to set the record straight.

In Florida, as in other states, Pearson creates custom course materials that align to the state’s specific curriculum standards. Florida’s standards split the world history curriculum into two years of study, in grades 6 and 10.  The state’s standards require the sixth grade curriculum start with early civilizations and continue through to the fall of Rome (476 A.D.).  In the 10th grade, the state’s high school curriculum begins with the Byzantines (330 A.D.), proceeds to the Early Middle Ages in Europe (500 A.D.) and continues to the present day.

The Florida edition of the Pearson high school World History text aligns to the state’s standards, which require that the high school course include content on the origins of Islam, while the middle school text details the earlier origins of Judaism and Christianity. The Florida Department of Education approved the Pearson World History programs for adoption and validated that the content in our programs meets the requirements and educational goals of the state.

Pearson and its authors adhere to the highest editorial standards when creating course materials. We rigorously support the integrity of our content with both internal reviewers and independent expert reviewers. We are committed to presenting balanced, unbiased and accurate coverage of world religions.  The content is thoroughly reviewed by scholars of comparative religion, as well as academic specialists in Christianity, Judaism and Islam.

Sincerely,

John

John Fallon
Pearson
Always Learning

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Here's the assessment from Todd Starnes: Fox News

 

Mr. Fallon’s response did NOT address the incorrect portrayal of Islam.  Additionally, it is ludicrous to attempt to justify the publishing of dozens of pages about Islam without including other religions because history is taught over a four year period.  This biased, imbalanced book is ALL these students will see in history class for a whole year.   It is prejudicial.  Where is the Prentice Hall book in the other four years with 36 pages devoted to Judaism and Christianity?

The same company that published this high school text book which embellishes Islamists and belittles Judaism and Christianity also has ownership in The Economist, a leading advertiser on Al Jazeera America.

Prentice Hall’s World History text book with its biased presentation of Islam continues to be used in numerous school districts.  Parents have voiced concern in several school districts regarding the book’s dishonest rewrite of history regarding Islam and the omission of Judaism and Christianity.

Pearson plc owns Prentice Hall.  Pearson also owns a fifty percent stake in The Economist Group. The Economist has been a top advertiser on Al Jazeera America during the past two months.   Pearson plc also owns the Financial Times. If Pearson plc officials are unresponsive to public concerns generated by this online campaign then Florida Family Association plans to publish more online campaigns to call on companies to withdraw their advertising support from the Financial Times and The Economist.   Americans need to know what companies are empowering Islamists.

The World History text book came under fire in July 2013 in Brevard County, Florida.  The Washington Times reports in part: 

“The book has a 36-page chapter on Islam but no chapters on Christianity or Judaism,” said Florida State Representative Rep. Ritch Workman, in Townhall, about the Prentice World History textbook. “It’s remarkably one-sided.

Mr. Workman said the textbook, which has been on the Brevard County schools’ approved course list for three years, also rewrites the history of Islam. He looked through it and found the authors “make a very obvious attempt not to insult Islam by reshaping history,” Townhall reported.

“If you don’t see it from the eyes of a parent, kids are going to take this book as gospel and believe that Christians and Jews were murderous barbarians and thank God the Muslims came along and the world is great,” he said, as Townhall reported.

Here’s an example: Muhammad and his armies’ take-over of Medina states depicted “people happily accept[ing of] Islam as their way of life. It leaves out that tens of thousands of Jews and non-believers were massacred by [Muhammad’s] armies. It’s a blatant deception.”

At the same time, the book depicts Jesus as claiming to be the Messiah — but writes as fact that Muhammad was the prophet, Mr. Workman said in the Townhall article. Students in the class are also taught about the Koran and pillars of Islam.

“They don’t do that for Christianity,” he said, as Townhall reported. “That is offensive to me.”

“Some of the descriptions of the battles use the word ‘massacre’ when it’s a Christian battle and ‘takeover’ when it’s a Muslim battle,” said Amy Kneessy to Fox News. “In young minds, massacre paints a very different visual picture than a takeover or occupation — when in fact both battles were very bloody.”

The publisher, Pearson, denied any bias. But Mr. Workman said he was told by a spokesperson for the publisher that a Muslim cleric was hired to write the sections on Islam.

The School District of Brevard County decided to provide a supplement to the Prentice Hall World History textbook.

The Volusia County School board cancelled a public meeting scheduled for November 5, 2013 after the United States Department of Justice weighed in on the issue.   WFTV in Orlando reported in part:  The Volusia County School Board said it postponed its Tuesday meeting "in the interest of public safety."  The district said it was contacted by the U.S. Department of Justice before the meeting was supposed to start and said "the nature of this information raised substantial safety concerns."  The district said with the information it received, it decided to put more security measures in place to make sure everyone at the meeting would be safe.  The district said it doesn't comment on procedures but did say there was no specific threat of violence.

If there was no specific threat then why did Eric Holder and Barack Obama’s Department of Justice weigh in on this issue?  Who filed the complaint that caused them to react?  The answer to the first question, because this administration is jihadi friendly.  Answer to second question, CAIR, most likely Hassan Shibly, executive director of CAIR Florida urged the Department of Justice to chime in like they have inappropriately done in many other matters. 

 

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Volusia schools will keep using history book

Nov 19, 2013: DELTONA, Fla. (AP) — A central Florida school board has decided to keep a world history textbook that some parents wanted pulled from classes because they say it offers a pro-Islamic worldview.
The board made its decision Monday after hearing four hours of public comment. The Daytona Beach News-Journal (http://bit.ly/17GFqXb ) reports the board didn't take a formal vote after hearing from some 80 speakers. Only board member Linda Costello pushed for a more thorough review.
"I'm still confident with the book and its presentation to our students," said school board chairwoman Diane Smith. Board members Candace Lankford, Stan Schmidt and Ida Wright agreed the book should remain in the classrooms.
"It's kind of what I would have expected," said Walter Hanford, a book opponent who attended the meeting. During the meeting he told the board the "World History" textbook published by Prentice Hall "whitewashes" the history of Islam and its Muslim followers.
The controversy erupted in early November after a Deltona High parent complained to a friend about the book's treatment of the Islamic religion. The friend, from Lake County, posted information on Facebook and organized a protest rally before the board's Nov. 5 meeting.
That meeting was cancelled before it began due to security concerns. The controversy continued to simmer. The newspaper reported Volusia County Republican Executive Committee Chairman Tony Ledbetter took over leadership of the textbook protest.
A group of students also attended Monday's meeting.
Brian Vaughn, a student government representative at Spruce Creek High School, handed in a petition that he said was signed by more than 500 students at five high schools. The petitioners favor keeping the textbook.
Opponents say it's full of omissions and errors that favor Islam over other religions, including Christianity and Judaism. They asked for a thorough review of the book.
"This book is ridiculously biased," said Armando Escalante of Port Orange.
But historian Alfred Perkins argued that omissions are inevitable in textbooks that condense thousands of years of history into a single volume.
Supporters say it's important to teach students about all religions, and their impact on world history.
"Learning about Islam doesn't make anyone Muslim," said Suzanne Southard of Deland.
The last speaker of the day was Rhiannon Dotson, a 12-year-old sixth grader from Orlando.
"I feel we should learn about all cultures and religions," she told the board. "This whole thing is about hate and ignorance. Please don't teach me and my friends hate."
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Information from: Daytona Beach (Fla.) News-Journal, http://www.news-journalonline.com

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Jim Buxton:  Can you imagine a chapter on Islam which would not stir significant controversy?
What's the answer to this conundrum?  Leave Islam out of the World History text?  Have 3 different assessments of Islam in the text book?  Would you do this for every controversial matter?

What future can Social Studies education have under the Common Core?

For two months I have been looking for articles such as the following.  It was written in Nov of 2012, but it still holds true today! Well done, Marc Brasof! 

by thenotebook on Nov 15 2012 Posted in Commentary

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by Marc Brasof
Over the last few decades, the time that students spend in social studies classes has been shrinking. Between 1987 and 2003, the average amount of instructional time devoted to social studies in public schools in a year decreased 18 hours, according to a 2011 study by the Thomas Fordham Institute that evaluated the history curriculum standards of each state. During that same period, the amount of time students received instruction in English and math rose. Students were spending three-and-a-half times as many hours sitting in English and math classes as they were in science and social studies classes.
Under No Child Left Behind, student assessments are based mostly on English/language arts and math performance. Many schools that struggle to improve yearly test scores have thus opted to spend more time on those tested subjects. Some schools have even axed social studies altogether, those class hours replaced with more test preparation. In other words, with schools valuing only what’s tested, regardless of curricular mandates, social studies instruction disappears.
This is an important lesson to consider when states, responsible for establishing learning standards for public schools, are now agreeing to implement the new national curriculum standards known as the Common Core. States were asked to adopt the Common Core in exchange for desperately needed federal funding. Although some scholars have found that the arguments in support of Common Core are flawed, more troubling is the quality of these standards in terms of history and civic education. They only emphasize literacy skills, like reading and writing, and are void of any language that requires upper-level critical thinking, such as a conceptual understanding of the causes and consequences of history.
This dangerous development not only continues the destructive practice of high-stakes testing, but also undermines the freedom of educators to develop teaching methods that value historical inquiry over the regurgitation of facts. What gets lost is the type of learning design that engages students and develops creative thinking.
One recent report on civic education by the Leonore Annenberg Institute showed that students retain little knowledge about our country’s history and its civic processes. This is what happens when we focus not on inquiry, research, and presentation, but on fact regurgitation. When we allow narrow standards and high-stakes testing to be the engine of reform, we are left with an education system that produces students who are merely reciters of facts, recallers of dates, and repeaters of formulas. They lack a deep understanding of what the knowledge they retain means and are unable to evaluate that knowledge critically.
What, then, should history and civic standards look like in the curriculum to ensure that students have opportunities to develop into informed and engaged citizens? This is not an easy question. Even beginning to answer it requires a core understanding of what history really is.
The histories written about our country’s past are often competing narratives. Collectively, they provide us a more nuanced and fuller picture of what actually happened. All histories told have values driving them, values that both illuminate and obscure the facts. The reality is that we use history -- a reconstruction of what we believe happened along with claims against the evidence presented -- to help us understand our present and sometimes even to support our views of what the future should look like and how to get there.
The teacher’s job is not to point out which narrative has more merit, but to facilitate students in making their own conclusions. This is not rewriting the past -- no one can do that. Great social studies teachers understand this and teach students the skills and concepts that drive historical inquiry, research, and presentation. These features of historical study undergird the basic requirements of citizenship that democracies need to thrive. When we do this well, we are preparing the next generation of leaders, preparing them to understand and tackle the complicated and pluralistic nature of our society. When we do this poorly, with too much fact regurgitation, we only swell the forces that shape unproductive, divisive discourse.
As policymakers move forward with the implementation of the Common Core, it is important to ensure that schools have the freedom to balance instruction and assessment with a high-quality curriculum, in history classes especially. But I fear that the Common Core's requirement for literacy skills in both history and English classrooms could have a very different effect.
The standards, as of now, suggest that more non-fiction texts be examined in English classes, while requiring history classes to increase their focus on reading and writing skills. Although such collaboration between subjects at first may seem like progress, recent history with NCLB and high-stakes testing suggests another possible outcome: more focus on literacy, less focus on history.
While specifying some examples of great primary texts that students should read and learn to analyze, the Common Core standards do not actually require that any history content be taught. Students might read history texts but fail to receive history instruction. It may very well be that English classes be mandated to act as history classes.
In other words, at some future point, will history and civic education classes be replaced with longer English classes in low-performing schools in order to improve test scores?
Marc Brasof was a founding social studies teacher at Constitution High School. He is now pursuing a doctorate in educational leadership and policy studies and teaches pre-service teachers at Temple University. Brasof is also the National Constitution Center's Education Fellow. 

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