truth in florida textbooks...
TRANSCRIPT
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Truth in Florida Textbooks Review
Houghton Mifflin Harcourt United States History: Beginnings to 1877, Florida Edition (2018)
Problem: Omission of Fact (OF), Half-Truth (HT), Factual Error (FE), Slant (S), Bias (B), Incorrect
Terminology (IT) OF means that there is additional useful information to help students learn complete history. The author/publisher has not deliberately omitted
material to fulfill an agenda. HT means that the author/publisher has presented "half of the story" and has omitted the other half for agenda-based
reasons. HT leads to slant and bias.
Location Quote Problem Fact & Source Module 1: America, Africa and
Europe Before 1500, Essential
Question, America, Africa and
Europe Before 1500, ¶1
Beginning around 38,000 BC, people
migrated to the Americas and spread
across the continents.
HT, B The sentence should be modified by “scientists believe”. It is not
an established fact. This modification is used elsewhere in the
text and it should be consistent.
The Reviewer suggests that the following rewrite: Many
scientists believe that the first people arrived in North America
during the last Ice Age.
Mod 1, Lesson 1: The Earliest Americans, Early Migrations, ¶ 1
Although no one knows exactly when or how people crossed into
North America, evidence suggests that people called Paleo-
Indians crossed this bridge into Alaska between 38,000 and
10,000 BC. Mod 1, Lesson 1 “The Earliest Americans, Early
Migrations, ¶ 2
Module 1, Lesson 2, Native
American Cultural Areas,
Northeast and Southeast,
paragraph 5
Some scholars propose that the
constitution and structure of the
Iroquois Confederation inspired the
framers of the U.S. Constitution.
OF, HT These claims are widely disputed, as differences are significant.
…the Iroquois system is based on hereditary positions and clan-
based leadership -- elements that are entirely foreign to the
United States’ system (and arguably seem more similar to the
British system the colonists were trying to escape).
www.politifact.com/truth-o-
meter/statements/2014/dec/02/facebook
Mod 1: America, Africa and
Europe Before 1500, Lesson 3.
Empire of Ghana, Islam in
Islam spread quickly through the
Arabian Peninsula.
OF, HT, B While both traders and missionaries helped to “spread” Islam,
Islam was spread by the sword and it conquered the Arabian
Peninsula by the force of jihad.
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Ghana, ¶2
-----------------------------------------------
By the mid-seventh century, traders
had already helped spread Islam to
northern Africa.
Muhammad’s last injunction from his deathbed was, “Let not two
religions be left in the Arabian peninsula.”
Source: Ibn ishaq, The Life of Muhammad, page 689.
The entire Levant was under siege between 637-638AD.
Source: “Syria”, 2006, Encyclopedia
Britannica.2006.Encyclopedia Britannica Online.
-------------------------------------------------------------------
Mohammed taught that Jihad was the second most important
activity of a Muslim, after the Shahadah (profession of faith).
Sahih Bukhari 1:2:25
The last major Surah of the Quran includes the following
command: “Fight against such of those to whom the Scriptures
were given (i.e., Jews and Christians) as believe neither in Allah
nor the last Day, who do not forbid what Allah and His apostle
have forbidden and do not embrace the true Faith, until they pay
tribute out of hand and are utterly subdued.” (Surah 9:29)
The armies of Islam quickly and easily conquered the Arabian
peninsula before moving on to take the homelands of their
various neighbours. Marching out of Arabia in 639 they entered
non-Arab Egypt; 43 years later they reached the shores of the
Atlantic.
Source: www.historytoday.com/eamonn-gearon/arab-invasions-
first-islamic-empire
Module 1, Lesson 3, Empires of
West Africa (Interactive Map,
900-1500)
Slaves are mentioned as part of a list of
products and goods traded.
OF While the text focuses on salt and gold, the vast Arab slave trade
between 900-1500AD is ignored. Slaves were captured by
Africans and sold to Europeans directly or through Arab slave
traders.
Source: Source: Peter Hammond, Slavery, Terrorism, and Islam,
(2010), pages 18 - 19.
“From North to South, and from East to West, the African
continent became intimately connected with slavery both as one
of the principal areas in the world where slavery was common,
and also as a major source of slaves for ancient civilization, the
medieval world and all the continents of the modern period.”
http://latinamericanstudies.org/slavery/perbi.pdf (Accessed
8/24/17)
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Module 1, Lesson 3,
Enrichment,
Ibn Battutah, 1304-c.1377
In 1346 Battutah began his return trip
home to Morocco. Battutah arrived in
Tangier in 1350. He left Morocco at
the age of 21 and returned at the age of
45—a 24-year adventure! Once back,
Battutah did not stay in Morocco for
long. In 1350 Battutah sailed across
the Mediterranean Sea to Andalusia,
what is today southern Spain. Then
between 1351 and 1353, he traveled
across the Sahara, stopping in Mali in
western Africa to find a job in the
government.
OF Ibn Battula described the importance of slaves in Mali in the 14th
c. Noel King (ed.), Ibn Battuta in Black Africa, Princeton 2005,
p. 54
Mod 1, Lesson 4, Europe Before
1500, Middle Ages, The
Crusades, ¶2
The Turks had captured Palestine, also
known as the Holy Land because it
was where Jesus had lived.
FE, OF, B Palestine was not known as the Holy Land because it was where
Jesus lived. The name comes from the Torah where the land
given by God to the Jewish People was the Holy Land. (Eretz Ha
Kodosh). Later, after the advent of Christianity, the name was
adopted by them as well.
“In Judaism the term Holy is used for something that stands
apart. Something that is different or designated.
The land of Israel stands apart, is different, and designated.
It is the land "of the book". It is the land that G-d considers gift-
worthy. G-d has a different set of standards for this land. And
beginning with a covenant made with Abraham, G-d clearly
designated this land for the Jewish people.
A Holy Land has high standards, and before entering Israel G-d2
warned the Jewish people about their behavior there: “You shall
not defile yourselves ... for the nations, whom I am sending away
from before you, have defiled themselves with all these things.
The land became defiled, and I visited its sin upon it, and the land
vomited out its inhabitants.”
http://www.askmoses.com/en/article/410,2167692/Why-is-Israel-
called-the-Holy-Land.html
Mod 1, Lesson 4, Europe Before
1500, Middle Ages, The
Crusades, The First Crusade
video
(1) 0:24-0:36 The Christians in
Europe believed that the Islamic
message of Muhammad was
against and contradictory to what
FE, OF,
HT, B The video clip is a well-done apologetics for Islam. The Crusades
are presented from the viewpoint of the Muslims who have
always maintained that they were the victims of Christian hatred
of non-believers. According to this video the Crusades spread
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the Christians were saying. They
were worried that this idea could
overrun the Christian idea.
(2) 0:38-0:45 Pope Urban II conceived
the idea that it was not a sin to kill
non-Christians or non-believers.
(3) 0.49-1.14 Pope Urban made this
deal that if you go and fight in the
Holy Land, you will be forgiven
all your past sins. A knight could
sin as much as he liked and simply
by going to the Holy Land he had
been given his passport to Heaven.
That was an extremely attractive
deal. And combined with that he
could bring fame, glory and the
treasures of the Middle East.
(4) 1:33-1:58 These guys [i.e.,
Muslims and Christians] believe in
the same God, the same beliefs,
and the same prophets
bloodletting across the Muslim world and created a new kind of
Muslim piety. Islam was the Religion of Peace and the Muslims
driven into the Piety of Jihad (word not used) by the Crusades.
The video has Factual Errors, Omissions of Facts and Half
Truths, all of which create a biased video.
(1) There would not be any problem with these lines if it were not for
the condescending and almost mocking tone of the narrator. The
statements are correct but the presentation is clearly biased and
they lead the students to incorrect and biased conclusions about
the Christians.
(2) There is no explanation on how Pope Urban II could conceive
and then implement the idea that it not a sin to kill non-Christians
or non-believers when the New Testament does not contain this
tenet or does any portion lead to such an interpretation.
(3) This contains a blatant Factual Error which negates the entire
“deal” made by Pope Urban, allowing the Crusaders to sin at will
and then giving them a Passport to Heaven and a free pass to
slaughter and pillage. Pope Urban promised absolution and
remission of sins for all who died in the service of Christ. Those
Crusaders who did not die in the warfare received nothing.
https://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/pope-urban-ii-
orders-first-crusade
(4) The claim of the equivalency of Islam, Christianity and Judaism
is one of the trademarks of Islamist apologetics. Muslims and
Christians (and Jews who are eliminated from this) do not believe
in the same God, do not have the same beliefs or the same
prophets.
Despite many claims in the early Surahs of the Koran that
Muslims worship the same god as Christians and Jews, the later
texts, namely Surah 109, state “I will not worship that which you
are worshiping. Nor will you worship whom I worship.” This is
confirmed in Tasfir Ibn Kathir, who writes, “There is no (true)
object of worship except Allah and there is no path to Him other
than that which the Messenger (Muhammad) came with.” Source:
Tasfir Ibn Kathir, Volume 10, page 615.
Allah and God are described differently in their respective sacred
books. The Quran says that Allah is the source of both good and
evil. (Surah 4:78), while the Bible states that God cannot be
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tempted by evil and He tempts no one. (James 1:13)
Mod 1, Lesson 4, Europe Before
1500, Renaissance, Search For
Knowledge, ¶1
As Turks conquered much of the
Byzantine Empire in the East, scholars
fled to Italy. They brought ancient
classical writings with them.
HT It should be noted that these were Christian scholars.
“the Turks finally captured Constantinople and many other
Greek Christian scholars fled to Italy.”
Philosophy and Living – Page 171-Google Books Result,
books.google.com/books?isbn=0907845339,Ralph Blumenau-
2002-Philosophy
also see ¶2 source
Mod 1, Lesson 4, Europe Before
1500, Renaissance, Search for
knowledge, ¶2
Excited by the discoveries brought by
Turkish scholars, European scholars
went looking for ancient texts in Latin.
FE These were not Turkish scholars, but Byzantine Christian
scholars.
“Many Byzantine scholars fled westward, particularly to Italy,
and made a substantial contribution to the Renaissance.”
Christianity and the Ottoman Empire - Oxford Islamic Studies
Online
www.oxfordislamicstudies.com/article/opr/t253/e2
also see ¶1 source
Module 3, Lesson 4, French and
Indian War, Native American
Perspective on Colonial Rule
In 1864, Garangula, a chief of one of
the Iroquois tribes, plainly stated that
his people were subject to neither
French nor English colonial rule.
FE This statement was recorded in 1727.We may go where we please
and trade with whomever we please...if your allies be your slaves
then use them as such...but we are born free!" Cadwallader
Colden (1727)
www.judhartmanngallery.com/work/grangula.html
Module 3, Lesson 4, French and
Indian War, North American
Empire before and after the
Treaty of Paris, 1754
Color coding of English and Russian
territories
FE Colors assigned to both countries are virtually identical. They do
not match the key.
Module 6: Citizenship and the
Constitution / Lesson 1:
Establishing the Constitution /
Constitutional Convention
Also, the convention did not reflect the
diverse U.S. population of the 1780s.
There were no Native Americans,
African Americans, or women among
the delegates. These groups of people
were not recognized as citizens and
were not invited to attend.
S / B The language here needs to be “cleaned up” a bit. Native
Americans and African Americans were not recognized as
citizens. Women were citizens with limited rights; “very few
rights” as stated in the Lesson 7 Enrichment article about Abigail
Adams.
Module 6: Citizenship and the
Constitution / Lesson 1:
Establishing the Constitution /
Great Compromise
The delegates struggled to solve the
problem of representation in the
legislature. In early July, a committee
led by Roger Sherman and other
OF This statement makes it seem that this compromise was proposed
in its final form. It took several iterations to get this final
solution.
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delegates from Connecticut offered a
deal known as the Great Compromise. The verb “offered” should be changed to “proposed”.
This suggestion was made [the Connecticut Compromise] was
made three separate times during the heated debates before it was
finally accepted.
Pg. 161, The Making of America by W. Cleon Skousen, The
National Center for Constitutional Studies, Copyright 2007
[the original proposal by Sherman was] in the Senate each state
should have one vote.
Pg. 211, America; Land of Principles and Promises by Philip W.
Winkler; Published by Heritage Academy, Copyright 2015
Module 6: Citizenship and the
Constitution / Lesson 2:
Structure of the Government /
The Federal System
Sometimes, Congress has had to
stretch its delegated powers to deal
with new or unexpected issues. A
clause in the Constitution states that
Congress may “make all Laws which
shall be necessary and proper” for
carrying out its duties. This clause,
called the elastic clause—because it
can be stretched (like elastic)—
provides flexibility for the
government. The federal government
has used this clause to provide public
services such as funding for the arts
and humanities.
OF This clause has been surrounded by controversy from the
beginning. Not everyone agrees with using it to ‘stretch’ the
constitution to provide some of the public services in effect
today.
One of the many statements in discussions by the founders
brought out this point -- “Under such a clause as this can
anything be said to be reserved and kept back from Congress?”
pg. 239, The Founders’ Constitution edited by Philip B. Kurland
and Ralph Lerner, Copyright 1987 by The University of Chicago
Press.
Module 6: Citizenship and the
Constitution / Lesson 3: The Bill
of Rights / First Amendment
Federalist James Madison promised
that a bill of rights would be added to
the Constitution. This promise allowed
the Constitution to pass. In 1789
Madison began writing down a huge
list of proposed amendments. He then
presented a shorter list to the House of
Representatives. Of those, the House
approved 12. The states ratified ten,
which took effect December 15, 1791.
Those ten amendments, called the Bill
of Rights, protect U.S. citizens'
individual liberties.
HT Madison received this list from the states.
“The continuous conflict over some of these minor problems [the
bill of rights] finally led George Washington and others to
promise the state conventions that if they would approve the
Constitution in its present form, the states could each submit
suggestions for amendments and these would be taken up in the
first session of Congress.”
“The states took this invitation literally. They submitted a total of
189 proposed changes!”
Pg. 226, The Making of America by W. Cleon Skousen, The
National Center for Constitutional Studies, Copyright 2007
Module 7: Launching the Nation
/ Lesson 1: Washington Leads a
The Judiciary Act of 1789 created
three levels of federal courts. In
OF This act also “gave the Supreme Court a Chief Justice and five
Associate Justices.”
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New Nation / Organizing the
Government
addition to the Supreme Court, it set up
federal district courts and circuit courts
of appeals.
Pg. 224, America; Land of Principles and Promises by Philip W.
Winkler; Published by Heritage Academy, Copyright 2015
Module 8: War and Expansion in
the Americas / Lesson 1: The
Coming of War / Conflict in the
West
Tecumseh traveled south to ask the
Creek nation to join his forces. In his
absence, Harrison attacked. Harrison
raised an army and marched his troops
close to Prophetstown. Fighting broke
out when the Prophet, the spiritual
leader of Prophetstown, ordered an
attack on Harrison’s camp on
November 7, 1811. The conflict
escalated into the Battle of
Tippecanoe.
OF, HT, S This statement leaves the impression that the settlers took it upon
themselves to attack.
The text doesn’t mention that “Attacks on frontier settlers led
Harrison to move with a force of about eight hundred to one
thousand to camp a mile from the Shawnee town of Tippecanoe
Creek.”
Pg. 267, America; Land of Principles and Promises by Philip W.
Winkler; Published by Heritage Academy, Copyright 2015
Module 8: War and Expansion in
the Americas / Lesson 2: The
Coming of War / The War of
1812
The British sailed on to Baltimore,
Maryland, which was guarded by Fort
McHenry. They shelled the fort for 25
hours. The Americans refused to
surrender Fort McHenry. The British
chose to retreat instead of continuing
to fight.
OF This battle spurred the song we now have as our National
Anthem.
Pg. 272, America; Land of Principles and Promises by Philip W.
Winkler; Published by Heritage Academy, Copyright 2015
Included in the Enrichment section of the material
Module 9: A New National
Identity / Lesson 1: American
Foreign Policy / Growing
Nationalism
With the Adams-Onís Treaty, Monroe
secured Florida for the United States.
HT The Treaty also settled the boundary between Spain’s territory in
the West and America’s from the Louisiana Purchase.
Pg. 283, America; Land of Principles and Promises by Philip W.
Winkler; Published by Heritage Academy, Copyright 2015
Module 9: A New National
Identity / Lesson 2: Nationalism
and Sectionalism / Nationalism
Guides Domestic Policy
The Cumberland Road was the first
road built by the federal government.
HT Introducing the other name for this road, “National Road”, would
further the idea of Nationalism vs the Sectionalism concept.
Pg. 276, America; Land of Principles and Promises by Philip W.
Winkler; Published by Heritage Academy, Copyright 2015
Module 10: The Age of Jackson
/ Lesson 1: Jacksonian
Democracy / Expansion of
Democracy
In the South, small family farms began
to give way to large cotton plantations,
owned by wealthy white people and
worked by enslaved African
Americans.
HT / S / B Not all plantations were owned by whites. Some were owned by
blacks.
The fact is large numbers of free Negroes owned black slaves; in
fact, in numbers disproportionate to their representation in society
at large. In 1860 only a small minority of whites owned slaves.
According to the U.S. census report for that last year before the
Civil War, there were nearly 27 million whites in the country.
Some eight million of them lived in the slaveholding states.
https://dixieoutfitters.com/2017/08/05/didnt-know-blacks-owned-
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slaves-in-america/ accessed 3/10/18
Module 10: The Age of Jackson
/ Lesson 2: Jackson’s
Administration / Panic of 1837
Shortly after Van Buren took office,
the country experienced the Panic of
1837, a severe economic depression.
Jackson’s banking policies and his
unsuccessful plan to curb inflation
contributed to the panic. But people
blamed Van Buren.
OF, HT The textbook does not discuss the reasons for this panic. The
Reviewer suggest that some of the following information be
added.
Inflation from banks issuing excessive paper money, wild
speculation in western land, dropping cotton prices reducing the
nation’s income from trade, banks in Great Britain raised interest
rates and cut back on loans.
Pg. 313, America; Land of Principles and Promises by Philip W.
Winkler; Published by Heritage Academy, Copyright 2015
Module 11, Opener: Westward
Expansion, heading Westward
Expansion 1800-1900 timeline
1807: Great Britain abolishes the slave
trade in its empire.
The Act for the Abolition of the Slave
Trade essentially declared all British
ships carrying slaves to be pirates.
However, the trade continued on in the
empire for several more years. The
end of slavery in the British Empire
came in 1833, with the passage of the
Abolition of Slavery Act.
OF The abolition of slavery in Great Britain is mentioned on this
timeline, yet there is no mention that in 1865, slavery was
abolished in America.
The Reviewer suggests that the abolition of slavery in 1865 in
America should be on the timeline.
https://www.archives.gov/historical-docs/13th-amendment
Module 12, lesson 2, subtitle
“American Settlement in the
Mexican Cession”: Interpret
Maps (located below map)
Question: “Human-Environment
Interaction What possible problems
did settlers face when moving to the
Mexican Cession?
Technical
Error The student is unable to pick an answer from the multiple
choices, which is “correct”. Regardless of the choice a student
makes, when clicking “check” it states that the answer is
incorrect.
Module 13, Lesson 3,
Transportation Revolution
brings Changes, heading “A
New Fuel”, 2nd
paragraph, last
sentence, lines 6 and 7.
As the demand for coal increased, a
coal-mining industry developed in
many states, including Pennsylvania,
western Virginia, and Illinois. Coal
mining changed the landscape in a
number of ways. New towns, such as
Coal City and Carbondale in Illinois,
sprang up in places where coal
deposits could be mined. Miners made
deep gashes in the earth removing the
coal.
S The word “gash” suggests injury or deep wound. And it gives the
impression that the text is biased against coal mining.
The Reviewer suggests that the following sentence be removed:
“Miners made deep gashes in the earth removing the coal.”
Module 13, lesson 3. Review,
key term #4
Gibbons vs. Ogden: a Supreme Court
ruling that reinforced the federal
government’s authority over the states.
HT The answer given for the term “Gibbons vs. Ogden” is very
broad; it should state why the government’s authority was
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reinforced by this court case.
The Reviewer suggests the following rewrite: “A Supreme Court
ruling that reinforced the federal government’s authority over the
states regarding interstate commerce by ruling that waterways are
important for interstate commerce and cannot be controlled by
single states.”
--This restates the explanation given in Lesson 3 “Steamboats”
subsection.
Module 14, Lesson 2 Southern
Society and Culture, heading
“Southern Society and Culture”,
2nd
paragraph, 2nd
sentence, 1st
and 2nd
lines.
During the first half of the 1800s, only
about one-third of white southern
families had slaves.
FE, OF Omitted is that most Southerners owned no slaves, as stated here,
"Most Southerners owned no slaves and most slaves lived in
small groups rather than on large plantations. Less than one-
quarter of white Southerners held slaves, with half of these
holding fewer than five and fewer than 1 percent owning more
than one hundred. In 1860, the average number of slaves residing
together was about ten."
https://eh.net/encyclopedia/slavery-in-the-united-states/
The Reviewer recommends the sentence be changed to read as
follows: “During the first half of the 1800s, less than one-quarter
of white Southerners had slaves. Free African Americans also
had slaves.”
Module 14, Lesson 3 Living
Under Slavery “Analyse
Sources” questions
What does Curry’s story reveal about
relations between white masters and
enslaved African Americans?
FE, OF Students need to know that not all slave owners were white.
The Reviewer recommends the sentence be changed to read:
“What does Curry’s story reveal about relations between slave
owners and enslaved African Americans?
Module 15, Lesson 1, Slavery in
the United States, timeline 1776
Tukolor empire arises in the former
Songhau region of West Africa
This empire was founded by a Muslim
cleric who wanted to create a country
based on strict religious rules. He
trained a military force, armed it with
European guns, and launched a holy
war against his neighbors. His son
ruled after his death, but in 1893 the
French conquered the empire.
OF Students need to understand that the Tukolor Empire is not an
isolated episode. It is an example of Islamic expansion and
conquest via Jihad (holy war) with the aim of imposing Sharia.
Without this understanding, it will be impossible for students to
fully understand the nature of Islam and Jihad, and the threat it
currently poses.
Students must understand that it is a religious duty for all
Muslims to spread Islam and implement Sharia by force (jihad) if
necessary.
Jihad is holy war against unbelievers. Islamic jihad involves
forced conversion to Islam, slaughter or enslavement of
unbelievers, or, in the case of Christians and Jews, acceptance of
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Dhimmi status (living as a 2nd
class citizen and paying the jizyah
tax in order to be protected from slaughter).
http://www.dhimmitude.org/
“What does the Arabic word jihad mean?
One answer came last week, when Saddam Hussein had his
Islamic leaders appeal to Muslims worldwide to join his jihad to
defeat the "wicked Americans" should they attack Iraq; then he
himself threatened the United States with jihad.
As this suggests, jihad is "holy war." Or, more precisely: It means
the legal, compulsory, communal effort to expand the territories
ruled by Muslims at the expense of territories ruled by non-
Muslims.
The purpose of jihad, in other words, is not directly to spread the
Islamic faith but to extend sovereign Muslim power (faith, of
course, often follows the flag). Jihad is thus unabashedly
offensive in nature, with the eventual goal of achieving Muslim
dominion over the entire globe.”
http://www.danielpipes.org/990/what-is-jihad
The reviewer suggests the heading read as follows: “Tukolor
Islamic Empire arises in the former Songhau region of West
Africa”
The Reviewer suggests the paragraph be edited to read as
follows: “This Empire was founded by a Muslim cleric who, in
accordance with Islamic teachings, sought to create a country
based on Sharia, the Islamic legal system. He trained a military
force, armed it with European guns, and launched a Jihad against
his neighbors. His son ruled after his death, but in 1893 the
French conquered the empire.”
Module 15, Lesson 1 The Slave
Trade, heading “The Slave
Trade”, 1st paragraph, 3
rd
sentence
The practice of slavery had existed in
Africa and in many parts of the world
for centuries. Traditionally, slavery in
West Africa mostly involved only
black Africans, who were both
slaveholders and slaves. This changed
in the 600s when Arab Muslims, and
later Europeans, became slave traders.
Though Europeans had long traded
resources with Africa, they became
OF, FE The third sentence would suggest that Arab Muslims were
practicing slavery in the 600s. This is false. The Arab slave trade
began during the 9th century.
Allan G. B. Fisher, Slavery and Muslim Society in Africa, ed. C.
Hurst (London 1970, 2nd edition 2001)
The sentence also suggests that the Europeans then took over and
ran their own slave trade. That is also false. The beginning of
European slave trade in Africa dates from 1441. The Portuguese
captains Antão Gonçalves and Nuno Tristão captured 12 Africans
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more interested in the growing slave
trade.
in Cabo Branco (modern Mauritania) and took them to Portugal
as slaves.
https://jicolerenaissance.wordpress.com/portugal-the-african-
slave-trade/
The textbook fails to inform the students that slavery continued
throughout the Muslim world long after it ended in the United
States and continues in some areas in the Muslim world today.
The facts of the Arabs starting and dominating the slave trade are
omitted entirely.
“10 Facts About The Arab Enslavement Of Black People Not
Taught In Schools” By A Moore. Atlanta Black Star. June 2,
2014. Accessed May 18, 2017.
http://atlantablackstar.com/2014/06/02/10-facts-about-the-arab-
enslavement-of-black-people-not-taught-in-schools/
The textbook omits the fact that there are still “an estimated 20.9
Million people trapped in some form of slavery today. It’s
sometimes called ‘Modern-Day Slavery’ and sometimes ‘Human
Trafficking.’ At all times it is slavery at its core.”
“Slavery Today.” End Slavery Now. Accessed May 19, 2017
http://www.endslaverynow.org/learn/slavery-today
The Reviewer suggests that this sentence be changed to read as
follows: This changed in the 9th century when Arab Muslims
began the Atlantic Slave Trade, which Europeans exploited for
labor in their colonies. Some of those slaves were taken to
America.
Module 15, Lesson 1,
Beginnings of Slavery in the
Americas, The Big Idea
Europeans forced millions of African
slaves to work in their colonies.
OF, B, S Europeans exploited an already established slave trade known as
the Atlantic Slave Trade run by Muslims out of Africa. See entry
Module 15, Lesson 1, The Slave Trade, heading “Middle
Passage”, 2nd
sentence, 1st – 3
rd lines.
The Reviewer suggests this sentence be changed to read as
follows: “Europeans exploited the Atlantic Slave Trade to
procure slaves to work in their colonies.”
Module 15, Lesson 1, The Slave
Trade, Main Idea
Europeans enslaved millions of
Africans and sent them to work in their
colonies.
OF, B, S The Reviewer suggests this sentence should read as follows:
“Europeans exploit the Atlantic Slave Trade to procure slaves to
work in their colonies.”
Module 15, Lesson 1, The Slave Most enslaved people had been OF, HT The Reviewer notes that this text has mentioned that some Arab
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Trade, heading “Middle
Passage”, 2nd
sentence, 1st – 3
rd
lines
captured in the interior of Africa, often
by Africans who profited from selling
slaves to Europeans.
Muslims were active in the African slave trade, but it is very
much downplayed.
The Atlantic Slave Trade depended on the huge and complex
Muslim slave kidnapping and transportation industry that had
already been in operation for 700 years.
When they landed on the west coast of Africa looking for a cargo
of slaves, white slave traders did not trek into the interior of the
continent and do the dirty work of kidnapping black Africans.
The Europeans were dealing with middlemen, the vast majority
of whom were Muslims. 103
Approximately 80% of all black Africans ever enslaved and
exported from the continent passed through the hands of
Muslims. 103
“Submission”. pp 127, 131; Hugh Thomas, The Slave Trade,
Sion& Schuster (New York 1997), p. 46.104
K.S. Lal, Muslim
Slave System in Medieval India (“Lal Muslim Slave System”),
Aditya Prakashan (New Delhi, 1994, pp. 176-177).12.29.18 TNT
ACT for America Education Textbook Report full version
7312012.pdf, page 55).
The Reviewer suggests this sentence be changed to read as
follows: “Most enslaved people had been captured in the interior
of Africa, mostly by Arab Muslim slave traders who profited
from selling slaves to Europeans.”
Module 15, Lesson 1, The Slave
Trade, heading “The Slave
Trade”, heading “African
Diaspora”, 1st paragraph
Between the 1520s and 1860s, about
12 million Africans were shipped
across the Atlantic as slaves. More
than 10 million of these captives
survived the voyage and reached the
Americas. The slave trade led to the
African Diaspora. Enslaved Africans
were sent all across the New World.
OF, HT The text states that 10 million reached the Americas, but fails to
state what percentage of that 10 million came to America. It is
not clear enough that only a small number came to America. In
the absence of that information, it may seem that the early
European settlers in North America were responsible for much of
the slave intake, when only a few hundred thousand were taken
there.
“Between 1525 and 1866, in the entire history of the slave trade
to the New World, according to the Trans-Atlantic Slave Trade
Database, 12.5 million Africans were shipped to the New World.
10.7 million survived the dreaded Middle Passage, disembarking
in North America, the Caribbean and South America. And how
many of these 10.7 million Africans were shipped directly to
North America? Only about 388,000. That’s right: a tiny
13
percentage.“ https://www.theroot.com/how-many-slaves-landed-
in-the-us-1790873989
Students need to know that the majority of slaves were
transported to other areas outside of North America. For
example, Portuguese took slaves to Cape Verde and The Madeira
Islands, and the Spanish conquistadors took slaves to the
Caribbean. https://www.britannica.com/topic/transatlantic-slave-
trade
The Reviewer suggests the paragraph should read as follows:
“Between the 1520s and 1860s, about 12 million Africans were
shipped across the Atlantic as slaves, via the Atlantic Slave
Trade, which was run by Arab Muslims. More than 10 million of
these captives survived the voyage, and the majority of slaves
were shipped to South America and the Caribbean.
Approximately 388,000 enslaved Africans were shipped to North
America. The slave trade led to the African Diaspora. Enslaved
Africans were sent all across the New World.”
Module 15, Lesson 1, The Slave
Trade, heading “The Enslaved
Fight Back”, 2nd
paragraph, 1st
sentence
In South Carolina, the enslaved vastly
outnumbered whites, who lived in fear
of slave rebellions.
OF, FE Students must understand that most white people did not own
slaves. Some free Africans also owned slaves. (see entry at
Module 14, Lesson 2 Southern Society and Culture, heading
“Southern Society and Culture”, 2nd
paragraph, 2nd
sentence, 1st
and 2nd
lines.)
“The census of 1830 lists 965 free black slave owners in
Louisiana, owning 4,206 slaves. The state of South Carolina, lists
464 free blacks owning 2,715 slaves. How ironic it is that so
many blacks owned so many slaves in South Carolina. Yet, no
one seemed to mention this during the flag controversy.”
http://www.ironbarkresources.com/slaves/whiteslaves05.htm
The Reviewer suggests the sentence be changed to read as
follows: “In South Carolina, the enslaved vastly outnumbered
the slave owners, who lived in fear of slave rebellions.”
Module 15, Lesson 2, The Slave
System, heading “Slave
Uprisings”, 1st paragraph, 1
st
sentence
Although violent slave revolts were
relatively rare, white southerners lived
in fear of them.
FE, B, S See entry directly above.
The Reviewer suggests this sentence read as follows: “Although
violent slave revolts were relatively rare, slave owners lived in
fear of them.”
Module 15, Lesson 2, The Slave Although the North was the center of B, S It is bias to omit that many other northerners were social activists
14
System,
Heading “Opposition to Ending
Slavery”, 1st sentence
the abolitionist movement, many white
northerners agreed with the South and
supported slavery.
who wanted real freedom for Negroes and formed abolition
groups and operated the underground railway, as recorded here
http://www.u-s-history.com/pages/h477.html
The Reviewer suggests the sentence be changed to read as
follows: “Although many northerners agreed with the south and
supported slavery, it should be noted that many northerners
formed abolition groups and operated the underground railway.”
Mod 16 L1.Millions of
Immigrants. Anti-Immigrant
Movements. P2S1
Yet a great many native-born
Americans feared losing their jobs to
immigrants who might work for lower
wages.
OF Omitted: Whether the job fears were grounded in reality or not.
The text doesn’t describe whether the immigrants are needed to
fill industrial jobs, or whether they do in fact displace and
threaten the jobs of those already living in the US.
Mod 16 L1. Millions of
Immigrants. Anti-Immigrant
Movements. P2S1
Yet a great many native-born
Americans feared losing their jobs to
immigrants who might work for lower
wages. Some felt implicitly threatened
by the new immigrants’ cultures and
religions.
HT Some had valid fears that trying to absorb the enormous number
of immigrants over quite a short period of time could lead to
instability and disease. See this textbook itself in Mod 16 L1.
Urban Problems.
“The nineteenth century was a time of massive population growth
for the United States. In 1800, slightly over five million people
called America home. By 1900, that number skyrocketed to
seventy-five million. A large portion of this extraordinary growth
can be attributed to European immigrants.”
Brackemyre, Ted. Immigrants, Cities, and Disease. US History
Scene. 10 Apr. 2015. Accessed 3/7/18.
http://ushistoryscene.com/article/immigrants-cities-disease/
Mod 16 L1. Urban Problems.
Photo hotspot caption
Women—and frequently children—
labored all day in small rooms making
clothing to be sold to the wealthy.
S Slant - A “wealthy exploiting the poor” jab.
However, in the previous section the text: “This new middle class
was a social and economic level between the wealthy and the
poor. Those in the new middle class built large, dignified homes
that demonstrated their place in society.”
So, it would stand to reason that the new middle class people
would also be customers of these clothes makers.
Mod 16 L1. Enrichment. Irish
Immigration.
The wave of Irish immigration to the
United States began in the 1820s
because Ireland had too many people
for the land to support.
HT/OF The Irish also emigrated to escape oppression and persecution by
the British.
http://broadcast.lds.org/elearning/FHD/Community/en/Communit
y/
Paul Milner/Irish_Migration_to_NA-2011.pdf
15
“Before the Famine: In 1798, inspired by the American and
French revolutions, the Irish staged a major rebellion against
British rule. Widespread hangings and floggings soon followed as
the rebellion was brutally squashed. The English Army in Ireland
was also increased to nearly 100,000 men. Two years later, the
British Act of Union made Ireland a part of the United Kingdom.
The Act abolished the 500-year-old independent Irish Parliament
in Dublin and placed the country under the jurisdiction of
Britain's Imperial Parliament at Westminster, England. Although
Ireland was to be represented there by 100 members, Catholics
were excluded.” Irish Potato Famine. The History Place. 2000
Accessed 3/7/18.
http://www.historyplace.com/worldhistory/famine/before.htm
Mod 16 L2. American
Romanticism. Little Women
Analyze Sources Possible
Answer
she was aiming to do something more
than be a wife and mother as was the
norm of the time.
OF/HT/S And yet her character, used here to advance a shallow feminist
trope, goes on to marry and have two sons.
“Jo hates the idea of romance, because marriage might break up
her family and separate her from the sisters she adores.
As you might have guessed, Jo is being set up for a Meaningful
Journey of Self-Discovery and Surprises (TM). By the end of the
novel, her dreams and dislikes are going to be turned topsy-turvy;
her desire to make her way in the world and her distaste for
staying at home will be altered forever. She may not find
romance in the places that readers expect, but she will find it.
She'll also realize that romantic love has its place, even though it
changes the relationships you already have”
Little Women by Louisa May Alcott. Shmoop. Accessed 3/7/18.
https://www.shmoop.com/little-women/jo-march.html
Mod 16 L3. Reforming Society.
Second Great Awakening. P1S1
During the 1790s and early 1800s,
some Americans felt there was a strong
need for religious reform
OF Text gives no reason that people would feel that need.
Mod 16 L3. Reforming Society.
Second Great Awakening. P1S1
and took part in a Christian renewal
movement called the Second Great
Awakening.
OF Text gives no information about a First Great Awakening.
Mod 16 L3. Reforming Society.
Second Great Awakening. P3S1
Finney’s style of preaching and his
ideas angered some traditional
ministers, like Boston’s Lyman
Beecher.
OF Text provides no reasons for Beecher’s objections.
16
Mod 16 L4. Opposing Abolition.
P3S2
To northern workers, freedom for
slaves meant more competition for
jobs.
OF The authors should provide some idea of the pressure for
employment as this is the second reference to competition for
jobs, the first being back in the section on immigration.
“The notion of work being scarce would have seemed ludicrous
to early Americans, who, after a day in the field, made their own
soap, clothes and candles. Then came the industrial revolution --
and unemployment. As early as the 1820s, Americans had begun
a gradual exodus from farms to factories. At first, some
experimented with doing both -- working in a textile mill or iron
foundry part of the year while growing crops or raising livestock
at home. But industry was growing so rapidly that manufacturers
began actively recruiting workers from farms, especially young
women awaiting matrimony. Meanwhile, productivity gains in
agriculture were making some male workers redundant.
Immigrants, particularly from Ireland, hastened the midcentury
rush toward industrialization. Destitute and often without a trade
or skill, they flocked to manufacturing jobs and settled in
America's growing cities. For several decades, the demand and
supply of American labor seemed to be in rough balance. “
Crossen, Cynthia, Staff Reporter of The Wall Street Journal.
Until the Late 1800's, U.S. Had Never Known Unemployment
Woes. WSJ. 12/3/03 Accessed 3/8/18
https://www.wsj.com/articles/SB107040655254249400
Mod 16 L5. Opposing the Call
for Women’s Rights. Photo:
Antisuffragists
As the suffrage movement picked up
speed, opponents to women’s suffrage
also began to organize. Antisuffragists
argued that women’s suffrage would
distract women from building strong
families and improving communities.
OF Although this is the introduction of the term, suffrage, the authors
do not define the term.
Mod 16 L5. Seneca Falls
Convention. Women’s Rights
Leaders. Final P
Leaders such as Stanton, Anthony,
Stone, and Gage continued to fight for
equal treatment and recognition. This
increased activity was one of the
movement’s greatest accomplishments.
OF Although Anthony remained single and never ran a household,
the authors never explain how Stanton, Stone, and Gage were
able to run households and raise children and perform the level of
activism in the days before convenience foods and labor saving
appliances.
Mod 17
Lesson 1
Opener
The marshals say you must help them
find her. If you don’t, you will be fined
or even sent to jail.
OF This is a legal question since the consequence is threat of being
“fined or even sent to jail.” Asking a sixth grader such a legal
question is stretching the bounds of a middle-school history
17
If YOU were there...
End of par 1
educational experience. The sixth grader will undoubtedly refuse
the demand for help. This then becomes a lesson in civil
disobedience. We have seen with recent anti-Trump riots on
campuses and anti-historical monument destruction and many
other such situations back to anti-Vietnam-War protests, which
even college students are not yet mature enough to decouple self-
righteous emotions from their civil-disobedience decisions. Sixth
grade is pretty young to be pumping up these anti-authority
hormones.
There is room here to discuss such things as marshalling of posse
comitatus and nullification. But be very careful about just
plopping an act of civil disobedience on the plate of a sixth
grader.
Mod 17 L1. New Land Regional
Differences about Slavery.
They worried that slave labor would
mean fewer jobs for white workers.
HT Inconsistent.
Here again the authors raise the issue of jobs. This time exactly
the opposite worries, that free African Americans threatened jobs,
as were mentioned above.
The authors have only pointed out job “worries” not the reality of
the jobs picture at the time.
Mod 17
Lesson 1
Antislavery Literature
End of Par 5
Stowe later wrote A Key to Uncle
Tom’s Cabin to answer those who had
criticized her book.
OF A Key to Uncle Tom’s Cabin deservers more discussion than one
brief sentence. That book gives Uncle Tom’s Cabin credibility on
which we today can judge Stowe’s writing. It is important to
know that, although she wrote with great emotion, everything she
said was based on well-researched facts as rigorously
documented in A Key to Uncle Tom’s Cabin. This is a quality that
is essential in worthy social-political narrative and makes her
achievement all the more important and admirable.
Mod 17 L2 The Kansas-
Nebraska Act Two New
Territories
Map:
From Compromise to Conflict
Technical Map resolution needs to be good enough that it remains clear at
any scale up to full.
Mod 17 L2 Bleeding Kansas.
Attack on Laurence. P1S1
The new pro-slavery settlers owned
guns, and antislavery settlers received
weapons shipments from friends in the
East.
OF This statement has no supporting proof or explanation.
Mod 17
Lesson 3
Opener
How do you think this new party will
affect American politics?
OF If the publishers wish the student to answer this question from the
point of view of a person in that time and place, they should
18
Question express that in the question. Without that premise articulated, the
student may use current historical data to assist the response.
This Reviewer suggests: “With your 1854, Michigan point of
view, how do you think this new party will affect American
politics?”
Mod 17
Lesson 3
Political Parties Undergo
Change
Par 5, last sent
Most importantly, he had been in Great
Britain as ambassador during the
Kansas-Nebraska Historical Source
IT End of sentence is an error missed by editors.
Mod 17
Lesson 3 Review
Key Terms and People
#3 Buchanan
… [James Buchanan] was chosen as
the Democratic nominee for president
in 1854 …
FE James Buchanan was chosen the Democratic presidential
nominee in 1856.
Mod 17 L4. The South Secedes.
Southerners’ Reactions. P1
People in the South believed their
economy and way of life would be
destroyed without slave labor. They
reacted immediately. Within a week of
Lincoln’s election, South Carolina’s
legislature called for a special
convention. The delegates considered
secession. Southern secessionists
believed that they had a right to leave
the Union. They pointed out that each
of the original states had voluntarily
joined the Union by holding a special
convention that had ratified the
Constitution. Surely, they reasoned,
states could leave the Union by the
same process.
OF Omission of the states’ rights argument.
There is no question that the main cause of the Civil War was
slavery. There were, however, other important issues. The
principal one was states’ rights vs. a strong central government.
This was the main issue at the time of the writing of the US
Constitution and was debated fiercely during the ratification
conventions. The South was far more driven toward a federation
of free and strong states—independent of slavery—than was the
North. Remember that most Southerners were not slave owners—
and, in fact, suffered a loss of wages because of the cheapness of
slave labor. Yet many of them supported the war.
http://www.civil-conflict.org/civil-war-history/causes-of-the-
civil-war.htm (3-12-18) and
Boldin, Michael. “South Carolina Secession: The Truth.”
http://blog.tenthamendmentcenter.com/2010/12/south-carolina-
secession-the-truth/ The Tenth Amendment Center. 12/20/10.
Accessed 3/10/18.
Mod 18
Opener
Title:
The Civil War, 1860 – 1866
FE The Civil War started in 1861 and ended in 1865.
Mod 18 L1 Americans Choose
Sides. P3S4
In a last-ditch effort to avoid war
between the states, Secretary of State
Seward suggested a united effort of
threatening war against Spain and
France for interfering in Mexico and
FE/HT/S Simplistic interpretation of the Secy of State, Seward’s,
intentions. Misleading and misrepresents Seward’s stature as a
statesman. This ridiculous assertion was to be found, verbatim, at
other online textbook websites.
19
the Caribbean. “There is no real evidence, taking the memorandum in context,
that Seward had anything of the kind in mind.
Seward had simply sought Lincoln's sanction for asking
European envoys in Washington whether their governments
intended to take advantage of the slaveholders' rebellion to
intervene in American affairs, even as the great powers, acting in
concert or in holy alliance, had been prone to do in diverse parts
of the world earlier in the century…. All of Seward's foreign
policy recommendations contained in his April 1 memorandum
were carried out. His demands for explanations from all four
European powers helped to persuade their leaders to exercise
greater caution in dealing with the "American question" than they
had at first exhibited. Seward's agents and envoys in Canada and
Latin America were so successful in seeking support for the
cause of the American Union that no Western Hemispheric
government ever recognized or overtly aided the Southern
insurrection. There was, of course, no need to "convene Congress
and declare war" against Spain and France because the
explanations of those two governments proved to be, if not
entirely reassuring, at least sufficiently "satisfactory."”
Ferris, Norman B. Lincoln and Seward in Civil War Diplomacy:
Their Relationship at the Outset Reexamined. Journal of the
Abraham Lincoln Association. Volume 12, Issue 1, 1991, pp. 21-
42
http://hdl.handle.net/2027/spo.2629860.0012.105
https://quod.lib.umich.edu/j/jala/2629860.0012.105/--lincoln-and-
seward-in-civil-war-diplomacy-their-
relationship?rgn=main;view=fulltext
Mod 18 L1 Preparing for War.
Helping the Troops. Bio:
Elizabeth Blackwell.
Entire Bio S/B/OF This Reviewer questions the choice to insert this lengthy bio of
Elizabeth Blackwell, rather an unknown, whereas they include no
biographical detail of the very interesting lives of important
political and military figures in the lead up to and in the war, such
as Seward, McClellan, etc.
Mod 18 L4 African Americans
P1S3
Not all white northerners were ready to
accept them, but eventually they had
to.
OF No reason offered. JAYNE: There was no legal recourse. What is
this?
Mod 18 L5 Review Key Terms William Tecumseh Sherman: OF Although the authors include this information in the text of the
20
and People American Union army officer, his
capture of Atlanta, Georgia, and his
March to the Sea marked an important
turning point in the war.
lesson, it is important for the students to remember the brutality
of his tactics that were required to break the spirit of the
Confederacy.
Mod 18 L5 Essential Question.
Timeline: 1871
Congress passes anti-Klan legislation.
Organized by white supremacists in
the South, the Ku Klux Klan intimidate
black freedmen and their white
supporters. The Ku Klux Klan Act
gave the President power to suspend
rights in order to crush Klan activities.
The Act was ruled unconstitutional in
1882.
OF The text omits the fact the Klan was the work of Democrats.
Mod 18 L1 Freedom for African
Americans. Freedmen’s
Bureau.P3S4.
Despite opposition, by 1869 more than
150,000 African American students
were attending more than 3,000
schools.
OF The text gives no context here, what are the overall numbers of
freed slaves, freed slave children, etc.
Mod 19
Opener
Photo caption
The ruins of this southern plantation
stand as a bleak reminder of the
changes brought to the South by the
Civil War.
FE This is clearly a town, not a plantation. There are two church
steeples and other buildings that belong in towns, not plantations.
The ornate Greek columns in the foreground may be the
courthouse or some other official building.
Mod 19 Opener
After 12 years, and in response to
fierce resistance from many white
southerners, the federal government
declared Reconstruction over.
OF The resistance from southerners was only part of the reason.
“Reconstruction ended with the contested Presidential election of
1876, which put Republican Rutherford B. Hayes in office in
exchange for the withdrawal of federal troops from the South.
Republicans and Democrats responded to the economic declines
by shifting attention from Reconstruction to economic recovery.
War weary from nearly a decade of bloody military and political
strife, so-called Stalwart Republicans turned from idealism,
focusing their efforts on economics and party politics. The
closing of Reconstruction saw North and South reunited behind
the imperatives economic growth and territorial expansion, if not
the full rights of its citizens. From the ashes of civil war, a
new nation was born, a nation rich with fresh possibilities but
beset by old problems.”
The End of Reconstruction. Lumen Learning. US History II
(American Yawp) Accessed 3/16/18.
https://courses.lumenlearning.com/ushistory2ay/chapter/the-end-
21
of-reconstruction-2/
Mod 19
Lesson 1
Reconstruction Begins
Wade-Davis Bill
Par 2, Sent 1
Two Republicans—Senator Benjamin
Wade and Representative Henry
Davis—had an alternative to Lincoln’s
plan.
OF Just as the roles of the Republicans and Radical Republicans in
the slavery issue are discussed, the role of the Democratic Party
should also be discussed.
For example, all 8 civil rights acts (the Civil Rights Act of 1866,
CRA of 1870. CRA of 1871, CRA of 1875, CRA of 1957, CRA
of 1960, CRA of 1964, and the Voting Rights Act of 1965) and 3
civil rights amendments were strongly supported by the
Republican Party and poorly to moderately supported or opposed
by the Democratic Party.
http://history.house.gov/Exhibitions-and-
Publications/BAIC/Historical-Data/Constitutional-Amendments-
and-Legislation/
Mod 19 L1 Freedom for African
Americans. Slavery Ends. 13th
Amendment.
P2
The amendment was ratified and took
effect on December 18, 1865. When
abolitionist William Lloyd Garrison
heard the news, he declared that his
work was now finished. He called for
the American Anti-Slavery Society to
break up. Not all abolitionists agreed
that their work was done, however.
Frederick Douglass insisted that
“slavery is not abolished until the
black man has the ballot [vote].”
OF Omitted that this Frederick Douglas speech was objecting to the
breakup of the Society and called for 2nd
Amendment rights.
“…the South, by unfriendly legislation, could make our liberty,
under that provision, a delusion, a mockery, and a snare. … What
advantage is a provision like this Amendment to the black man, if
the Legislature of any State can tomorrow declare that no black
man’s testimony shall be received in a court of law?... Now, while
the black man can be denied a vote, while the Legislatures of the
South can take from him the right to keep and bear arms, as they
can-they would not allow a Negro to walk with a cane where I
came from, they would not allow five of them to assemble
together the work of the Abolitionists is not finished.
Notwithstanding the provision in the Constitution of the United
States, that the right to keep and bear arms shall not be abridged,
the black man has never had the right either to keep or bear
arms; and the Legislatures of the States will still have the power
to forbid it, under this Amendment. … Where shall the black man
look for support, my friends, if the American AntiSlavery Society
fails him?”
McClarey, Donald R. Frederick Douglass Speech on the
Thirteenth Amendment. The American Catholic. 1/19/15.
Accessed 3/16/18
http://the-american-catholic.com/2015/01/19/frederick-douglass-
22
speech-on-the-thirteenth-amendment/
Mod 19
Lesson 2
14th Amendment
Johnson vs. Congress, Par 3
Fearing that the Civil Rights Act might
be overturned, the Republicans
proposed the Fourteenth
Amendment in the summer of 1866.
OF It might not be clear to a sixth grader that “overturned” means
“overturned by the Supreme Court.” It should be said specifically
and clarify the consequences of overturning.
Mod 19
Lesson 2
14th Amendment
Johnson vs. Congress
Par 3, #1
1 It defined all people born or
naturalized within the United States,
except Native Americans, as citizens
FE The 14th Amendment says nothing about Native Americans (or
Indians, as they would be called in 1868). It says: “All persons
born or naturalized in the United States, and subject to the
jurisdiction thereof, are citizens of the United States and of the
state wherein they reside.”
If this is due to a later interpretation of the Supreme Court, that
should be stated.
Reviewer proposes: drop “except Native Americans.”
Mod 19 L2
14th Amendment
Johnson vsCongress
P3, #5
5 It made state laws subject to federal
court review
FE This gives the impression that the federal courts can review and
disallow a state law from going into effect. This is not true.
Reviewer proposes: “No state can make or enforce any law that
deprives people of their constitutional rights.”
Mod 19
Lesson 2
Congress Takes Control
Reconstruction Acts
Par 2, Sent 1
The military would remain in control
of the South until the southern states
rejoined the Union.
HT The military never "controlled" the South. The Democratic Party
political and law-enforcement culture at the local levels remained
much more influential in people’s lives than the widely dispersed
and short-term military occupation. Even during the 2 – 4 years
of Republican control of the state governments, the entrenched
Democratic, slavery establishment continued to control Southern
society and law enforcement.
http://history.house.gov/Exhibitions-and-
Publications/BAIC/Historical-Data/Constitutional-Amendments-
and-Legislation/ (3-14-2018)
Mod 19
Lesson 2
Congress Takes Control
President on Trial
Par 1, Last Sent
This law, called the Tenure of Office
Act, prevented the president from
removing cabinet officials without
Senate approval. Johnson quickly
broke the law by firing Edwin Stanton,
the secretary of war.
It’s important to know that a law that was used to try to impeach
the president was unconstitutional.
The Tenure of Office Act was amended during the Grant
administration and repealed in 1887. The US Supreme Court in
1926 ruled in Myers v. United States that the law was
unconstitutional.
http://www.u-s-history.com/pages/h170.html (3-10-2018)
Mod 19 However, white southerners used OF The “white southerners” were, more specifically, Democratic
23
Lesson 2
Congress Takes Control
Election of 1868
Par 2, Last Sent
violence to try to keep African
Americans away from the polls.
Party supporters. Democrats created the Black Codes and the
KKK — the two primary tools used to keep African Americans
from exercising their right to vote for Republicans and to run for
office as Republicans. History.com
(https://www.history.com/topics/ku-klux-klan) states that: “… the
organization [KKK] saw its primary goal–the reestablishment of
white supremacy–fulfilled through Democratic victories in state
legislatures across the South in the 1870s.”
For example, their success is shown in Alabama, whose state
legislature was Democrat 1818–1867, Republican 1868–1872,
then Democrat 1873–2010.
http://www.legislature.state.al.us/aliswww/ISD/House/ALHouse
PastSpeakers.aspx
http://www.mshistorynow.mdah.ms.gov/articles/204/reconstructi
on-in-mississippi-1865-1876 (3-13-18)
Epilogue
The US since 1877
Par 2&3
For example, Americans still debate
questions about civil rights, religion,
taxes, and the role of government in
their lives. They also worry about the
health of the environment, children,
and the poor. Americans do not always
agree on these issues. But they do
believe strongly in their right to debate
and to disagree. The freedom to do
so—in peaceful and productive
ways—is an indication of the
fundamental health of the nation.
JAYNE: Starting out with “in point of
fact” makes it sound very
argumentative—especially when what
follows is an opinion. The Goldberg
quote is also an opinion of one person,
so I don’t know how far that’s going to
get you.
OF/FE In point of fact, Americans can no longer be said to “believe
strongly in their right to debate and to disagree”
If it were ever true, there exist today such chasms between ideas
and strong moves to suppress expression of ideas are afoot, that
the students should know that it is pie in the sky thinking to make
that simple assertion.
Even in an article on free speech, this passes for acceptable
thought:
“Those who care about civil rights are correct to hold the line, to
say that there are certain ideas that deserve broad contempt rather
than a fair hearing.”
Goldberg, Michelle. The Worst Time for the Left to Give Up on
Free Speech. NYT 10/6/17 Accessed 3/16/18
https://www.nytimes.com/2017/10/06/opinion/liberals-free-
speech.html
Epilogue
Economic Changes and
Challenges
Par 4
The banking system nearly collapsed,
houses and stocks plummeted in value,
and millions of people lost their jobs.
JAYNE: I have merged your item with
mine on this topic, so I suggest you
OF Omission of the role that oppressive government regulation on
lenders and opening of opportunities for unscrupulous
exploitation
“While the panel, the Financial Crisis Inquiry Commission,
accuses several financial institutions of greed, ineptitude or both,
24
delete this one. I covered this whole
thing in an Amazon Review of
“Currency Wars.”
https://www.amazon.com/gp/review/R
37ROR2HHE2QFO?ref_=glimp_1rv_
cl
some of its gravest conclusions concern government failings,
with embarrassing implications for both parties”
Chan, Sewell. Financial Crisis Was Avoidable, Inquiry Finds.
NYT 1/25/11 Accessed 3/16/18
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/01/26/business/economy/26inquir
y.html
Epilogue
The US since 1877
Par 3
But they do believe strongly in their
right to debate and to disagree. The
freedom to do so—in peaceful and
productive ways—is an indication of
the fundamental health of the nation.
FE, OF Most college students no longer believe in open debate according
to a Brookings Institute study. They don’t understand that
offensive speech is protected by First Amendment.
https://www.brookings.edu/blog/fixgov/2017/09/18/views-
among-college-students-regarding-the-first-amendment-results-
from-a-new-survey/ (3-16-2018)
Greg Lukianoff said October 2013, at Brown University, when
the New York City police commissioner, Raymond Kelly, was
invited to speak but was shouted down by students over his
support of stop-and-frisk practices was “the symbolic beginning
because that’s when we noticed an uptick in student press for
disinvitations, trigger warnings and microaggression policing.”
University of Michigan – In 2016 Black Lives Matter protestors
shut down debate, which normalized force to prevent free speech
on campus.
University of California, Berkeley – In 2017 Antifa protestors
riot to prevent Milo Yiannopoulos from speaking, which
normalized mass violence to prevent free speech on campus.
Natl Assoc of Scholars, “Charting Academic Freedom,” 1-2018,
https://www.nas.org/images/documents/NAS_freeSpeechChart.p
df (3-16-2018)
Reviewer recommends dropping the word productive from “in
peaceful and productive ways” since neither the First
Amendment nor the rest of the Constitution puts any limitation
on the exercise of our rights that such exercises must be
productive—just as there is no limitation that our freedom of
speech must not be hateful or hurtful. Teaching children that our
unalienable rights are subject to arbitrary limits is not “an
indication of the fundamental health of the nation.”
Epilogue
The US as a Global Power
The Spanish-American War marked
the beginning of a period of American
OF, HT The word expansionism implies colonialism, which this was not.
25
Par 1 expansionism during which U.S.
influence spread throughout Latin
America and the rest of the world.
Such “expansionism” goes way back at least to the Barbary Wars
(1801–1805 and 1815–1816). These and Spanish-American War
were protection of American free foreign trade interests.
https://history.state.gov/milestones/1801-1829/barbary-wars
WWII made US the greatest military and economic power on
earth, but still not a colonial state.
The Bretton Woods Agreement (1944) was one of the biggest
expansionary moves in US history because it made the US dollar
the world reserve currency, which has had vast benefits to
American consumption and has done even greater damage to our
nation’s financial security.
https://www.federalreservehistory.org/essays/bretton_woods_cre
ated
Epilogue
Economic Changes and
Challenges
Par 3
Many American companies have
moved their factories overseas where
wages are lower, causing hardship for
many American workers.
OF When we import goods from third world countries like China,
Indonesia, and Colombia, we are also importing all their labor
and environmental deficiencies as by products. Wages are lower
because workers’ rights are essentially non-existent, thus workers
can be used up and discarded like any other resource.
In addition, the absence of any substantial environmental
regulation allows for dangerous pollutants to be dumped into our
oceans to keep prices of manufactured products below what the
US must charge for being environmentally responsible.
Epilogue
Economic Changes and
Challenges
Par 4
The banking system nearly collapsed,
houses and stocks plummeted in value,
and millions of people lost their jobs.
FE, OF The banking system came nowhere near collapse. But the two
government agencies regulating home mortgages did nearly
collapse, i.e., FANNIE MAE and FREDDIE MAC, due to
overregulation and politicization of the home mortgage lending
market. Politically motivated government regulation on lenders
and politically motivated expansion of the money supply by the
Federal Reserve opened opportunities for unscrupulous
exploitation by bankers.
Peter J. Wallison, “Dissent from the Majority Report of the
Financial Crisis Inquiry Commission,” American Enterprise
Institute for Public Policy Research, January 14, 2011, page 2.
https://www.aei.org/wp-
content/uploads/2011/01/Wallisondissent.pdf (3-16-2018)
Chan, Sewell. Financial Crisis Was Avoidable, Inquiry Finds.
26
NYT 1/25/11 Accessed 3/16/18
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/01/26/business/economy/26inquir
y.html
Epilogue
The US Then and Now
Par 1
The threat of terrorism—made clear by
the terrorist attacks of September 11,
2001—remains an ongoing challenge.
FE, OF To talk about “the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001”
without mentioning that the attackers were Islamic jihadists is
like talking about the Pearl Harbor attack without mentioning that
it was the Japanese Navy attacking.
Epilogue
The US Then and Now
Par 3
… the Declaration of Independence
and the Constitution. These documents
remain relevant and important today.
They express what Americans stand
for and provide a framework on which
the nation can build its future.
FE Reviewer recommends changing the last sentence from: “They
express what Americans stand for and provide…” to “They
express what Americans stood for when they ratified the articles
and amendments and provide…”
27
Evaluation of Social Studies Skills and other important issues
An evaluation of the teaching & learning devices and/or materials provided to the student.
Number Questions Yes No
1 Is the appropriate vocabulary relevant to the subject matter presented to students? For example, on comparative government are terms such as monarchy, oligarchy, democracy, socialism, fascism, and communism presented?
X
2 Are the captions under pictures factual? Yes, and thorough with clickable hotspots yielding
multiple explanatory captions.
3 Are the charts and graphs relevant to the topic being presented? X
4 Are the maps accurate and relevant to the topic? X
5 Are questions thought provoking? Is adequate accurate material provided so that the students can formulate appropriate answers?
Found some of the material needed to answer questions in the supplemental material
mainly in Module 15 dealing with slavery
6 Are primary and secondary sources presented for students to examine (for bias, propaganda, point of view, and frame of reference)? X
7 Does the text present a lesson on how to evaluate the validity of a source based on language, corroboration with other sources, and information about the author?
8 Does the textbook have a Glossary? Are key terms and personalities included and defined? Within the text X
9 Does the textbook have accurate timelines to help the student understand chronological historical developments?
Several included
A glaring omission in Module 11 with no mention of the
Emancipation Proclamation in 1865
10 Does the textbook have an Index which includes all of the key words, historical time periods and individuals? X
11 Does the textbook devote a similar number of pages to each of the world religions, philosophies, political and religious leaders? n/a n/a
28
Commendations:
1. The book is organized well in that each new topic is introduced with sections entitled Big Idea, Essential Question, and If YOU were there. These
sections give a comprehensive view of the information to follow, as well as give students the challenge to give some thought to the concepts as if
they were in the mix.
2. The book does not present the information, specifically noticeable in the section on Reconstruction, as terribly ‘preachy’ not as some other
textbooks have been. 3. The following is from Mod 19, Lesson2, Congress Takes Control of Reconstruction, Election of 1868
“However, white southerners used violence to try to keep African Americans away from the polls.
“Despite such tactics, thousands of African Americans voted for Grant and the ‘party of Lincoln.’ The New Orleans Tribune reported that many former slaves
‘see clearly enough that the Republican Party [is] their political life boat.’ African American votes helped Grant to win a narrow victory.”
Writing this was a major departure from modern history texts and displays your ability to step outside the bounds of PC.
Concerns:
1. No depth to the material. Seems to provide a superficial coverage of the material.
2. The clickable terms within the text are odd in that the dropdown info often provides nothing more to define the term than does the surrounding
text.
3. Information in early sections tended to be shallow and authors offer little background on ideas.
4. Moves so quickly through the material, with quite thin coverage at times, that it seems like a Reader’s Digest version of history.
5. “Epilogue.” This Epilogue section is problematic.
a. The format is quite different than that of the other Modules, it is more long form reading. It covers approximately 140 years in one
module, thus the content is even more superficial than that of the rest of the book.
b. And finally, and importantly for our purposes, the even-handedness of coverage that this reviewer welcomed in the rest of the book is
replaced with the dreary slant and distortions of political correctness. Your description of 21st century America is so pie in the sky that I
get the idea you are writing for the US Chamber of Commerce. Do you think these kids would be damaged if they heard some hard truth
about the country they are about to inherit? Throughout the Epilogue, the publisher speaks more about our country as is should be rather that as it
is. Since the decision has been made for the book to bridge the gap between history and political science, at least make it rational political science.
c. The reviewer suggests that there is actually no place for a Module bringing the history up to the present day in a textbook with 1877 as the
end date for the content, this is outside the very scope of the book.
29
d. It would be an excellent rime to introduce these kids to the concept that a writer is responsible to the reader for the quality of the facts they
are presenting. Yes, this means references. Keep in mind that the first function of references is to challenge every sentence the writer
presents as a fact—that is, it is a way to force discipline on the writer. As it is, there is not much to keep the writer from straying from the
real reality.
Evaluations based on template
Choices Explanations Yes No
1 This text has minor changes that need to be made
2 This text has a moderate number of changes
3 This text has substantial changes that need to be made X most notably in
relation to slavery and removal of the
Epilogue
4 This book is so flawed that it is not recommended for adoption.