EL PASO, Texas – (KFOX14\/CBS4) \u2014 A state-approved curriculum created by the Texas Education Agency two years ago is facing thousands of corrections, prompting questions about what went wrong and what it means for schools already using the materials.<\/p>\n
The Texas State Board of Education said the Bluebonnet curriculum needs more than 4,200 corrections.<\/p>\n
The TEA said the figure reflects how changes are counted across multiple materials, not necessarily 4,200 separate mistakes.<\/p>\n
\u201cI think it’s helpful to know that when we report to the board any changes that we’re making to the materials. Anytime it changes made it that’s done across multiple components like a teacher guide and a student book and a workbook that has to be reported multiple times. So the first thing to know is the actual number of unique changes is about half of that number that’s out there,\u201d said Nicholas Keith, the TEA\u2019s associate commissioner of curriculum and instruction.<\/p>\n
RELATED: El Paso ISD clarifies stance on Bible teachings in schools, residents debate curriculum<\/a><\/p>\n During the State Board of Education\u2019s last board meeting, it was revealed the curriculum\u2019s issues ranged from spelling and grammar errors to wrong answers in teachers\u2019 answer keys.<\/p>\n Districts using the curriculum receive $60 per student, along with funds to hire a specialist to help implement the lessons.<\/p>\n Tornillo ISD is among the districts using Bluebonnet, and its Bluebonnet specialist, Karina Schulte, said the district has not seen issues since implementing the curriculum last September.<\/p>\n \u201cIt comes out as, oh my God, it’s, it’s 4200 errors. But it’s, it really wasn’t like I read in the Tribune, it was not a waste of time for educators that did the curriculum that spent unending hours working on it. It’s a very high quality curriculum. That’s why it’s, approved by the state as a high quality instructional material,\u201d Schulte said.<\/p>\n Schulte said the community will play a role in what comes next as corrections move forward.<\/p>\n \u201cThey gave us a chance to to really, dig deep into this isn’t a curriculum about religion. It’s working with a curriculum that has to that has, you know, expectations and, and takes to cover so that students are ready for the next grade level,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n The State Board of Education voted to delay approving the corrections until its next official meeting, set for April.<\/p>\n Until the board approves the changes, the current material will continue to be used.<\/p>\n RELATED: Texas school district adopts Bluebonnet curriculum amid mixed reactions<\/a><\/p>\n