Well, it’s truly official: Texas is doomed.

Why? I’ve talked before about the guy that’s the head of the State Board of Education. His name is Don McLeroy, and he’s perhaps the least qualified guy on the planet to head a BoE. He’s a creationist. He thinks science is evil. The list of his disqualifications to be in charge of a BoE would be so big… well, it would be Texas-sized big.

I predicted nothing but doom and shame for the BoE this year, and it brings me no joy at all to say I was right. McLeroy’s latest antic — though I would call it the first shot fired in a war, a war on reality — was over, of all things, the English standards. According to an article in the Dallas Morning News, teachers and experts had worked for two and a half to three years on new standards for English. So what did McLeroy do? He ignored all that work entirely, and let "social conservatives" on the board draft a new set overnight.

Overnight? Think that’s better than Standards teachers and experts spent nearly three years on?

This new version cobbled together in a few hours was delivered to Board members an hour before the meeting in which they were to vote on it. An hour! In the meeting, McLeroy rammed through the discussion, even dismissing people who claimed he was going too quickly:

“Mr. Chair you’re going so fast … you’re moving so fast we can’t find it in the other document,” [board member Mary Helen] Berlanga said, shortly after the page-by-page explanation began.

After more complaints, McLeroy declared that he would continue at the fast pace.

“The ruling is you’re being dilatory in dragging this out,” McLeroy said.

What a guy! And now guess how this ends…

The board voted to approve the hastily cobbled-together standards, 9-6.

And if you’re not tired of guessing, then guess what discipline comes up next for review? Science!

We know where McLeroy stands there. Texas is actually and seriously looking down a cliff of educational repression that will doom the children there for the next decade. I really can’t be more serious about this. If I were a parent of a young child in Texas right now, I’d move out rather than let her be educated there.

FYI, McLeroy was appointed to his position by Texas Governor Perry, who apparently agrees with many if not all of McLeroy’s positions. Mary Helen Berlanga — the board member quoted above — wrote a letter to Perry complaining vociferously and specifically about McLeroy. As described in her letter, incredibly, when McLeroy invited experts to testify before the board on the English standards, he didn’t invite anyone with expertise in teaching Hispanic children, yet they make up a huge 47% portion of the populace of school children.

I remind you, science is next on their chopping block, and McLeroy is a vocal and adamant anti-intellectual. He admits on his own page he is not a professional educator… but he is the head of the State Board of Education.

I have no clue if it’s too late to save Texas or not. I strongly urge anyone reading this who lives in Texas to write to Perry, to McLeroy, and to Berlanga (she could use the support) letting them know what you think. In fact, if I lived in Texas, I would ask for the immediate resignation of McLeroy, or demand Perry to remove him.

And I remind you as well that Texas is a major force in determining curricula and textbook sales for the rest of this country. This can affect all of us. All of us.

I certainly hope it’s not too late to reverse this damage being done to the educational system in Texas. If not, then we may all be doomed.

Didn't W base No Child Left Behind on a similar system in Texas? Maybe I'm wrong on that, but if not, I'd presume the education system in Texas has been screwy long before now.

I'm trying to remember when the standardized test became necessary for advancement, and I think it was a while back. So yeah, they've been forced to teach to the test for quite some time. I was always part of the highest track and did IB so I got an incredible education, but the mainstream classes were terrible. The whole testing thing is retarded.

This is exhibit A of why politicians, regardless of party, have no business in setting educational standards and programs. Even when they aren't as offensively negligent in their process, the fact remains that they are not experts on the matter. Its utterly ridiculous to take people, who may even be very capable in other areas and allow them to set policy in an area which they do not have expertise in.

We still have the death penalty and some really opressive counties, amongst other things.

Is the risk of the politicization of education higher at the national level than the state or local level, or do you think its pretty even across the board?

And didn't Houston overtake LA as the smoggiest city in the US? I'm not sure that's relevant to anything though, I guess

I dunno. From what I know about Texas, compared to what I know where I am in California, they seem to be pretty opposite places in terms of thinking. I mean, I live in a pretty small town, and there are at least a dozen completely organic grocery stores to pick from, and several what I would call "granola" schools. I probably see about 15-20 Prius' on the road in an average day running around. Very liberal minded area here. Gay marriage. Setting high air quality standards. All this seems like the antithesis of how I think of Texas.

I spent a few week in Houston, and it didn't really seem any different as far as the types of people you'd meet. I think the proportions might be a little different, but that's really it. Plus, I think Texas has more rural communities than California.

I probably shouldnt really compare since I've never been to Texas myself. Cali does have quite a substantial rural area as well though, especially up north. Tons of farm land around here. I'm sure I have too many generalizations stuffed into my head as well.
Here is a story of the exact thing that comes to mind then I think Texas. About a year ago here in Santa Cruz, there was this old dirty beat up truck I saw in front of me. It had quite a few bumper stickers on it. A couple that stuck out were "Don't mess with Texas", and "Impeach Santa Cruz." The latter one is significant because a few years back Santa Cruz made national news by being the first local government to investigate the possibility of impeaching Bush. So this guy was basically sticking up his middle finger to all the locals.
I think there really is a pretty large difference between here in Cali and in Texas. Especially where I am in Santa Cruz. It's almost off the scale for lefty liberalism. When a man becomes an accepted cultural icon because he walks down the street in pink cloths and umbrella with makeup, you know you are quite far from Texas.

I dunno. From what I know about Texas, compared to what I know where I am in California, they seem to be pretty opposite places in terms of thinking. I mean, I live in a pretty small town, and there are at least a dozen completely organic grocery stores to pick from, and several what I would call "granola" schools. I probably see about 15-20 Prius' on the road in an average day running around. Very liberal minded area here. Gay marriage. Setting high air quality standards. All this seems like the antithesis of how I think of Texas.

You just described Austin perfectly. But it's very different than the rest of the state, obviously.

Public education itself is doomed. I would like to jettison the entire department of education.