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For this assignment, I will be taking the perspective of a teacher/administrator. This padlet is to be used as an example of curriculum issues discussed in today's education for our children throughout the state of Texas.
I selected this topic because of its vast points of view throughout the state of Texas. There are many parents, students, teachers and administrators with different viewpoints as to why curriculum today may and may not need to be updated and or "corrected". Critical Race Theory" is an example of curriculum many cannot agree on, which we will also discuss.

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I interviewed Brittany Clark, who is an English teacher at Central Freshman Campus in San Angelo, Texas where she has worked for the last few years. She also graduated from Angelo State University in 2019. Contact information for Mrs. Clark can be found at: Staff Directory - Central High School (saisd.org)

The focus of this interview was over Curriculum, but more specifically over "Critical Race Theory and its effects on her curriculum taught. When asked how the Legal Guide topic is important in her field of education or how it impacts her field of education, Mrs. Clark stated that it does not currently affect her work/curriculum because her district, the San Angelo ISD is not currently implementing it into their curriculum. This issue of Critical Race Theory is an important topic though and may eventually impact how San Angelo ISD teachers teach history or English courses. English is a required foundational curriculum, that state law requires, as stated in Texas Administrative Code, Sections 74.1-74.3.
Best practices for curriculum:
* Be prepared for changes in curriculum
* Be open minded to changes in curriculum and how your students will absorb/feel about these changes, as they come.
* Be willing to learn constantly with the changes implemented in curriculum to influence the same in your students.
When asked, "Are there legal requirements or compliance issues you regularly monitor or have to be attentive to in this area?" Mrs. Clark stated, "there are no legal requirements. But it has changed the way we teach certain historical events and text. For example, we can no longer teach "To Kill a Mockingbird" in its entirety because of racism."
Currently, Mrs. Clark has not written or revised any policies or rules related to this issue.
Some of the biggest issues rising in curriculum are the issues of history taught, critical race theory and gender studies being added or taken out of curriculum. While there are definitely various opinions over these issues, the Texas Education Agency is constantly looking at implications needed, and the importance of each, along with its impacts. Politics and current issues greatly impact all of these individual issues.

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A position statement from the TSTA is, "The Texas State Teachers Association believes that the path to racial and social justice lies with education. As educators, it is our unique privilege and responsibility to model equity in our lesson plans, classrooms, behavior and communities. We understand that identifying and addressing our own biases is an ongoing and sometimes uncomfortable process and we are here to help."

Martin, S. (2022, January 27). Racial and social justice. Texas State Teachers Association. Retrieved March 3, 2022, from https://tsta.org/news_center/racial-and-social-justice/

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The Texas State Teachers Association believes that the path to racial and social justice lies with education. As educators, it is our unique privilege and responsibility to model equity in our lesson plans, classrooms, behavior and communities. We understand that identifying and addressing our own biases is an ongoing and sometimes uncomfortable process and we are here to help. Below are resources you can use that amplify and celebrate racial and social equity in our schools, meaningful allyship, and restorative justice. Please contact us if you would like to receive more information about racial and social justice issues from TSTA.
Black Lives Matter @ School:
The National Education Association has a dedicated site for racial and social justice resources at NEA Ed Justice. This map shows where resolutions have passed to create police-free schools, as well as where there has been organizing by educators, students, or others mobilizing around this issue. Have information about your local resolution, petition or other organizing or mobilization efforts added to the map.
Messaging guidance for restorative justice and rethinking discipline Messaging guidance for safe and equitable schools
Learning for Justice: Racial and social justice classroom resources, professional development, and other resources for educators. Associated with the Southern Poverty Law Center.

The Oakland Unified School District guide to implementing restorative justice practices in the classroom, the University of Michigan's guide to creating inclusive classrooms, and a series of films from The New York Times educators can use to explore race, bias and identity with their students.

There are many books available for those who would like to do their own research on these issues. Here is a list of 20 anti-racist titles to get you started, as well as seven books about race to read to your kids.

Racial Equity Tools, a site designed to support individuals and groups working to achieve racial equity, offers tools, research, tips, curricula and ideas for people who want to increase their own understanding and to help those working toward justice at every level - in systems, organizations, communities and the culture at large.

If you are searching for an online community to connect with about these issues, you have many options. Groups like World Trust, Color of Change, Training for Change, Amplifier Art and many others are available to connect like-minded advocates to advance social justice and racial equity. Some of these organizations, including the Center for Racial Justice, Zinn Education Project, Teaching for Black Lives, Teaching for Change and the Abolitionist Teaching Network, are focused specifically on training and empowering educators to dismantle patterns of racism and injustice in schools.

Bored Teachers, the online educator forum, has their own list of more than 100+ free anti-racism resources for children and adults.

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The Texas State Teachers Association believes that the path to racial and social justice lies with education. As educators, it is our unique privilege and responsibility to model equity in our lesson plans, classrooms, behavior and communities. We understand that identifying and addressing our own biases is an ongoing and sometimes uncomfortable process and we are here to help.

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* "Several Republican State Board of Education candidates who ran in opposition of so-called critical race theory in public schools advanced in Tuesday’s GOP primary election."

* Seats available of the SBOE, this coming November

* Hot topics for this election are COVID protocols in schools and "new law restricting how students should learn about America’s history of racism."

* Will this open the door for more possible "censorship" within schools and its curriculum?

* Book bans and LGBTQ community and people of color.

Lopez, B. (2022, March 2). Several Texas Republicans against "Critical race theory" advance in state board of education primary races. The Texas Tribune. Retrieved March 3, 2022, from https://www.texastribune.org/2022/03/02/critical-race-theory-state-board-education/

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Several Texas Republicans against “critical race theory” advance in State Board of Education primary races

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All 15 seats of the State Board of Education are up for grabs in November, and there were more than 50 candidates vying for their parties’ nominations.

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* Revising Texas Social Studies standards

* Slavery and the Civil War downplays

* Discussions over what students "should" be learning about their history.

* "the standards offered an “uncritical celebration of ‘the free enterprise system and its benefits,’” completely overlooked Native Americans, downplayed slavery, barely mentioned the Black Codes or Jim Crow, and dismissed the separation of church and state as a constitutional principle."

* TEKS and its effects on teachers and curriculum taught in classrooms.

Texas revises history education, again. Home. (n.d.). Retrieved March 3, 2022, from https://www.historians.org/publications-and-directories/perspectives-on-history/january-2019/texas-revises-history-education-again-how-a-good-faith-process-became-political

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The Texas State Board of Education (SBOE) is no stranger to controversy. In 2016, Perspectives reported on the dispute over a Mexican American studies textbook submitted to the board for approval. And in September 2018, the SBOE once again made national headlines for its proposals to "streamline," or to revise and review, the state's social studies standards.

Outraged stories from liberal outlets emphasized the recommendations to remove Helen Keller and Hillary Clinton from the standards, to downplay the role of slavery as the central cause of the Civil War, and to leave in references to Moses as an individual "whose principles of laws and government institutions informed the American founding documents." But indignation came from the right, too. Texas's own Republican governor, Greg Abbott, reflecting conservative concerns about the proposed removal of the word "heroic" to describe the defenders of the Alamo, tweeted: "This politically correct nonsense is why I'll always fight to honor the Alamo defenders' sacrifice. . . . This is not debatable to me."

What got lost in the headlines and the tweets, however, was why the SBOE was undertaking the streamlining process to begin with. A political body whose members are elected, usually along party lines, from 15 single-member districts across the state, the SBOE sets curriculum standards and reviews and adopts textbooks based on those standards for Texas public schools. While the cultural maelstrom focused on the ideological underpinnings of the proposed changes, the process itself was a product of one of the most difficult conversations that history educators tussle with: what should students learn when they study history?

The curriculum standards in Texas, also known as the Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills (TEKS), were first instituted in 1997, according to Dan Quinn, the communications director of the Texas Freedom Network, a nonpartisan organization that supports public education. Since then, the SBOE has undertaken several revisions of the standards, with the last major overhaul taking place in 2010.

On the surface, the process of revising the standards is relatively straightforward: the SBOE convenes curriculum teams, or "work groups," comprising scholars, educators, and citizens from around the state to review the existing standards and suggest changes. The SBOE then holds public hearings on the recommended changes and later votes on them. The process is profoundly political, since board members are elected and Texas is a majority-Republican state; the SBOE is currently composed of 10 Republicans and 5 Democrats. Notably, few of them have any background in the field of education.

In 2010, says Quinn, once the local curriculum teams sent their draft changes to the standards up to the SBOE, "politics took over." "Board members," he recalls, "submitted hundreds of amendments to change the draft standards," many of which were later adopted by the full board. According to a February 2018 report from the Texas Freedom Network Education Fund, authored by four scholars (including two historians), the 2010 amendments were based largely on the board members' "own personal beliefs and pet causes," many of which had no basis in existing scholarly consensus.

The cultural maelstrom focused on ideology, but the process itself came from a difficult conversation among history educators: what should students learn?

The resulting standards were so flawed that even the conservative Thomas B. Fordham Institute blasted them. The institute's scorching 2011 review of state US history standards characterized the Texas standards as "a politicized distortion of history." Among other things, noted the report, the standards offered an "uncritical celebration of 'the free enterprise system and its benefits,'" completely overlooked Native Americans, downplayed slavery, barely mentioned the Black Codes or Jim Crow, and dismissed the separation of church and state as a constitutional principle.

But beyond politics, the 2010 process created problems for teachers in the classroom. The standards posed an instructional challenge because, says Quinn, they became "long and unwieldy." Ron Francis, a seventh-grade social studies teacher at Highland Park Middle School in suburban Dallas, notes, for example, that because the standards are so long and are arranged chronologically, "teachers [often] have problems getting to the standards that are at the end of the course." Additionally, Texas students are tested in the core subject areas of reading, writing, mathematics, science, and social studies, from third grade through high school graduation, as part of the state's academic assessment program. (Texas does not participate in the national Common Core standards.) These standardized tests, according to Trinidad Gonzales, a historian at South Texas College and a past AHA Teaching Division councilor, "essentially just ask questions directly from the standards. If it says that you should know historical figures x, y, z, then the instructor . . . will basically teach x, y, and z. So what you have is a very test-driven, assessment-dictating curriculum."

On paper, teachers do have the flexibility to teach content that is not included in the standards. "But the reality," says Gonzales, "is that you're trying to get the students to pass the exam." And a passing score is required to move on to the next grade level or to graduate. Chances are, he says, "If it's not in the TEKS, it's not going to get taught."

The goal of the 2018 streamlining process, then, was "to delete, combine, clarify and narrow the scope of the standards," according to a June 2018 press release from the Texas Education Agency (TEA), which includes the SBOE. (The press release is no longer available online.) Streamlining would purportedly save class time and give teachers greater flexibility by eliminating or reducing what students could expect to see on the assessment test. Work groups were asked only to revise existing standards, not add new ones. And the SBOE did not seek updated textbooks.

The work groups' imperative was to reduce instructional time, not impose a political point of view. Eliminating the World War II Women Airforce Service Pilots and the Navajo Code Talkers from the standards, the work groups estimated, would lead to a 30-minute reduction in instructional time; so would removing Billy Graham, Barry Goldwater, and Hillary Clinton. To consider which historical figures ought to be retained or eliminated, work groups drew up a rubric, awarding points based on an individual's impact and sphere of influence, and whether the figure represented a diverse perspective or culture. Helen Keller, who scored 7 out of 20, was eliminated to save 40 minutes of instructional time. Misty Matthews, a teacher from Round Rock, Texas, who served on one of the work groups, told the Dallas Morning News that "there were hundreds of people" students had to learn about. "Our task was to simplify. . . . We tried to make it as objective as possible."

While state curriculum teams have attracted criticism in the past, experts believe that the 2018 work groups operated in good faith.

While TEA curriculum teams have attracted criticism in the past for having an ideological bent or for lacking expertise in curriculum development, both Quinn and Gonzales believe that the 2018 work groups operated in good faith. "In the streamlining process," says Quinn, "we think the TEA did a really good job of making sure that these folks were actual educators-curriculum specialists who knew the field and how to teach. And frankly, . . . we saw really no problem with an effort to politicize the curriculum teams this time."

But given the flaws of the 2010 standards, as well as some of the recommendations made by the work groups themselves, it was impossible for the 2018 streamlining process not to be interpreted politically. Many outside groups saw it as an opportunity to raise existing concerns about historical inaccuracies in the standards. Nearly 200 scholars, for example, signed a letter asking the SBOE to change standards that pertained to "issues of slavery, the Civil War, and the Civil Rights era." Disability rights activists advocated that Hellen Keller be kept, and several local and national organizations protested what they perceived as a pro-Israel bias in the standards.

These types of recurring public controversies, write Lendol Calder and Tracy Steffes in "Measuring College Learning in History," a 2016 white paper issued by the Social Science Research Council, "show that Americans continue to disagree" over the aims of history instruction, "especially the key goals, content, and narratives to teach in K-12 schools." Increasingly, Calder and Steffes write, college-level instruction has shifted to emphasize "habits of mind of historical thinking." But K-12 education measures learning as "students' ability to remember and reproduce an authorized, unchanging canon of important facts and stories." (The AHA's History Discipline Core, meant to guide college curriculum, steers clear of outlining specific content that history students should know.)

What's happening in Texas, says Gonzales, is a "classic content-versus-skills debate"-teachers would like more class time focusing on teaching such skills as historical thinking, but there is little consensus on how to assess them. Content knowledge, conversely, is easily measured and therefore remains in place, despite its many flaws. Most teachers inevitably find themselves teaching to the test. But as Calder and Steffes write, "The problem with including content knowledge as a goal for assessment is the question of which knowledge to test." This is one reason why it has become impossible in Texas to separate politics from history education.

In November, after multiple public hearings and several amendments, the SBOE voted to streamline the standards. The revisions keep Keller, Clinton, and Moses, but continue to list sectionalism and states' rights as contributing causes of the Civil War. Those seeking better accuracy or a trimmer set of standards will have to wait until the next round of revisions, which are still five years down the road. If things are to change, both Quinn and Gonzales say, more historians should get involved in the process of setting standards at the state level. Academics, says Gonzales, aren't as involved in the process because often there's nothing in it for them to gain professionally.

For now, instead of seeking a greater shift to skills from content in the Texas curriculum, activists, academics, and teachers in the state continue to focus on making the standards more accurate. "I think streamlining is a good idea," says Francis, adding that "we need a better integration of content and process." Yet in a "post-truth" era where "facts are possibly matters of opinion," he says, the need for accuracy in content ought to take precedence.

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License. Attribution must provide author name, article title, Perspectives on History, date of publication, and a link to this page. This license applies only to the article, not to text or images used here by permission.

The American Historical Association welcomes comments in the discussion area below, at AHA Communities, and in letters to the editor. Please read our commenting and letters policy before submitting.

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The Texas State Board of Education (SBOE) is no stranger to controversy. In 2016, Perspectives reported on the dispute over a Mexican American studies textbook submitted to the board for approval. And in September 2018, the SBOE once again made national headlines for its proposals to "streamline," or to revise and review, the state's social studies standards.

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#6, Padlet Slide Original Source of Law: Administrative Law: Texas Administrative Code

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#6, Padlet Slide Original Source of Law: Administrative Law: Texas Administrative Code

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This explains the requirements for graduation and the required courses and curriculum.
* Lists the require courses and the credits earned
* Dual credit and requirements
* Endorsement and requirements associated
* Opt-out provisions, requirements and instructions
* Transfer instructions
* Elective courses offered, requirements

Graduation Requirements, 19. Tex. Admin. Code § 74.11
Chapter 74. Curriculum Requirements Subchapter B ... (n.d.). Retrieved March 3, 2022, from https://tea.texas.gov/sites/default/files/ch074b.pdf

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#7 Original Source of Law: Statutory Law

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#7 Original Source of Law: Statutory Law

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•(20 U.S.C. § 1701 et seq.) (Source of law, Statutory)‘   «"prohibits discrimination against faculty, staff, and students, including racial segregation of students, and requires school districts to take action to overcome barriers to students' equal participation”
*This is important, especially within social study curriculum studies, as it pertains to each individual student.
* Promotes school districts to overcome any barrier in student education pertaining to race/equality.
* Provides each student the right and freedom of attending any school admired.

•H.R.40 - 93rd Congress (1973-1974): Equal Educational Opportunities Act. (1973, January 3). https://www.congress.gov/bill/93rd-congress/house-bill/40

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H.R.40 - 93rd Congress (1973-1974): Equal Educational Opportunities Act

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Equal Educational Opportunities Act - Declares it to be the policy of the United States that all children enrolled in public schools are entitled to equal educational opportunity without regard to race, color, sex, or national origin; and that the neighborhood is the appropriate basis for determining public school assignments.

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#8 Original Source of Law: Statutory Law

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#8 Original Source of Law: Statutory Law

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* Replaces the "No Child Left Behind" law signed in by President George W. Bush.
* Signed into law by President Obama in December 2015.
* Highlights the laws excessive growth in high school graduation and college attendance since signed into law.
* Positive Accountability from schools and students
* Provides equality among curriculum, schools and students

Every Student Succeeds Act, 20 U.S.C. § 6301 (2015).
Every student succeeds act (ESSA). Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA) | U.S. Department of Education. (n.d.). Retrieved March 3, 2022, from https://www.ed.gov/essa?src%3Drn

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The Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA) was signed by President Obama on December 10, 2015, and represents good news for our nation's schools. This bipartisan measure reauthorizes the 50-year-old Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA), the nation's national education law and longstanding commitment to equal opportunity for all students.

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Sec. 4.001. PUBLIC EDUCATION MISSION AND OBJECTIVES

*Missions and objectives for its students
* Public educations goals
*Drop-out prevention efforts
" Sec. 4.002. PUBLIC EDUCATION ACADEMIC GOALS. To serve as a foundation for a well-balanced and appropriate education: GOAL 1: The students in the public education system will demonstrate exemplary performance in the reading and writing of the English language. GOAL 2: The students in the public education system will demonstrate exemplary performance in the understanding of mathematics. GOAL 3: The students in the public education system will demonstrate exemplary performance in the understanding of science. GOAL 4: The students in the public education system will demonstrate exemplary performance in the understanding of social studies."

Texas Education Code - EDUC § 4.001

Education code title 1. general provisions chapter ... - Texas. (n.d.). Retrieved March 3, 2022, from https://statutes.capitol.texas.gov/Docs/SDocs/EDUCATIONCODE.pdf

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#10 Local Administrative Law/Policy/Rule: 

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#10 Local Administrative Law/Policy/Rule: 

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"Policy and Practice

The Leander ISD works frequently to create unity and understanding throughout its schools and curriculum taught. Listed are the ways LISD make sure to be openminded and helpful in creating unity within its district which will benefit students and curriculum taught.

Equity, Diversity & Inclusion. Leander ISD. (n.d.). Retrieved March 3, 2022, from https://www.leanderisd.org/equitydiversityinclusion/

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The purpose of the Leander ISD Equity and Diversity Advisory Committee is to provide guidance to ensure equity and diversity within Leander ISD. We will work to affect change and support Leander ISD as we take action to eradicate racism, intolerance, and other inequities to promote a more diverse and inclusive culture for all. We will do this through three focus areas:

Policy and Practice

Develop framework that could be presented to our Board of Trustees for consideration and approval of a district equity policy.

Promote practices that create inclusive and equitable systems for our community with an emphasis on those who are most impacted by structural inequality and inequity.

Create a job description for a lead equity position in Leander ISD.

Professional Learning

Offer sessions at CIC conference that provide participants with the opportunity to begin engaging in discussions surrounding equity and diversity.

Continue to seek out additional learning opportunities for our committee to participate in and then bring this learning back to the committee.

Provide ongoing professional opportunities for faculty/staff within LISD; Create a series of foundational learning experiences for all staff.

Partner with surrounding districts who are also doing this work and consider hosting a conference focused specifically on issues surrounding Equity and Diversity provide ongoing professional opportunities for faculty/staff within LISD; Create a series of foundational learning experiences for all staff.

Community Collaboration

Continuation of community events to include listening sessions, shared learning, and collaboration on district equity plan.

Expand transparency to the community by creating a webpage for Equity and Diversity on the LISD website.

Collaborate with district and campus-based equity and diversity committees, including student groups, PTAs, etc.

Create a section in the LISD newsletter to highlight the work of the equity and diversity advisory committee.

Create equity advocates at each campus and district department who have a direct line to the district office of equity.

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The purpose of the Leander ISD Equity and Diversity Advisory Committee is to provide guidance to ensure equity and diversity within Leander ISD. We will work to affect change and support Leander ISD as we take action to eradicate racism, intolerance, and other inequities to promote a more diverse and inclusive culture for all.

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The Texas Administrative Code states its "Professional Ethical Conduct, Practices and Performance." Which pertain to its teachers and administrators, and they interact with students. This code of ethics would strongly affect how students are treated and taught the Texas Education Agency's curriculum.

Texas administrative code. (n.d.). Retrieved March 3, 2022, from https://texreg.sos.state.tx.us/public/readtac$ext.TacPage?sl=R&app=9&p_dir=&p_rloc=&p_tloc=&p_ploc=&pg=1&p_tac=&ti=19&pt=7&ch=247&rl=2

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Enforceable Standards.
(1) Professional Ethical Conduct, Practices and Performance. (A) Standard 1.1. The educator shall not intentionally, knowingly, or recklessly engage in deceptive practices regarding official policies of the school district, educational institution, educator preparation program, the Texas Education Agency, or the State Board for Educator Certification (SBEC) and its certification process. (B) Standard 1.2. The educator shall not intentionally, knowingly, or recklessly misappropriate, divert, or use monies, personnel, property, or equipment committed to his or her charge for personal gain or advantage. (C) Standard 1.3. The educator shall not submit fraudulent requests for reimbursement, expenses, or pay. (D) Standard 1.4. The educator shall not use institutional or professional privileges for personal or partisan advantage. (E) Standard 1.5. The educator shall neither accept nor offer gratuities, gifts, or favors that impair professional judgment or that are used to obtain special advantage. This standard shall not restrict the acceptance of gifts or tokens offered and accepted openly from students, parents of students, or other persons or organizations in recognition or appreciation of service. (F) Standard 1.6. The educator shall not falsify records, or direct or coerce others to do so. (G) Standard 1.7. The educator shall comply with state regulations, written local school board policies, and other state and federal laws. (H) Standard 1.8. The educator shall apply for, accept, offer, or assign a position or a responsibility on the basis of professional qualifications. (I) Standard 1.9. The educator shall not make threats of violence against school district employees, school board members, students, or parents of students. (J) Standard 1.10. The educator shall be of good moral character and be worthy to instruct or supervise the youth of this state. (K) Standard 1.11. The educator shall not intentionally, knowingly, or recklessly misrepresent his or her employment history, criminal history, and/or disciplinary record when applying for subsequent employment. (L) Standard 1.12. The educator shall refrain from the illegal use, abuse, or distribution of controlled substances, prescription drugs, and toxic inhalants. (M) Standard 1.13. The educator shall not be under the influence of alcohol or consume alcoholic beverages on school property or during school activities when students are present. (2) Ethical Conduct Toward Professional Colleagues. (A) Standard 2.1. The educator shall not reveal confidential health or personnel information concerning colleagues unless disclosure serves lawful professional purposes or is required by law. (B) Standard 2.2. The educator shall not harm others by knowingly making false statements about a colleague or the school system. (C) Standard 2.3. The educator shall adhere to written local school board policies and state and federal laws regarding the hiring, evaluation, and dismissal of personnel. (D) Standard 2.4. The educator shall not interfere with a colleague's exercise of political, professional, or citizenship rights and responsibilities. (E) Standard 2.5. The educator shall not discriminate against or coerce a colleague on the basis of race, color, religion, national origin, age, gender, disability, family status, or sexual orientation. (F) Standard 2.6. The educator shall not use coercive means or promise of special treatment in order to influence professional decisions or colleagues. (G) Standard 2.7. The educator shall not retaliate against any individual who has filed a complaint with the SBEC or who provides information for a disciplinary investigation or proceeding under this chapter. (H) Standard 2.8. The educator shall not intentionally or knowingly subject a colleague to sexual harassment. (3) Ethical Conduct Toward Students. (A) Standard 3.1. The educator shall not reveal confidential information concerning students unless disclosure serves lawful professional purposes or is required by law. (B) Standard 3.2. The educator shall not intentionally, knowingly, or recklessly treat a student or minor in a manner that adversely affects or endangers the learning, physical health, mental health, or safety of the student or minor. (C) Standard 3.3. The educator shall not intentionally, knowingly, or recklessly misrepresent facts regarding a student. (D) Standard 3.4. The educator shall not exclude a student from participation in a program, deny benefits to a student, or grant an advantage to a student on the basis of race, color, gender, disability, national origin, religion, family status, or sexual orientation. (E) Standard 3.5. The educator shall not intentionally, knowingly, or recklessly engage in physical mistreatment, neglect, or abuse of a student or minor. (F) Standard 3.6. The educator shall not solicit or engage in sexual conduct or a romantic relationship with a student or minor. (G) Standard 3.7. The educator shall not furnish alcohol or illegal/unauthorized drugs to any person under 21 years of age unless the educator is a parent or guardian of that child or knowingly allow any person under 21 years of age unless the educator is a parent or guardian of that child to consume alcohol or illegal/unauthorized drugs in the presence of the educator. (H) Standard 3.8. The educator shall maintain appropriate professional educator-student relationships and boundaries based on a reasonably prudent educator standard. (I) Standard 3.9. The educator shall refrain from inappropriate communication with a student or minor, including, but not limited to, electronic communication such as cell phone, text messaging, email, instant messaging, blogging, or other social network communication. Factors that may be considered in assessing whether the communication is inappropriate include, but are not limited to: (i) the nature, purpose, timing, and amount of the communication; (ii) the subject matter of the communication; (iii) whether the communication was made openly, or the educator attempted to conceal the communication; (iv) whether the communication could be reasonably interpreted as soliciting sexual contact or a romantic relationship; (v) whether the communication was sexually explicit; and (vi) whether the communication involved discussion(s) of the physical or sexual attractiveness or the sexual history, activities, preferences, or fantasies of either the educator or the student.

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#12 Personal Connection to the Legal and Ethical Standards:

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#12 Personal Connection to the Legal and Ethical Standards:

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While I attended Lake View High School from 2003-2007, I was provided some of the best teachers. I learned so much from my educators, curriculum was not an issue for me until I began my college education. With a major in history, it wasn't until I began my history courses that I began to understand my real lack of "the whole story" when it came to United States and World history taught to me while in high school. This was at no fault of my teachers, but the curriculum set during that time. While I greatly enjoyed my history courses at Angelo State, it made me very aware of what was not being taught in high school. Curriculum is always a hot topic, especially when it comes to history in general, this is why it is even more important today that we as educators and parents come to agreement on what should be taught in our schools. This issue along with Texas' standardized testing have always been important to me, enough to influence my future in teaching and eventual administration in curriculum design.

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#13 Bulleted list of Recommendations / Best Practices for Compliance: Curriculum 

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#13 Bulleted list of Recommendations / Best Practices for Compliance: Curriculum 

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Though there are a various number of viewpoints when it comes to curriculum taught within Texas schools, there are also vast ways Texas educators are looking at modifying curriculum in order to provide students with the best education possible. Some of the best practices for curriculum within laws and ethical standards that pertain to Texas Curriculum:

* Review and keep up to date with current TEA curriculum standards for all students and subjects.
* Know and understand required, foundation and enrichment curriculums offered.
* Attend any professional developments in Curriculum changes.
* Provide education in the current curriculum provided in TEA.
* Research all issues pertaining to student diversity and curriculum that arise to gain understanding and open-mindedness.
* Understand your professional code of ethics and how it pertains to curriculum and especially when in the classroom.