The state education ministry last week rejected 54 of 132 math textbooks submitted by publishers. The books do not meet his criteria for excellent student thinking standards or have been rejected for including critical racial theory (CRT), social emotional training (SEL) and others, it said.
Some conservative groups argue that critical racial theory and social emotional learning are used to indoctrinate students.
Department spokeswoman Cassie Palelis did not identify the books and referred CNN to the agency’s website, showing “several examples” that were “received from the public.” It is unclear what the specific concerns were about the four examples.
“Currently, those who have submitted textbooks for review still own the material (ie their content is copyrighted and we are currently unable to release it publicly, pending review),” she wrote.
Examples mention “measuring racial prejudice” and “implicit association test”.
Another said that “the purpose of SEL” is to help students “build social awareness skills while practicing empathy with classmates.”
The fourth includes a word or phrase that has been edited. It also says, “This feature is designed to build a student agency, focusing on students’ social and emotional learning.”
The images were published with a disclaimer, which read in part: “These examples do not constitute an exhaustive list of information received from the department. The department continues to enable publishers to address any deficiencies identified during the review to ensure the widest selection of high-quality teaching materials is available to school districts and students in Florida. “
The governor says he wants to focus on academia
SEL helps students “develop strong identities, manage emotions and achieve personal and collective goals, feel and show empathy for others, establish and maintain supportive relationships and make responsible and caring decisions,” says the Academic, Social Cooperation. and emotional learning.
Timothy Shriver, chairman of the organization, told CNN’s Jake Tapper that he believes people are scared when they don’t understand things, adding: “I think part of it is a battle for almost nothing.” Much of this is inspired by political controversy and political advantage. There is a huge industry in this country that uses contempt and hatred to divide us politically, and I think sometimes this industry of division and contempt uses schools to achieve its own goals. “
More than a dozen states have set standards for teaching SEL in primary schools, according to the National Conference of State Legislators. But as more countries consider SEL strategies, conservative groups say critical racial theory is embedded in them.
Sumi Cho, director of strategic initiatives for the African Political Forum and leader of his #TruthBeTold campaign, said Tapper’s politicians are using the intensified debate to justify banning school programs.
“It’s quite interesting to see this ever-expanding umbrella under this fear-provoking campaign that uses critical racial theory as a Trojan horse in education.”
Opponents argue that the CRT is based on Marxism and a threat to the American way of life. But scholars who study it say it explores how the history of inequality and racism is affecting American society today.
“We don’t want things like math to have, you know, some of these other concepts. It’s not proven to be effective and, frankly, it takes our eyes off the ball,” Gov. Ron DeSantis told reporters at a news conference.
Andrew Sparr, president of the Florida Education Association, called for transparency on how the U.S. Department of Education made the decision, including examples of “junk” content and details of those who reviewed textbooks and their qualifications.
DeSantis signed a bill Friday that places new restrictions on how schools and businesses can talk about race and gender.
“We will not allow and teach that a person is simply a racist, sexist or oppressor by virtue of his race, color, national origin or gender. That’s wrong, “said the governor, who shared the scene with a group of school-age adults and children – many with Stop Woke and anti-CRT signs – while speaking at Mater Academy Charter High School in Hialeah Gardens.
The bill says that a student and employee cannot be told that “they must experience guilt, grief or other forms of psychological stress due to actions in which the individual has not played any role, performed in the past by other members of the same race, color, sex or national origin. “
It also prohibits instructions or training that say that certain races or genders are inherently privileged or oppressed.
The bill says schools can teach about slavery and the history of racial segregation and discrimination in an “age-appropriate way,” but the instruction cannot “indoctrinate or persuade students to a particular point of view.”
“It’s a holistic worldview that a lot of people are trying to put into our children’s education, and it’s not real education, it’s indoctrination,” DeSantis said.
The bill enters into force on July 1.
CNN’s Tina Burnside and Nicole Chavez contributed to this report.
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