I Spoke Before The Oklahoma State Textbook Committee. Here’s Why and What I Said.

Author: Janice Danforth, Chapter Chair, Moms For Liberty, Tulsa County

On Friday, October 6, 2023, I spoke before the Oklahoma State Textbook Committee. Back in September, the Tulsa County Chapter of Moms for Liberty spent time reviewing textbooks that were up for approval and discovered that McGraw Hill has embedded Social Emotional Learning (SEL) into its elementary-level math books. We do not support SEL and it most definitely does not belong in Mathematics.

Social Emotional Learning was coined in 1994 at the Fetzer Institute and came about in the face of school violence. In 2002 ESSA (Every Student Succeeds Act) either encouraged or required the inclusion of SEL in schools. By 2022 SEL instructional materials cost $1.725B up 25.9% from the previous year. Does anyone believe that school violence has declined since 1994? No, the opposite is true. In fact, a headline from an article in 2021 states, “Violence in schools seems to be increasing, why?” We are being sold an ideology that not only isn’t working but is costing taxpayers a lot of money.

Oklahoma students are suffering with proficiency, not only in reading, but mathematics as well. In 2022 The proficiency rate in MATH for OK 4 th graders was at 27%. We are ranked 49 th in education and I’m certain all can agree that it is time to move the needle in the other direction. Oklahoma students deserve to learn the core subjects and 100% of the material should be focused on academics. SEL takes time away from academics and also undermines parental rights which clearly state that we are the authority of our child and are the ones to direct their moral upbringing. SEL interferes with that. We along with many other parents see the failings of this ideology and by no means desire for the government to mold the character of our children.

As the chapter chair, I had three minutes to state my reasons for why we were requesting the committee to reject this contract with McGraw Hill, and in turn, McGraw Hill had the same opportunity to share why they felt the committee should accept their contract. The State Textbook Committee has a month to make their decision.

While the committee may not reject the contract with McGraw Hill, I firmly believe we make changes one conversation at a time. Going up against a Goliath like McGraw Hill may seem daunting and even impossible, but change only happens when we fight, when we stand up, even if we lose this time. Because eventually, we get a win, and then another, and then another. But it takes all of us willing to stand up to the giant, to ignore the noise of the haters, and to go into the battle, win or lose because our children deserve for us to try. Our children deserve for us to fight for them, because if not us, who else will?

My Remarks

Good morning. My name is Janice Danforth and I am the chapter chair of the Tulsa County Moms for Liberty. I am here because our chapter spent time reviewing textbooks that were up for approval by the State Department of Education. We discovered that McGraw Hill has embedded Social Emotional Learning into its elementary level Math Books. We do not support SEL and it most definitely does not belong in Mathematics.

I want to give a quick background about SEL so you as a committee can understand why SEL is a concern. Social Emotional Learning was coined in 1994 at the Fetzer Institute and came about in the face of school violence. In 2002 ESSA (Every Student Succeeds Act) either encouraged or required the inclusion of SEL in schools. By 2017, K-12 was spending $21-47B annually on SEL. By 2022 SEL instructional materials cost $1.725B up 25.9% from the previous year. Does anyone believe that school violence has declined since 1994? No, the opposite is true. In fact, a headline from an article in 2021 states, “Violence in schools seems to be increasing, why?”

So, here are some concerns related to SEL:
SEL undermines parental rights
SEL is designed to become the “Parent Voice”
SEL is designed to be woven throughout all subjects
SEL impersonates mental health services
SEL allows teachers to psychologically evaluate students
SEL removes/doesn’t take into account beliefs existing at home
SEL coerces students to pick the “right” answer
SEL distracts and takes time away from actual education and gaining knowledge
SEL sets the focus on feelings rather than truth/facts. Why? Because emotions are easy to manipulate. You can’t manipulate the truth.

So, as a parent and as a taxpayer I have to ask the question, why are we spending so much money on a program that not only isn’t working but is undermining how a parent raises their child? And SEL has now become embedded into all subjects at school and this is a problem.

McGraw Hill creates textbooks and has been doing so since the late 18 hundreds, but that does not mean we blindly trust them and continue to allow their textbooks into our schools. In this particular instance, they have embedded an ideology into a core subject of Math, this is a red flag and should be for each of you. Oklahoma students are suffering with proficiency, not only in reading, but mathematics as well. In 2022 The proficiency rate in MATH for OK 4 th graders was at 27%. We are ranked 49 th in education and it is time to move the needle in the other direction. These students deserve to learn the core subjects and 100% of the material should be focused on academics.

As Moms for Liberty, Tulsa County I am asking you to reject the contract with McGraw Hill. The only way we change the trajectory of where we are headed is to say no to publishers like McGraw Hill who have embedded an ideology into a core subject. If enough states start standing up and saying no, these publishers will be forced to get back to academia and will be forced to remove programs like SEL because let’s be honest, for them, making money is the bottom line.

Set a precedent today for McGraw Hill and for other publishers that want to do business in Oklahoma that we will not tolerate nor invest in publishers that have embedded ideologies into their textbooks. Instead, let’s invest and partner with publishers that desire to increase proficiency and that is their only motivation. This is what Oklahoma students deserve!