Amy Frykholm

While I have many other things I should be doing today, I am addicted to the live blog of the proceedings of hearings of the Texas State Board of Education over social studies curriculum standards. The blog offers a vivid picture into the issues and vocabularies that divide the people of this country into "liberals" and "conservatives." On the one side, you can hear people pleading not to overly politicize the social studies standards, to listen carefully to credentialed historians and to take seriously the separation of church and state. On the other side, you hear fear of socialism, of the "liberal agenda" and fear of diversity. These two sides do not seem to be having the same conversation, but listening in is fascinating.