Ot: Language Police Text Books

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lcs37

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Jul 31, 2002
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Not really off topic OT. This is about bias politicaly correct censorship of School Text Books and Illustrations contained in the Text Books.

Why do I say not off topic? How do our children learn about far off places as Nepal if they are restricted from reading about it. It is OK if the children live in a mountainous region, but if the live and school in the flatlands of Kansas, the text books cannot refer to mountain regions as they don't live there.

I remember as a kid, loving to read about far off unusual places that I would hope to visit one day. I still do, to this day.

Women can not be shown as weak or weeping but it is encouraged that men be shown that way.

Mount Rushmore can not be mentioned in the Text Books as it is sensitive to Native Americans. or should I say Sioux, no that's not correct either, Lakota?

I could go on and on, but check out 'The Language Police' Author Diane Ravitch.

Yvsa, I emailed you some excerpts from the book. I would appreciate your comments.

Frontiersman can not be used as it is sexist. Substitute 'Pioneer'
Women can not be shown making quilts, preparing food, etc. They can be shown as lawyers, plumbers, doctors.

Publishers, Text Books authors/illustrators, test writers, have been given specific guidelines to follow. Reading the list of censored words or phrases will make your stomach growl and head smoke. They do not consider reality.........

Edit: I first hear about the Language Police on Talk Radio, but lo and behold, here is another link with a better synopsis.
http://www.foxnews.com/printer_friendly_story/0,3566,85594,00.html
 
Regarding women sewing quilts, etc. etc.....

Those who deny history are destined to repeat it.

Besides, many women enjoy those things (see the Martha Stewart phenomenon). IMHO, all options should be open and OK. Women can sew or work in the oil fields. I'm going to stop now before this turns into fifty pages.
 
Recently a school test was being challenged because a question involved snow, and people from tropical nations might not know what snow is.
I've never lived in an area susceptible to monsoons, but I know what they are.
:rolleyes:
 
What are we trying to accomplish here? Control of the mind? Make the people as ignorant as possible and control them as slaves because they don't know any different? Real sad. :barf: Always hoped that state (Cal) would slide into the ocean someday. Would lose some family but they subscribe to this thinking (PC). Bummer!
 
Originally posted by stripey357
Recently a school test was being challenged because a question involved snow, and people from tropical nations might not know what snow is.
I've never lived in an area susceptible to monsoons, but I know what they are.
:rolleyes:
Click to expand...

IMHO, that is almost a valid point. It depends on the question. If the question is "How do people play in the snow" it could very well be a bad question to ask tropical residents. It also depends on how specific the answer choices are (I assume a multiple choice test). If the answers are very close together, then it could be unfair because you'd need lots of knowledge to tell which one was right. If the answer choices are very different, then it's OK.

I'll give you a khukuri example.

Imagine you have the question "Which one of these knives is a khukuri?"

Scenario number one: The choices include a Swiss Army Knife, a Marbles hunting knife, and a BAS. I think anyone on Bladeforums could get the answer right.

Scenario number two: The choices are a BAS, a Cold-steel pseudo, and Pendentive's E-Nep . Anyone on the HI forum would pick the BAS (neither of the others have a cho, among other things). However, 90% of the bladeforums readers would probably scratch their heads.

Final point: a younger child has a lot less experience than an adult. I wouldn't be surprised if a 12 or 14 year old living in certain areas had no clue about snow. Where I live, I've heard kids being asked about oceans when they haven't even seen a lake. The people that suffer the most in this sort of situation are those who are already at a disadvantage, and don't have much exposure to the wide world because they are poor and can't get out, or have parents who don't give a darn or a combination thereof. And a person who has seen snow is likely to do better on average, than a person who's only seen palm trees.

So yes, could be a bit absurd, but not completely. Depends on the circumstances.

YMMV
 
IMHO, that is almost a valid point.
Click to expand...

Let's not lose sight of the context, here. Most school tests (let's leave entrance exams out for the moment) are on subject matter that was either presented in class, or something that was assigned as a research project.

As you say, Tohatchi, it would help to know the exact circumstances.
 
Wow! Tohatchi

What are the teachers for - - to expand knowledge of students. PLUS homework assigned to explore .....

My personal experience in Test Construction: Multiple choice. Two answers were to be written to be thrown out immediately by the testee, if even vaguely familiar with the subject. Two answers to be written, one the correct answer, the other very close but not quite. If the teacher had presented the material infomatively and the student had paid attention and did some homework, the student would not have a problem deciding on the correct answer.

Don't put blinders on our young minds, encourage expansion....
 
I am an old-fashioned woman who likes to cook clean toilets and sew quilts. I love being here when my husband is,and taking care of ALL his needs. I am proud to be a stay-at-home mom and wife.

AND I'm sick and tired of being thought of as less than woman because I have happily chosen this lifestyle. I am not stupid, had straight A's in college, but chose to stay with my kids and raise them to the best of my ability. SO why can't these politically correct people get off my back!!

If more women would stay home and tend the homefires there would be jobs for all the male heads of house who are having trouble taking care of their families. AND a whole lot less affairs going on. Face it. Is another woman or man really any better than who you had in the beginning. Not really. I've been down the divorce trail and it's no different on the other side of the fence. A little more commitment to our own spouses and kids would do the whole world a lot of good.

Just my 2 cents worth.
 
My brother and his wife both work. It shows in the spoiled and undisciplined child that they have. :(

Don't tell them that I wrote this. :rolleyes:
 
Originally posted by Tohatchi NM
The choices are a BAS, a Cold-steel pseudo, and Pendentive's E-Nep...
Click to expand...
not sure what to think... :( or :)

This weekend I'll be making it into a work of art or really screwing it up bad. Just FWIW...I bought some stingray leather...:eek:
 
Well....Hell.

And here stupid me thought one of the greatest things about books/writing was that they allowed one to learn things without having personal experience of them. Makes the experience of others available. Just shows what little I know, I guess.

Maybe it's a plan to save money on books...if they only contain what the students are already familiar with they're really not required are they?
 
)(*$+)$

Wrote a long response, and cleared it with a single keystroke. Suffice it to say that I see some of your points, and from where I'm standing there are some issues or perspectives that you may not be aware of. I'll elaborate later.

I'm actually really glad to be having this debate with non-teachers. It's very enlightening.
 
perhaps. The PC revolution I think was inappropriate in itself. It attempted to codify politeness and etiquette, which aprently is not taught. So, just anesthetize the language, right? WRONG. This is the kinda crap that'll lead us to the same errors made in the past. Info control by the state lead to some of the most brutal dictatorships on the planet, and we'll never see it coming.

The US is a little poorer than other countries when it comes to formality. You can look at verb tenses in half a dozen language books and see that. Formality denotes proper respect, and people dig respect. Respect is something you must give before you can recieve it.

What needs to be taught is "how to be cool with another and their choices, their being, their methods, etc. Seek first to understand, then to be understood.

If it ever came to the point in the US that an asian american (in the privacy of his own home, among friends) could get arrested by referring to a white guy as "round eye" then I'm heading to the Great White North.

PC is an anti-freedom of speech movement. Another shackle to add to the pile. like that Moral Majority crap.

Venting,,,,venting,,,,done!

Keith
 
Originally posted by lcs37
"Mount Rushmore can not be mentioned in the Text Books as it is sensitive to Native Americans. or should I say Sioux, no that's not correct either, Lakota?"

Lakota, Dakota and Lakota are the correct terms depending on which band you're talking about

Yvsa, I emailed you some excerpts from the book. I would appreciate your comments.

E-mail answered.:)

Edit: I first hear about the Language Police on Talk Radio, but lo and behold, here is another link with a better synopsis.
http://www.foxnews.com/printer_friendly_story/0,3566,85594,00.html

Some was pure BS, but a lot of it was true, lcs37 put a lot more info in his e-mail to me. I have given him permission to post it if he likes. I didn't read the link.
Click to expand...
 
About the only good thing I can say about a PC textbook is that it is boring enough to encourage students to go elsewhere for information. History is deep and vibrant and no single perspective should ever be taken as gospel. As long as the process encourages students to read critically I am ok with it.

n2s
 
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