The proposed phrase was part of the original draft outlining the second-grade standards by a review committee that included a section titled “Enslaved Peoples in the Americas.”
“The board — by unanimous consent — directed the task force to review this specific language,” Kevin Ellis, chairman of the Texas State Board of Education, said in a statement.
In the meantime, the board will continue to work on the curriculum later in the summer, according to Aycha Davis, a member of the State Board of Education that represents parts of Dallas and Tarrant counties.
“It’s hard for me to see how it’s acceptable to replace the phrase ‘slave trade’ with the phrase ‘involuntary removal,'” Davis told CNN.
“We received a 24-page document with recommendations from a task force that looked at kindergarten through second grade,” Davis continued. “And within the second grade standards, I found there that they suggest we talk about their journey using the phrase ‘involuntary relocation.'”
The proposed language comes as the concept of teaching critical race theory in U.S. classrooms has become a contentious debate involving parents, school boards and lawmakers across the country. The idea seeks to understand and address inequality and racism in America. The term has also become politicized and has been attacked by its critics as a Marxist ideology that is a threat to the American way of life.
According to Davis, there was some discussion by the Texas Education Agency about “why they chose that language.”
“They wanted to make sure that they introduced slavery to younger classes, but they wanted to make sure that they were deliberately careful with age,” Davis said.
Davis added that while he understands the age element in this case, it is critical that students be taught the truth about American history.
“We have to come up with appropriate ways to discuss it that don’t trivialize what happened during the slave trade,” she noted.
“How do we continue to put more of these types of stories into our social studies classes and how do we make sure that our younger students have access to it and that it’s age-appropriate but at the same time builds a foundation of real knowledge, which our students really really deserve to know.”
Curriculum won’t hide slavery, board chairman says
Davis believes Senate Bill 3, passed last year, likely influenced educators’ discussion about curriculum. The law — which Davis described as an “anti-critical race theory bill” — changed the way social studies teachers could discuss race and current events in classrooms.
“(The bill) specifically says you can’t make a student feel uncomfortable, and that’s why they were given a copy of that law while they were reviewing and a lot of the products that we received. It seems to be a reflection of some of the things that were in that law,” Davis explained.
Ellis, the board president, confirmed to CNN that students will be taught the true history of slavery.
“There was not, and is not, a proposal by the State Board of Education that would in any way be intended to hide the truth about slavery from the second graders of Texas.”
He reiterated that the term “forced relocation” does not “paint a clear or complete picture” of Africans who were enslaved.
“As a result, (the board) voted unanimously to send the language back to be revised. This board is committed to truth, which includes accurate descriptions of historical events.
“Our state’s curriculum will not downplay the role of slavery in American history,” he added.
The subject of slavery is not currently addressed in the second-grade curriculum, Ellis noted.
“This work aims to address this shortcoming. And it’s important to reiterate that (the board) has the final say on the draft language created by any of the task forces,” he said.
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