I ran across this article today. Though, as a homeschooler, I don't use the Social Studies texts which are presented to students in public schools. History, in fact, is one of the main reasons why I chose to homeschool. I want my children to learn history through living books, as Charlotte Mason refers to them. I want them to learn from creation (yes, as a Christian I believe this world did not just happen by mistake and confusion) on through to today's current events. I want my children to see where the God we believe in had his hand in history. I want them to know that, as he promises us in scriptures: "I know the plans I have for you, says the Lord, a plan to prosper you, for hope and a future." And, I want my children to know the truth behind the men who formed our country and the reason a country like America needed to be formed. The article I found is this one:
Texas Board Adopts New Social Studies Curriculum
I read it with much interest only to find that I was amazed. The Texas School Board has adopted some changes to the curriculum which is printed in Texas textbook companies which provide material all across America.
In the article, you will find that the biggest change is that students will be taught that the words "Separation of Church and State" was not in the original constitution.
Another significant decision is to keep the terms BC and AD instead of adopting the more secular used terms, BCE & CE which avoids the mention of Christ.
All in all, for Christian families, these decisions prove to be a victory! However, I agree with Arne Duncan (can't believe I just said that) on his opinion that when politicians write textbooks, ultimately nobody wins.
As Christian educators, however, we just took a step forward in teaching the next generation of children.
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I'm a Christian, but I like the use of CE and BCE in stead of BC and AD because BC the date of Christ's birth which that was basede on was incorrect. Most scholars now believe Jesus was born around 6–4 BC. So, while BCE as Before the Comon Era and CE was first used by Jews to avoid reference to Jesus as Christ, changing the name to "common era" also removes the misconception of when Christ was born, so I support it.
ReplyDeleteAnd I have some sympathy/respect for the Jews which first introduced BCE and CE...that in stead of repressing their conscience which was being pricked over having to acknowledge something they did not believe, they changed their speech. While I wish they had believed it...I respect that they were not willing to falsely acknowledge something they didn't believe in their speech.
And I don't feel that fighting for BC/AD is a good use of a Christian's time. Calling it the "common era" does not in any way disregard Christ's hand in history.