International Baccalaureate alert
Issues and Action in EducationAn e-letter produced
by
EdWatch, a nonprofit organization.
November 10, 2005
EdWatch is forwarding this press release from
PABBIS with the note that many school districts are now quietly adopting
IB because federal grant money is available to offset some of the costs.
State legislatures are also passing funding measures to offset the
additional IB costs. Taxpayers always pay the extra cost, however,
regardless of which pot it is taken from. Please discuss these issues with
other parents, your local school boards, and legislators.Talking points include the fact that IB curriculum is set by an
international body. Student tests are forwarded to Geneva, Switzerland for
scoring, and a foreign data base collects and stores the personal,
values-laden data on individual American students. IB is an outrageous
violation of local control. It also teaches the value of global
citizenship. — EdWatch
PABBIS –
Parents
Against
Bad
Books
In
Schools
9 November 2005 News
Release www.pabbis.com
Cracking India – A Typical International
Baccalaureate Program Book, A Typical Curriculum Book Challenge
The International Baccalaureate (IB) Program is now in
over 500 schools in the United States. On average it costs taxpayers about
$200,000 per year over regular school expenses to have the IB program in a
school. This is more than twice the cost of having an Advanced Placement
(AP) program. The IB program is run by the International Baccalaureate
Organization (IBO) in Geneva.The IB program was started in the 1960’s and in the 1990’s UNESCO got
involved with the “aim of testing the feasibility of creating an
international education system” according to the September 1999 issue of its
Educational Innovation and Information newsletter titled “A Culture of
Peace.” In a statement called “The Road to Peace,” UNESCO said: “Let it be a
school of values, of attitudes, above all of practical action…”
[Information from The Washington Times, January 18, 2004 article by
George Archibald]Thomas Sowell discussed the IB program in a February 26, 2004 column in
The Washington Times and said the IB program was “one of the endless
series of fad programs that distract American public schools from real
education in real subjects” and it had “a left-wing hidden agenda.” He
quoted a parent critical of the program as saying it, “promotes socialism,
disarmament, radical environmentalism and moral relativism, while attempting
to undermine Christian religious values and national sovereignty.”A June 30, 2004 article in EdWatch (www.edwatch.org),
by Allen Quist said “IB themes taken together constitute a worldview–an
overall philosophy of life. According to UNESCO, the worldview taught by IB
includes the promotion of the Earth Charter (a religious/pantheistic
document), the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (which views human
rights the same way Communist countries view human rights) and
multiculturalism (which is based on the ideology of Italian Marxist, Antonio
Gramsci).” Quist also says that, “America’s foundational principles of
national sovereignty, natural law and inalienable rights are at odds with
the IB curriculum and are not taught.” and that “IB is a transformational
system of education which exists to promote internationalism. It is
structured to change the attitudes, values, beliefs and behavior of
its students to conform to the world government system.” [Bold emphasis –
PABBIS]The IB program is nearly always introduced into schools at the initiative of
the school system, rather than at the request of parents. The IB program
almost always pushes out the AP classes and the IB program has much less
focus on advanced science and math classes. IB classes and tests result in
students receiving little or no college course credit compared to what they
would obtain for AP classes and tests.In addition to all the above concerns, PABBIS receives a greatly
disproportionate number of complaints about books from parents of children
in the IB program. Some parents have not entered or have withdrawn from the
IB program just to avoid running the gauntlet of controversial IB program
books. Some of the previous PABBIS News on books used in the Fairfax County,
VA IB program is at the end of this article.Shortly after school started this fall, the parent of an 11th grade IB
program student in Florida got upset about a book, Cracking India,
that her child was (supposedly) required to read. This book had explicit
language, a description of a 9-year old girl’s encounter with her teenage
cousin’s genitilia and being propositioned by him for oral sex, and the girl
later having sexual fantasies. The book was being used for the first time
this year. The parent started her interaction with the teacher and school
which went like this:1) The parent requested another book for her child. The teacher refused and
threatened the parent that her child would have to read the book or withdraw
from the class and IB program. This threat/lie is common in the IB program
when parents want an alternative book for their child.2) The Principal said the teacher used Cracking India since it was
recommended in the IB training the teacher had attended. This type of
“training” is one reason why IB is more expensive. PABBIS wonders where this
training was conducted. In Fairfax County training for AP teachers occurs
locally. IB teacher training occurs all around the country and world. In
2002 a Fairfax County IB coordinator traveled to Bangkok to deliver a speech
entitled “The Community of Caring.”3) The Principal said the student had to read specific books in IB and not
doing so could cause the student to have “problems in the future.” Quote
from September 13, 2005 article by Linda Trimble [
http://www.news-journalonline.com/NewsJournalOnline/News/WestVolusia/03WVolWEST01091305.htm
]3) The Principal eventually offered the parent an alternative book. The IB
program allows other books to be used and the parent should have been told
this in the first place instead of being lied to and threatened. Note that
even with the alternative book the parent and student are still under the
vague threat of “problems in the future.”4) The parent challenged the book. The parent expressed concern that the
parents of the other children in the class didn’t know what was in the book.5) The Principal made statements about everything being in the open and how
parents knew what was coming, how nothing is hidden, how parents were warned
and signed and returned a letter saying they agreed. Statements like these
are often made but the truth is different. The parents simply received a
list of books that said there was college level material in the class. This
is very typical – the school does not inform parents about specifics of
controversial content in the books. When parents find out they get upset.
The parents begin to not trust the school because they are surprised by the
graphic nature of the material. The schools distort the truth saying things
like the principal did in this case and that makes parents distrust the
schools even more. It is ironic that in the IB program, which is very big on
multi-culturalism and values, that there is no respect for parents and
students whose culture and values don’t include graphic and explicit
material.6) Various people from inside and outside the school system say things like
the parent shouldn’t be able to challenge the book because an alternative is
allowed.7) The school system and/or media get some outside expert (normally ALA,
ACLU, NCTE and their affiliates) to make a statement on why the challenge is
flawed. One of the statements that showed up in this case was by Pat Scales,
who is the author of (surprise!) Teaching Banned Books. She often
shows up in the press on book challenges making statements about how no
parent has the right pick books for a child other than their child. She
never says how this really means challenges to books should not even be
allowed. She never says how the school is picking books for children
other than theirs.8) The school system and/or media get the author of the book to make a
comment on the challenge. The author nearly always makes a statement
(surprise!) against the challenge. In this case the author said the
controversial material was “just high jinks” and implied somehow it was
different because the 9-year old didn’t provide the oral sex. The author
said the oral sex encounter was “very innocent.” [Author quotes from
September 13, 2005 Orlando Sentinel article by Erika Hobbs.]9) The school system forms a book challenge committee with membership
designed, as usual, to achieve the desired pre-determined outcome: School
right, parent wrong.10 The committee decided the book was fine and recommended the challenge not
be approved. During deliberations and in discussions after, constant note
was made of the fact that the parent had the “option” of an alternative
book. The committee’s recommendation was sent to the Superintendent. Hmmm,
wonder what the Superintendent will decide? Parent right, school wrong,
committee wrong? – NOT!11) The district’s reading and language-arts specialist (Sue Schilsky) said,
“They [students] have to be exposed to things that are not
necessarily comfortable” and “The decision we make today is far-reaching.”
[District specialist quotes from November, 2005 Orlando Sentinel article by
Ken Ma. Bold emphasis – PABBIS]. Schilsky sounds a little confused –
according to everything decided the parent and student can select an
alternative book and not “be exposed.” However, Schilsky’s comment is very
revealing in that it shows she (and many others) really want to MAKE your
child read the book.And so it goes, and without respect for parental rights and Upfront Informed
Parental Consent it will continue to go like this. Why won’t schools provide
parents the specifics of controversial material in books BEFORE students
read them? Are they embarrassed of the content? Do they have some hidden
agenda? Do they really want to MAKE your child read the book?A September 13, 2005 article on WESH.com about Cracking India quoted
the Principal as saying, “International Baccalaureate not only featured it,
they had their top person for IB North America leading this week-long
in-depth study.”More and more parents are becoming aware what the IB program is about and
what is in IB program books.
Previous PABBIS News on books used in the Fairfax
County, VA IB program
One Hundred Years of Solitude – required
reading for rising IB 11th graders (17 July 2003 and 29 June 2004 PABBIS
News). The author of this book, Gabriel Garcia Marquez, an aging socialist,
is an ardent supporter of the Cuban Government. The two main themes of this
dreamlike book, from the so-called “magical realism” genre, are solitude and
incest. One review said this book “has a lot of violence, much incestuous
sex, and plenty of anti-capitalism and anti-clericism.” Another said there
is “enough incest to keep those with even the shortest attention spans
turning pages.” Raping your sister, sex with another sister, sex with your
aunt, a “zoological brothel” where dog gives stud services to be fed, a
child with a “raw back” whose grandmother makes her service 70 men a night
for 20 cents each, a male prostitute with a huge sexual organ, balancing
beer on his “inconceivable maleness,” are some of the controversial
material. See PABBIS Excerpts for more controversial material.
Bless Me Ultima – required reading for rising
IB 9th graders (17 July 2003 PABBIS News). See PABBIS Excerpts for
controversial material.
The House of
Spirits – required reading for IB 11th graders (8 March 2001 PABBIS
News). Contains graphic details of sexual acts, rape, physical abuse,
torture and killing of animals and people, bestiality, child molestation,
drug use, prostitution, and necrophilia. Vulgar and perverted content is
pervasive throughout the book. Among the numerous sexual and violent
passages in this book is a detailed description of a man in a
sexual/strangulation scene with a 6-year-old girl. Elsewhere in this book, a
child watches a man kiss her sister’s naked corpse (intestines already
removed) on the lips, the neck, the breasts and between the legs. See PABBIS
Excerpts for more controversial material.
The Sailor Who Fell From Grace With the Sea – required reading for IB
11th graders (8 March 2001 PABBIS News). This book is about a 12-year old
Japanese boy who is able to spy into his widowed mother’s bedroom through a
hole in the wall. He is able to see her having sex with her sailor
boyfriend. The mother makes plans to marry the sailor. The boy and his
friends discuss how much they hate “fathers” and they plot to kill the
sailor. They experiment on a kitten, torturing and mutilating it. By the end
of the book, they have drugged the sailor, brandished a knife and are
donning rubber gloves to kill him. The book is full of graphic and vulgar
descriptions of sexual acts and violence. See PABBIS Excerpts for more
controversial material.
Chronicle of a
Death Foretold – required reading for IB 11th graders (8 March 2001
PABBIS News). See PABBIS Excerpts for controversial material.Town Hall on Book Selection (16 May 2002 PABBIS News) – A speaker said, “My
children sought alternate books. This was a very emotionally painful
experience for my children. Often friendly teachers would turn cold towards
them, and some were openly hostile. We were very grateful to those few
teachers who were tolerant of a differing opinion of a book. Both of my
daughters had to pull out of IB English courses and switch to regular level
courses to facilitate these changes in reading material.”
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