Intro to my Junior Theme

Abstract:

I researched the biases in different textbooks across America and why students are getting a different history of America if they read a separate textbook. This is due to publishers catering their textbooks to the politics in Texas, because the state is the most powerful textbook publisher in the country. Publishers treat textbooks differently depending on which state they are trying to sell to, so they will purposely include or delete information that will satisfy those buyers in order to make more of a profit. Furthermore, the committees that approve textbooks in a district are made up of members of the community, not professionals in the topic.

Reflection: 

The discrepancies I found among different textbooks were quite concerning. For example, a McGraw-Hill textbook states the reason for Southern states opposing Reconstruction is because they “‘did not want African-Americans to have more rights.’ But the Texas edition offers an additional reason: Reforms cost money, and that meant higher taxes” (New York Times). These two different textbooks teach students a different reason why Southern states opposed Reconstruction, giving students two different histories on the same event. The Texas version is biased and dangerous because it teaches students to downplay the role of slavery and racism in Reconstruction. It is important to note that students see textbooks as the absolute truth, and something that is made for learning is not expected to be biased. This is why with election season ramping up, it is important that students analyze texts and use critical thinking skills when reading textbooks. The potentially biased information that students receive can affect their political ideologies because they are getting one truth of America purposely written for one political party.