16 episodes
Teaching Texas Wonder Media Network
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- History
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4.1 • 347 Ratings
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In 1961, Norma and Mel Gabler were a quiet couple living in Hawkins, Texas. One day, they noticed some factual errors in one of their sons' school book. What began as a small complaint morphed into a multi-decade crusade to shape what children of Texas — and therefore the country — read in their textbooks. In an election year with raging debates around education, this audio documentary charts how Texas dictated American education over the last sixty years and examines how the fight over our childrens’ classroom has only intensified today.
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Chapter 1: Under God
On the outskirts of Hawkins, Texas, a couple found a problem in one of their kids’ school books. They didn’t have a background in education, but because they lived in Texas, their concern ignited a national movement and several decades of influence over what the rest of the country learned.
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Chapter 2: The More Sex You Teach...
By the 80s, Norma and Mel had gained real traction in the textbook industry. And with their newfound power, they start dictating what goes into textbooks. They threaded their conservative Christian beliefs into textbooks across the nation, with little regard for separating fact from opinion.
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Chapter 3: The Pilgrimage to Longview
When the Gablers’ protégé, Neal Frey, gained control of Educational Research Analysts…he took a different approach. Grace journeys to Longview, Texas to meet the man himself and witness the last vestige of the Gablers’ enterprise.
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Chapter 4: What Sleeping Rocks Dream Of
Nowadays, standards known as TEKS dictate what every Texas student needs to learn. The State Board of Education is in charge of approving these standards. So, when a creationist dentist gained control of the board, those standards started to reflect his beliefs – for better or worse.
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Chapter 5: The Latest Bogeyman
Critical race theory. It’s the latest rallying cry for people attempting to disrupt trust in public education. What do we lose when parents vilify educators? To find out, Grace pays a visit to the Texas suburb at the center of the national conversation.
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Chapter 6: Who Draws the Line?
Library books aren’t required reading like textbooks are, but they can play a big role in a child’s education. As activists and politicians bring book banning back into the education debate, one group of Texas parents are fighting back. They want their kids to read stories that center diversity – and in the case of one contentious book, they won.
Customer Reviews
Devastating Reality
This was a fascinating and thorough dive into a dystopian history of the extremist slant forced on a lazy system of school textbook publishing. No wonder much of the South and Midwest live in an alternative reality to those whose education held much more truth, no matter how uncomfortable it might be for some. Well done.
Eye opening
This was a phenomenal podcast! I was completely riveted by the story and so glad this was published. It is scary how these groups can infiltrate public education with no qualifications in history, social studies or teaching. I knew M4L was bad, but they are scarily effective and I didn’t realize how far back this went until listening to this podcast.
Bravo!
Well-researched and exceptionally produced. I love the potent blend of historical facts, humor, and colorful profiles. I hope this podcast series becomes a wake up call everywhere, not just Texas.
Going to public school in the 1960s-early 1970s, I was lucky to have in my life some very creative and dedicated teachers who encouraged us to question everything, to practice openness and tolerance (what is now called inclusivity). There was a political divide then, too, but at least you could converse with most people civilly.
I’m appalled by how far things have disintegrated. Thanks for putting this show together. There’s a lot of wisdom. I will share it widely.