McDougal Littell
Formal Response to Oral Testimony
Before the State Board of Education
Textbook Hearing #2, August 23,2002

McDougal Littell
Formal Response to Oral Testimony
Before the State Board of Education
Textbook Hearing #2, August 23,2002

McDougal Littell appreciates the opportunity to respond to oral testimony specific to our textbooks presented at the August 23,2002, hearing before the State Board of Education. For some speakers, the oral testimony was nearly identical to the written comments submitted. In those instances, our response, too, is the same for both oral and written testimony, and is included herein. We appreciate the comments made at the public hearing and welcome the opportunity to respond. The responses that follow include a capsule summary of each comment made and McDougal Littell's response.

Oral testimony on The Americans by Richard S. Collins

Mr. Collins notes a lack of context in the History Through Films feature on page 824 of the student text, which includes a caption about the film Silkwood.

Response: The main text of the feature, however, does supply that context, and reads as follows:

"Hollywood and Nuclear Fears: At the end of the 1970s and in the early 1980s, Hollywood responded to Americans' concerns over nuclear power by making pointed social-awareness films exposing dangers in the nuclear industry. These films alerted the public to the importance of regulations in the relatively new field of atomic energy."

This text provides the context for the feature. The purpose of the caption cited by Mr. Collins is simply to describe the film, not to analyze its plot.

Oral testimony on Celebrating Texas by Meg McKain Grier

In her testimony before the Board, Meg McKain Grier said that in Celebrating Texas, "Barbara Jordan was credited as the first woman to give a keynote address in the major political convention in 1976. In fact, it was Anne Armstrong at the Republican Convention in 1972."

Although Ms. Grier is correct when she says that Anne Armstrong was the first woman to give the keynote address at a major political convention, she mis-

interprets what Celebrating Texas says about Barbara Jordan. In a section about Jordan and her accomplishments, the text indicates that she was the first woman ever to give the keynote speech at the Democratic National Convention, which is correct. Armstrong's keynote speech was at the Republican National Convention. As the section is about Jordan and is also factually accurate in every way, inserting a reference to Armstrong here is not necessary or appropriate.

Oral testimony on World History: Patterns of Interaction by Scott K. Harris, Texas Public Policy Foundation

1. Page 489: Mr. Harris objects to the use of the words "so-called" to describe the benefits resulting from Columbus's voyages.

Response: (content change) We will delete "so-called" from the introduction to Ms. Harjo's quotation.

2. Mr. Harris questions the failure to include Ulrich Zwingli in the section on the Reformation, while the text has several paragraphs on the contributions of women to the Reformation.

Response: We believe our inclusion of women's contributions is justified and provided in enough detail so a reader will understand why each individual is included. In the August 23 hearing in which Mr. Harris raised this issue, at least two Board members indicated that they did not want this passage to be changed, citing the fact that female students would be very interested in this material.

(content change) Though Zwingli is often considered more appropriate for a college-level text, we will include his name in the following sentence on page 428:

"In the 1500s, Christian humanists like Desiderius Erasmus, Thomas More, and Ulrich Zwingli of Switzerland added their voices to the chorus of criticism."

3. Mr. Harris questions the text treatment of Robert Owen and New Harmony.

Response: In terms of the text's coverage of Robert Owen, we do indicate that New Harmony lasted only three years. The text does not indicate that he "inspired success," as Mr. Harris suggests, but instead says that New Harmony "inspired the founding of other communities." Space constraints prevent the text from going into greater detail about the eventual success or failure of these communities.

4. Mr. Harris identifies what he perceives as a failure of the text to cover the positive aspects of capitalism and free enterprise.

Response: We disagree with Mr. Harris's contention that there is a "systematic bias against capitalism and free enterprise" in the textbook. Governmental and economic changes—for example, the growth of international trade and the advent of industrialization—that would eventually lead to capitalism as we know it today are identified in appropriate locations throughout the world. Some examples of text passages that provide the context and background on capitalism and free enterprise include:

Page 500: A paragraph on the Commercial Revolution, including the establishment of colonial empires and new ways of conducting business and trade, establishes these practices as the "root of today's financial dealings."

Page 502: Two lengthy paragraphs on "The Rise of Capitalism" present a neutral explanation of how the system works and how ordinary people like merchants were able to increase their wealth because of it.

Pages 502-503: The text provides a description of the growth of mercantilism and the role that the colonies played as suppliers of raw materials and as markets for finished goods, thus demonstrating the principles of supply and demand that inform the free enterprise system.

Page 503: The last two paragraphs explain the rise of the merchant class and the growth of towns, noting that the rise in merchants' status was due to the increased wealth brought about by the Commercial Revolution.

Page 516: The first paragraph describes the rise of Dutch capitalism and the economic growth that eventually led to the Dutch becoming the "bankers" of Europe.

Page 640: Mr. Harris's claim that "capitalism seems to be worth mentioning only when it makes technological improvement and not improvement in workers' lives" is refuted in this lengthy passage on the positive effects of the Industrial Revolution:

"[T]he Industrial Revolution eventually had a number of positive effects. It created jobs for workers.... It greatly increased the production of goods and raised the standard of living. Perhaps most important, it provided the hope of improvement in people's lives.

The Industrial Revolution produced a number of other benefits as well. These included healthier diets; better housing; and cheaper, mass-produced clothing. Because the Industrial Revolution created a demand for engineers as well as clerical and professional workers, it expanded educational opportunities.

The middle and upper classes prospered immediately from the Industrial Revolution. For the workers it took longer, but their lives gradually improved during the 1800s. Labor eventually won higher wages, shorter hours, and better working conditions.

... Most people today in the industrialized countries can afford consumer goods that would have been considered luxuries fifty or a hundred years ago. Further, their living and working conditions are much improved over those of workers in the 19^th century."

Page 644: A passage on the expansion of U.S. industry describes the technological boom of the late 1800s and the role that abundant natural resources, new inventions, a growing urban population, and the expansion of the railroad system played in helping to solidify the free market system.

Page 674: A substantial passage on "The Rise of Mass Culture" connects technological improvement and the rise of capitalism with the development of a mass culture at the beginning of the 19^th century. This mass culture, which included an increasingly literate populace, new possibilities of communication, new forms of entertainment, and the development of "leisure time" for workers and their families, owed its existence to the greater spread of wealth and education brought about by the stable economic principles of capitalism.

Page 722: The text describes the changes in the Japanese economy as it followed the Western model of capitalism and soon became competitive with the West.

Page 856: A chart entitled "Superpower Aims in Europe" shows that some of the U.S. goals after World War II were based on capitalism and free enterprise: "Gain access to raw materials and markets to fuel booming industries" and "Rebuild European governments to promote stability and create new markets for American goods."

Page 870: A side column featurette on "Capitalism in Vietnam" explains that its economic system is modeled on that of the United States.

Oral Testimony on The Americans by Dr. Ricky Dobbs

1. Dr. Dobbs states that the treatment of the 19th century Populist Party is "sprinkled across roughly seventy pages."

Response: This statement does not allege a factual error in the text but points to a pedagogical difference. For pedagogical reasons, The Americans begins its treatment of populism and the Populist Party with an entire section devoted to describing the movement in a simple and clear way. Later, we add depth and make connections to other topics that Dr. Dobbs mentions. While we can see some advantages to treating the subject in other ways, such as that suggested by Dr. Dobbs, we believe the sequence used in The Americans is best for instruction at the high school level.

2. Dr. Dobbs states that the text (in the final paragraph on page 223) conflates "two different impulses for change into a single constant force of progress in American history, while at the same time whitewashing the Progressive effort to eradicate Populism after 1896."

Response: The paragraph cited on page 223 is meant to provide rhetorical and pedagogical closure to the section "Farmers and the Populist Movement," the final section of Chapter 5. As such, it should not be expected to provide a detailed comparison of Populism and Progressivism, especially since Progressivism has not been introduced at this point in the narrative. The text accurately describes two aspects of the legacy of Populism. We believe that the amount of information is appropriate for a high school text; space constraints as well as these pedagogical concerns preclude adding more information about this point.

3. Dr. Dobbs states that the text celebrates the commission system of municipal government but fails to take into account the antidemocratic designs of its Progressive advocates.

Response: The Americans describes the commission system in the last two paragraphs on page 309. In the preceding paragraph, which sets the stage and describes generally the movement to reform local government, three incentives for this reform movement are noted. The third, "distrust of immigrants' participation in politics," clearly states an antidemocratic motive. Although more could be said, the text is accurate as it stands.

4. Dr. Dobbs criticizes the text for what he considers to be its heroification of Charles Lindbergh on page 552.

Response: (content change) As previously noted in McDougal Littell's response to written testimony provided by TPPF for the July meeting of the State Board of Education, we will revise the student edition text to read: "The aviator Charles Lindbergh stated his hope that 'the future of America ... not be tied to these eternal wars in Europe.'" In the teacher's edition text, we will change the question "How did Charles Lindbergh risk his reputation?" to "In what way did Lindbergh believe democracy would be saved?"

5. Dr. Dobbs questions the text's assertion (on page 584) that Hiroshima and Nagasaki were military targets.

Response: In speeches to the nation and in his personal diary, Truman emphasized that the first bomb would be dropped on Hiroshima, "a purely military target." In a memorandum for Major General L. R. Groves written on May 12,1945, Dr. Oppenheimer and other personnel informed Groves that Hiroshima was an "important army depot and port of embarkation in the middle of an urban industrial zone." Nagasaki is described as a major shipping and industrial center in a memo for General Arnold written on July 24,1945. The text is accurate.

6. Dr. Dobbs states that in its treatment of the White Citizens Councils (on page 703) the text tries to "sweep white hostility under the rug."

Response: The text does describe white hostility to African Americans and to desegregation, and it does describe the actions of the White Citizens Councils as expressing and demonstrating such hostility. Unfortunately, given the limits on textbook size and cost, we do not have room to go thoroughly into every aspect of the White Citizens Councils. The text is accurate.

7. Dr. Dobbs criticizes the text for what he considers to be an inaccurate statement (on page 703) that Texas Gov. Shivers "promised to comply" with the Brown school desegregation decision.

Response: (change to correct an error) We will remove the statement.

8. Dr. Dobbs criticizes the text for omitting to describe the FBI's attempts to derail the civil rights movement.

Response: While the passage does not provide the additional details the reviewer wishes to see in the text, there are no factual errors.

Oral testimony on The Americans by Robert Bohmf alk

1. Mr. Bohmfalk notes that The Americans, among others, did not include information about the Jonestown mass suicide, nor did it include information about the Branch Dividians at Waco.

Response: Mr. Bohmfalk's statement is accurate, but we do not believe it is possible to include every event in the 20th century, especially at the expense of other historical information we consider more important. Given the constraints of a high school history text, some information must be omitted in order to provide the correct balance of facts, figures, themes, and major events that make up 20th century American history.

2. Mr. Bohmfalk notes that various textbooks do not include information about Three-Mile Island, the Oklahoma City Bombing, the Columbine shootings, the Challenger explosion, and the Beirut bombing.

Response: In The Americans, a full-page feature on Three-Mile Island appears on page 823, the Oklahoma City bombing and the Columbine shooting are cited on page 862, the Challenger explosion is cited on page 841, and information about the Beirut bombing appears on pages US7 and US8 in the terrorism supplement at the end of the book.

Oral testimony on The Americans by Claudia Gomez

1. Ms. Gomez cites the need for greater coverage of the role Hispanics played during World War II.

Response: As Ms. Gomez notes, page 573 of The Americans does provide information about the role Hispanics played in World War II. The information is provided in the context of contributions made by several groups, including Hispanics, African Americans, and Japanese Americans:

"Like African Americans, most Mexican Americans served in segregated units. Seventeen Mexican-American soldiers were awarded the Congressional Medal of Honor. An all-Chicano unit—Company E of the 141st Regiment, 36th Division became one of the most decorated of the war."

In addition, page 564 of the student text provides information about the dramatic contributions made by Hispanics to the armed forces during World War II.

"Despite discrimination in the military, more than 300,000 Mexican Americans joined the armed forces. While Mexican Americans in Los Angeles made up only a tenth of the city's population, they suffered a fifth of the city's wartime casualties."

Given the enormous amount of military and political information a chapter on World War II must provide, it is not possible to cite all of the contributions to the war effort made by the various ethnic groups in the service at the time of the conflict. Our information about Hispanics during World War II does, however, provide an accurate reflection of the heroism and dedication of Hispanic soldiers in the armed forces.

2. Ms. Gomez interprets a statement on page 662 of the student text as implying a derogatory image of Mexican immigrants, which she believes could cause feelings of shame in migrant children, rather than pride in their heritage.

Response: The text to which Ms. Gomez refers discusses Mexican immigrants in the context of agricultural labor during World War II. The passage states:

"When the United States entered World War II, the shortage of agricultural laborers spurred the federal government to initiate, in 1942, a program in which Mexican braceros, or hired hands, were allowed into the United States to harvest crops. Hundred of thousands of braceros entered the United States on a short-term basis between 1942 and 1947. When their employment was ended, they were expected to return to Mexico. However, many remained in the United States illegally."

This passage is not derogatory to Mexican immigrants or to students of Mexican heritage. The passage simply describes—accurately—the results of an agricultural labor program initiated by the federal government during World War II.

Oral testimony on The Americans by Lucy Camarillo

1. Ms. Camarillo acknowledges that The Americans contains "the most information on Hispanic historical contributions" of the three American history textbooks she reviewed, but cites a lack of coverage of Diego Rivera.

Response: Diego Rivera is mentioned on page 512 in the context of the Federal Art Project. Because this particular section must include information about a variety of art forms and artists, it is not possible to go into great detail about specific artists. However, Rivera is cited for his revolutionary work as a muralist.

In an earlier chapter, on page 364 of the student text, a History Through Art feature examines Zapatistas (1931), a work by Mexican artist Jose Orozco. The accompanying History Through Art note in the teacher's edition provides a short biography of Orozco's life. It also notes that "Orozco worked with fellow muralist Diego Rivera and others to bring about a period of artistic achievement in Mexico known as the Mexican Renaissance." In this way students are introduced to Rivera first in the context of his contribution to the Mexican Renaissance, and later with regard to his influence on artists who were part of the Federal Art Project.

2. Ms. Camarillo states that there is no mention of Hispanics in the military in Chapter 17.

Response: On page 564 of Chapter 17, under a heading titled "Dramatic Contributions," the text describes the heroic sacrifice made by Hispanics in the armed forces:

"Despite discrimination in the military, more than 300,000 Mexican Americans joined the armed forces. While Mexican Americans in Los Angeles made up only a tenth of the city's population, they suffered a fifth of the city's wartime casualties."

On page 573 of Chapter 17 the text describes the valor displayed by Mexican-American soldiers in combat:

"Seventeen Mexican-American soldiers were awarded the Congressional Medal of Honor. An all-Chicano unit—Company E of the 141st Regiment, 36th Division became one of the most decorated of the war."

3. Ms. Camarillo cites a lack of information about the paucity of job opportunities as well as the issue of segregated burial grounds for World War II veterans in a passage about the "zoot-suit" riots on page 593 of the student text.

Response: The focus of the passage is not on the treatment of returning Mexican-American veterans but on the Mexican-American youth who adopted the zoot-suit style. The purpose of the passage is to describe the prejudice Mexican Americans experienced during the war years.

The photograph to which Ms. Camarillo refers in her written statement is not in The Americans.

4. Ms. Camarillo criticizes the text for not providing any information about Tejano music.

Response: Because of TEKS considerations as well as general requirements of a high school history text, it is not always possible to include information about specific aspects of various cultures. However, Ms. Camarillo raises a good point, and we will add new content to page 209 of the teacher's edition to address her comment.

(content change) We will add a More About feature with the following text:

MORE ABOUT

Cultural Influences The Anglo and Mexican populations of Texas have long shaped one another's cultures. As Enrique Madrid, who lives in the border area between Texas and Mexico, says, "We have two very powerful cultures coming to terms with each other every day on the banks of the Rio Grande and creating a new culture." Many examples of this mixing can be seen in the culture of the Tejanos— Texans of Mexican descent. For example, Tejano music reflects roots in Mexican mariachi as well as American country and western music. Emerging Tejano stars such as the Kumbia Kings have added to the mix the sounds of reggae and hip-hop, continuing the blending of cultural and musical influences.

Tejano music reached a larger audience through the crossover success of Selena, a charismatic young Chicana singer from Corpus Christi, Texas. (Selena died in 1995.) Since 1991, at least 75 stations have adopted a full-time or part-time Tejano format, and as of 2001, Tejano music was a $100-million-a-year industry.

5. Ms. Camarillo states that Dr. Ellen Ochoa's picture is shown on page 879 of the textbook but that there is no explanation of who Dr. Ochoa is.

Response: A caption naming Dr. Ochoa is provided on the student page. A More About feature in the teacher's edition provides additional information about Dr. Ochoa, including mention of her doctorate from Stanford and her place in history as the first Hispanic-American woman in space.

Overall, The Americans provides a visible and positive chronicle of the role of Hispanics in American history. Latin and Hispanic leaders are named on pages

225 (Gregorio Cortez), 504 (Pedro Gonzalez), 573 (Company E, 141st Regiment, 36th Division), 662 (Ignacio Lopez), 770 (Cesar Chavez, Dolores Huerta), 882 (Antonia Hernandez), 844 (Antonia Coello, Daniel Villanueva, Toney Anaya, Robert Martinez, Lauro Cavazos), 875 (Sandra Cisneros), 879 (Ellen Ochoa).

In addition, Antonia Hernandez and MALDEF are discussed on page 882, David Sanchez and the Brown Berets, Jose Gutierrez and La Raza Unida, Representative Ed Roybal and Senator Joseph Montoya are cited on page 770, and Reies Tijerina appears on page 771.

(content change) We will also add the following content to page 771 in Chapter 23:

"The League of United Latin American Citizens (LULAC) had formed in 1929 to fight segregation and other forms of discrimination. In the 1940s and into the 1950s, LULAC had filed lawsuits to desegregate schools throughout the Southwest, and in 1954, they helped win Mexican Americans the right to serve on juries. In the 1960s, some LULAC education and jobs programs won funding as pilot programs in LBJ's Great Society."

Oral testimony on Celebrating Texas by Naomi Carrier Grundy

Naomi Grundy testified about all the seventh grade Texas History programs currently under consideration. Her comments were generally favorable about the increased coverage in the current texts of African-American contributions to Texas history. We are proud of Celebrating Texas's discussions of African Americans and their contributions to the greatness of Texas. Given the restrictions of how much curriculum seventh grade teachers can cover in a single year, it's necessary to make difficult decisions about which individuals and issues can be covered in depth. We feel that Celebrating Texas has walked this line nicely, being as inclusive and diverse in its coverage as possible. We appreciate Ms. Grundy's recognition of those efforts.

Oral testimony on Celebrating Texas by Eleanor Hutcheson

In separate testimony, Eleanor Hutcheson briefly mentioned Celebrating Texas, renewing a criticism she made in the July 17 public hearing about a photograph in the book. As we responded to this criticism in our response to those hearings, we will not do so here. However, we did appreciate Board member Dr. Alma A.

Allen expressing her support of the use of the photograph during a response to Ms. Hutcheson.

Oral testimony on Creating America by Eleanor Hutcheson

1. Ms. Hutcheson's queries about Crispus Attucks were previously raised in her written comments submitted after the July 17 hearing. Our response was submitted in a document entitiled "Formal Response to Written Comments Received After July 17,2002, Public Hearing," and is repeated below:

Response: We have chosen to combine our responses to queries Ms. Hutcheson made regarding the cover of the book and pages 147 and 149, since all three are concerned with Crispus Attucks.

It is a little unclear as to what Ms. Hutcheson's main problem is with our treatment of Crispus Attucks. We don't understand what she means when she says, "Strange is it not that this individual and picture has just appeared after 232 years?" If the implication is that Crispus Attucks and his story are fabricated for purposes of this textbook, we have plenty of documentation attesting to his existence and his role in events of the time. Indeed, Attucks has often been hailed as a hero since his death in 1770, and a monument to Attucks and the other victims of the Boston Massacre has stood in Boston since 1888. Attucks is referred to as a hero, martyr, and patriot of the American Revolution in many encyclopedias and scholarly texts.

Ms. Hutcheson seems to imply that because no person of color is evident in Paul Revere's engraving shown on page 149, it would suggest that Attucks was not involved in the skirmish. While Revere's engraving is of historical value simply because he is who he is, it should not be viewed as the definitive portrait of events. In fact, most historians agree that Revere designed it to create anti-British sentiment. Some other drawings of the event do include a black man in the crowd. However, Revere's version was the most famous at the time, and Revere has name-recognition value for students.

We would also add here that the title spread of the text simply labels Attucks as "American colonist killed in the Boston Massacre." On page 147, the text states his ethnic heritage as African American and Native American, for which there is abundant documentation. Ms. Hutcheson is in error when she refers to Attucks's inclusion in the book as a "manufactured myth."

2. Page 442: Ms. Hutcheson requests documentation for a sentence in the text that says, "But poor whites accepted slavery because it kept them off the bottom of society."

Response: (content change) According to A House Divided by Richard Sewell and Ordeal lay Fire by James McPherson, poor whites were often racist as well, and many aspired to acquire slaves. Despite not owning slaves, they still benefited from white supremacy, and slavery preserved this. However, to be sure that this passage is clear, we will revise the paragraph to read:

"Most Southern whites were poor farmers who owned no slaves. But even many of the nonslaveholding whites supported slavery because it kept them off the bottom of society."

3. Page 520: Ms. Hutcheson requests documentation for the following sentence: "About half of the Republicans were poor white farmers."

Response: (content change) We will change this sentence to read, "Many of the Republicans were poor white farmers."

4. Page 525: Ms. Hutcheson requests documentation for the following sentence: "White racists even killed teachers and burned freedmen's schools in some parts of the South." This query was orginally raised in her written comments received after the July 17 hearing. The response provided in "Formal Response to Written Comments Received After July 17,2002, Public Hearing" is repeated below.

Response: Numerous encyclopedias, scholarly texts, and Web sites provide documentation of the violence that white racists directed against schools and teachers in freedmen's schools during Reconstruction. These include Encyclopaedia Britannica and America's Reconstruction: People and Politics After the Civil War by Eric Foner and Olivia Mahoney (1995). These sources state that teachers at freedmen's schools faced harassment, violence, and even death, and that their schools were often burned.