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From: gwyn@brl-smoke.ARPA (Doug Gwyn )
Newsgroups: net.books,net.sci
Subject: Re: school textbooks
Message-ID: <422@brl-smoke.ARPA>
Date: Wed, 30-Apr-86 09:32:43 EDT
Article-I.D.: brl-smok.422
Posted: Wed Apr 30 09:32:43 1986
Date-Received: Sun, 4-May-86 08:28:43 EDT
References: <1811@mtgzz.UUCP> <244@uw-vlsi.ARPA> <181@batcomputer.TN.CORNELL.EDU>
Reply-To: gwyn@brl.ARPA
Organization: Ballistic Research Lab (BRL)
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Xref: linus net.books:3343 net.sci:493

In article <181@batcomputer.TN.CORNELL.EDU> olson@batcomputer.UUCP (olson) writes:
>PS. I hope that people out there take Feynman's remarks on high school 
>  textbooks to heart, and if they have the chance, do something to improve
>  the books because far too many of them really are abismal.

Um, "abysmal", which isn't appropriate for non-gaplike objects..

Anyway, the problem when I was a Texas public school student,
which is very likely still the problem today, seems to be that
public school textbooks have to be selected from a small list
of "approved" candidates that is determined by a VERY political
state textbook committee.  Naturally, textbook publishers offer
what they perceive the textbook committees will approve.  This
principle can be seen in operation with the introduction of
Creationism into biology texts, despite educators, textbook
authors, and publishers knowing better.

The only solution I see is to reduce politics in education,
which in practice probably means supporting a transition to
private schools.  This could be done by a rebate of the public-
school portion of a family's taxes when they send their child
to a private school.  (The idea is usually called "tax credits
for education".)  Given the government's tendency to operate
in areas where it has no legitimate business, it would take a
substantial "grass-roots" movement to get this idea adopted.