Last fall, the College Board released its revised 2014 AP US History framework — and faced major political backlash. AEI’s Rick Hess opined, “I can’t help but feel like the framework portrays a one-sided and negative view of American history.” Conservatives were particularly incensed by the dismissive treatment of President Ronald Reagan and this quotation characterizing his conduct during the Cold War:
President Ronald Reagan, who initially rejected détente with increased defense spending, military action, and bellicose rhetoric, later developed a friendly relationship with Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev, leading to significant arms reductions by both countries.
Former U.S. President Ronald Reagan (R) stands with former Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev (L) during Gorbachev’s arrival ceremony at the White House in Washington in this December 8, 1987 file photo. Reuters.
There were two distinct problems with this phrasing. First, Reagan was the only individual (of the 8 named in the framework) who was negatively labeled in any way. He was described as bellicose not only in the framework, but also, as Lynne Cheney pointed out in the Wall Street Journal, on the sample exam. On the offhand chance that “bellicose” had some historical basis, last fall I analyzed LexisNexis data. It turned out that Reagan was described as bellicose in only 49 out of 600,000 mentions between 1981 and 1989, and even less often after his presidency.
The second problem with the College Board’s phrasing was that, lacking any clear cause and effect, the framework left teachers and students to infer that the Cold War ended because Reagan relaxed his bellicose rhetoric and played nice with Gorbachev. That is simply inaccurate.
To its credit, in the new framework released this morning, the College Board has dramatically improved its treatment of Reagan and of conservatism more broadly. The section I quoted above in the 2014 framework is replaced in the 2015 edition with the following:
Reagan asserted U.S. opposition to communism through speeches, diplomatic efforts, limited military interventions, and a buildup of nuclear and conventional weapons. Increased US military spending, Reagan’s diplomatic initiatives, and political changes and economic problems in Eastern Europe and the Soviet Union were all important in ending the Cold War.
By portraying Reagan as bellicose, the old framework implied that he sought conflict for conflict’s sake. The new framework makes clear that Reagan’s speeches served a distinct purpose and that they (along with other factors) contributed to ending the Cold War. This change in phrasing turns Reagan from a warmonger into a president who pursued clear foreign policy goals — a much more nuanced and historically accurate depiction.
These changes regarding Reagan’s presidency are noteworthy by themselves. If that was all the College Board had changed, it would still be a positive outcome. But the College Board’s changes were far more extensive. One of the more notable is the manner in which the revised framework characterizes the rise of conservatism in the late 20th century. The 2014 framework suggested that liberalism was setting the course of history and that conservatism was an irritating afterthought. It read:
A new conservatism grew to prominence in US culture and politics, defending traditional social values and rejecting liberal views about the role of government… Public confidence and trust in government declined in the 1970s… The rapid and substantial growth of evangelical and fundamentalist Christian churches and organizations, as well as increased political participation by some of those groups, encouraged significant opposition to liberal social and political trends. … Conservatives achieved some of their political and policy goals, but their success was limited by the enduring popularity and institutional strength of some government programs and public support for cultural trends of recent decades.
Compare that to the new framework’s description:
A newly ascendant conservative movement achieved several political and policy goals during the 1980s and continued to strongly influence public discourse in the following decades… Ronald Reagan’s victory in the presidential election of 1980 represented an important milestone, allowing conservatives to enact significant tax cuts and continue the deregulation of many industries… Conservatives argued that liberal programs were counterproductive in fighting poverty and stimulating economic growth. Some of their efforts to reduce the size and scope of government met with inertia and liberal opposition, as many programs remained popular with voters.
The 2015 framework again portrays a more balanced view. Conservative resistance to liberal policies is no longer grounded in mere “opposition,” but in a belief that those policies are counterproductive and that conservative solutions would be more effective at alleviating poverty and boosting the economy. Conservatism is not “new” but rather “newly ascendant.” The revised framework is both more concrete and more factually accurate than the 2014 version.
The upshot of these revisions to Reagan’s domestic and foreign affairs is that conservatism is given a seat at the AP US History table. It’s not that conservatism has a leg up on liberalism; it’s that the College Board is now telling a more complete, less biased story. Obviously, teachers can teach from this framework however they like, but it’s noteworthy that the gold standard of American history no longer paints President Reagan as a bumbling, bellicose villain in a liberal story.
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