Teaching Texas

Apr 03 2024 18 ep. 33 mins 567

Teaching Texas Podcast artwork

In 1961, Norma and Mel Gabler were a quiet couple living in Hawkins, Texas. One day, they noticed some factual errors in their son's 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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Apr 03 2024 35 mins

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Live from Texas Tribune Fest!

Oct 06 2023 61 mins

Since Teaching Texas wrapped last fall, the state has been embroiled in a debate over school vouchers, climate change education and district takeovers. But flying slightly under the radar – though equally consequential – is House Bill 1605. In a discussion recorded live at Texas Tribune Fest, Grace is joined by Rep. Gina Hinojosa and State Board of Education Chairman Keven Elli

Chapter 8: How We See Ourselves

Nov 14 2022 40 mins

Each year, Texas public school students learn the story of their state’s origin: the battle for the Alamo. The story has become a rallying cry throughout the ages for Texans, and Americans – It’s an underdog tale of sacrifice. But, it’s also not very historically accurate. In the series finale, Grace explores the danger of teaching myths as though they’re fact.

Chapter 7: Collision Course

Nov 07 2022 37 mins

This fall, for the first time in 12 years, the Texas State Board of Education was due to review the Social Studies TEKS. In doing so, they attempted to answer the question: how should we teach U.S. History? Against the backdrop of outrage over CRT and a midterm election that will likely bring a more conservative board to power – what did the SBOE decide?

Chapter 6: Who Draws the Line?

Oct 31 2022 36 mins

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.

Chapter 5: The Latest Bogeyman

Oct 24 2022 32 mins

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.

Chapter 4: What Sleeping Rocks Dream Of

Oct 17 2022 36 mins

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.

Chapter 3: The Pilgrimage to Longview

Oct 10 2022 38 mins

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.

Chapter 2: The More Sex You Teach...

Oct 03 2022 30 mins

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.

Chapter 1: Under God

Sep 26 2022 35 mins

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.