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Shawn White

Mrs. Ault

RHE 306

3 November 2021

An opinion article addressing the controversy around the Critical Race Theory strictly affecting
the education system, to be published in Education Week (www.edweek.org ), a website to
inform people about the ongoings in the education system. They give updates on problems or
topics around education or specific schools. They also explain any confusing situations and
topics that are within the education system.

Critical Race Theory bills passed and how it affects future education

Everyone wants to know where they come from. Whether you get this information from

your families, or you get an ancestry kit to tell you who you are and where you are from. But is it

enough to just know where? We want to know our past and how we came to be. School gives

students the chance to learn about how America came to be the way it is. It helps us learn about

our race and culture. So why is teaching this in question if it benefits us? People have been

talking about a recent controversy over what is taught in schools regarding race and culture.

Many refer to this as the “Critical Race Theory”. Why is this topic taught to our students? Should

parents be worried that their children are learning this? What is the Critical Race Theory? Some

people believe in the theory about race, others do not fully understand the theory; some are

fighting to continue teaching how and what they are, while others are in fear of the future and

how teaching or not teaching kids about race and culture will affect them. Yet everyone is asking

the same questions, what is critical race exactly, and should it be taught in schools? Throughout

this article, I will answer and explain those big questions. Everyone in Texas is a stakeholder in
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this controversy. If you are a parent, part of the education system, politicians, and worried about

America’s future generations you have a stake at hand. Everyone has different stakes in regards

to the bills and curriculum that are being criticized. Like any other BIPOC (Black, Indigenous,

People of color) student, I am a stakeholder in the controversy. My main concern is that many do

not know what the Critical Race Theory controversy is, and why it is so important to fully

understand it before taking a side. To make a debate, you must understand the topic at hand.

You’d have to look at the root of the problem, and how/when it arose.

The protests that took place in the summer of 2020, led various groups of people to

question what is taught in our schools. Specifically, Texas legislators are scrambling to solve this

“problem” with what is taught. This is when the specific topic of the Critical Race Theory was

constantly brought up in recent conversations. The Critical Race Theory, or CRT, looks into

culture, laws, and social topics related to race within America. The theory itself is debating that

race is a social construct created and sets unnecessary borders among people, when everyone

should be equal. "Genuine human equality...woven into...the 14th Amendment and the Civil

Rights Act of 1964” (Hammer, par. 6). In simple terms, they both refer to BIPOC as equal in the

eyes of law and prohibit discrimination. Recent debates about the “Critical Race Theory'' have

been in more heat since Texas governor Gregory Wayne Abbot passed House Bill 3979 ( limiting

how Texas teachers can speak on current events and America's racial history ) and Senate Bill 3 (

cuts multiple class lessons related to race, culture, and mentions BIPOC) has passed. These two

bills will affect Texas’s educational infrastructure socially. For example, teachers will be told to

not teach specific information related to Native Americans/ colonization, as well as slavery.
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I believe that Texas legislators should not create bills to limit what teachers can teach

about race and culture in hopes of eliminating the teachings of the Critical Race Theory. They

are going to affect how students will comprehend and understand race, racism, and culture.

Students will not be fully informed of America's history and why it is the way it is. It will also

harm how teachers will teach students; having to follow strict guidelines.

The bills halting the topics of race will have negative effects. Not being able to learn

about certain topics relating to people's identities will affect our students. They will not be able

to fully understand race, racism, and culture. While students will know of each, they will not

know the history behind it all. As well as American history and how it plays a huge role in it all.

A student who does not know why there is a scarce amount of the Indigenous community, will

not be able to understand why it is important to respect their culture and respect their

reservations. People who do not know the history of African Americans will not understand why

they are protesting. Not allowing students to learn certain information, will cause them to come

to certain conclusions based on possibly false information. To allow students to come to their

own conclusions, we need to allow them to learn everything there's to know about our history.

The bills that Greg Abbot has passed are the start of their plan to abolish CRT. They think the

bills will just get rid of this theory but will have greater effects than they are turning a blind eye

to.

The bills will also change how teachers can and will teach history. Teachers spend years

building the best ways they know to get students to comprehend certain topics. The people who

have created and passed these bills are not teachers who are teaching these students those topics.

They do not have enough knowledge to know what they can limit, causing them to limit what
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they think will eliminate CRT. What they are actually eliminating is teachers' curriculum. A

teacher who has to scramble to rebuild lessons and find ways to get the points across will affect

the students. If they cannot teach the students the way they know they can understand, then this

will hurt students in the future. But this will not only affect students and teachers. This will hurt

the education system overall. As well as all the specific stakeholders mentioned at the beginning

of this paper. The future of education and America is our growing generations, and not being

able to teach them well is what will hurt us the most.

Many would argue that what is taught about history is biased and paints predominantly

White people in a bad light. Why do they think this? Specific events like colonization and

slavery are predominantly White causes. While I can see the concern with not wanting kids to

feel guilty for possible ancestors, the way teachers teach American history is specifically to not

guilt but to inform us of the past actions and how we come to our current America we know.

This controversy has many sides and arguments. Some agree that the recent bills passed

to cut out CRT is the right thing to do, while others disagree. Though these arguments are

different, they all ask the same question, what is critical race exactly, and should it be taught in

schools. Stay constantly updated with what is happening in our education system. Do not let

people who have no education authority make decisions that could stunt future generations and

stunt America's progress in the right direction.

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Works Cited

Carter, Daphane. “Opinion: Texas Teachers, Speak up for a Rigorous History

Curriculum.” Houston Chronicle, Houston Chronicle, 9 Sept. 2021,

www.houstonchronicle.com/opinion/outlook/article/Opinion-Texas-teachers-speak-up-for

-a-rigorous-16444394.php. Accessed 11 Sept. 2021.

Hammer, Josh. “Yes, We Should Ban Critical Race Theory from Our Schools:

Opinion.” Newsweek, Newsweek, 2 July 2021,

www.newsweek.com/yes-we-should-ban-critical-race-theory-our-schools-opinion-16062

16. Accessed 22 Sept. 2021.

“Two Minutes with T2: Daphane Carter, Chief Academic Officer, and State

Superintendent.” KIPP Texas Public Schools, 31 Aug. 2021,

https://kipptexas.org/two-minutes-with-t2-daphane-carter-chief-academic-officer-and-state-super

intendent/. Accessed 25 Oct. 2021

“K-12 Education News and Information.” Education Week, 9 Nov. 2021,

https://www.edweek.org/. Accessed 9 Nov. 2021