Public schools in the U.S. today are educating more students from language and racial/ethnic minority backgrounds and from lower socioeconomic groups. Schools, however, have a long history of providing inequitable educational opportunities that disadvantage low income students and students of color who are increasingly segregated in under-funded…

Reports on a 1974 survey of administration and teaching in history departments in 56 Texas postsecondary institutions, which covered American history survey courses offered, pedagogical practices, materials, course and instructional evaluation, objectives, and recommendations. Survey instrument is appended. (DR)

Background/Context: Ethnic Studies is an umbrella term for a group of academic disciplines attentive to identifying oppression, restorying history, and creating liberatory futures. These disciplines were born from social movements, with students, educators, and community members demanding educational spaces guided by people who looked like them,…

The purpose of this research is to examine the prevalence of racially diverse high schools in order to understand the conditions that create or inhibit the existence of diverse and equitable schools. We analyzed Texas state demographic data for schools in order to understand the scarcity of racially diverse campuses. We then utilized mapping and…

The document outlines the social studies program for grades K-12 in Texas. It is presented in five sections. Section I provides an overview of the program. Curriculum design, instructional resources, and professional growth and development are discussed. Section II outlines goals for public school education in Texas and Section III outlines social…

Rooted in the history of women of color feminisms along with the everyday pedagogical practices that occur in Chicanx/Latinx communities, CLF plática methodology stems from the recognition that Chicanx/Latinx communities are experts of their lives who engage in knowledge production and theory every day. In this conceptual essay, we explore how…

Teacher education remains a largely unexplored area within the history of American education. This paper is an example of the types of state-specific stories that are needed as university administrators and policymakers make critical decisions about the content and purpose of teacher ed curriculum. These decisions, in turn, have a direct impact on…

Existing research documents the importance and relevance of career and technical education (CTE) throughout American history. Beginning with the passage of the Smith-Hughes Act of 1917 to the passage of the Strengthening Career and Technical Education for the 21st Century Act in July of 2018, federal and state legislation continue to shape…

The purpose of this study was to develop a profile of the literacy histories of developmental reading students enrolled in a South Texas college. A literacy history questionnaire was used to collect written responses regarding the students' early literacy experiences prior to entering the college setting. Analysis of the written responses…

Ninety years ago, John Dewey's discussion of "the religious"--as distinct from traditional "religion"--opened new ways of thinking about the connection between spirituality and everyday forms of human action. But in what ways does our contemporary religious landscape invite us to reimagine and reconstruct Deweyan approaches to…

The "IDRA Newsletter" serves as a vehicle for communication with educators, school board members, decision-makers, parents, and the general public concerning the educational needs of all children across the United States. The focus of this issue is "Education Policy Issues in Texas & Georgia." Contents include: (1) What to…

This report concerns actions taken by the administration of Collin College to terminate the services of Professors Lora Burnett, Suzanne Jones, and Michael Phillips. The investigating committee found that the administration's actions involved "egregious violations" of all three faculty members' academic freedom to speak as citizens and…

Over the last few years, Texas, Connecticut, and California have led the way in approving courses in ethnic studies to provide high school students with engaging, culturally relevant instruction. Texas blazed the trail in 2018 when its state board of education approved an elective course in Mexican American studies. Then in April 2020, the board…

The Civil War was concluded over 150 years ago but recently, monuments erected to commemorate the Civil War and its participants have been the site of civil unrest (e.g., Charlottesville, VA in 2018) and calls for removal of such monuments. The Confederate monuments debate has been going strong for decades, and it seems to have been picking up…

Race shapes the policies and history of the United States. Current research shows that state-approved social studies content standards are written in a non-racial and colour-evasive whiteness language that reinforces racist policies and practices in education. This qualitative framework analysis study examines the language of social studies…