Reply to DCPS Social Studies Curriculum Concerns

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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous] I'm as progressive as they come politically, but I do feel like schools basically steer clear if a lot of history and civics these days because it's "too complex" to communicate to young kids.

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I just do not understand what "progressive" has to do with a bunch of 12 year olds not having a grasp of what the Renaissance was or why the explorers went out sailing in the first place. Implying that progressivism means that we have to skip over the most basic, major events of human history is not exactly making me want to be a progressive anymore. [/quote]

I am the PP and I'm on your side. But next PP also make a good point (about "bible thumpers"). The criticisms come from both angles and the result is that educators get caught in the crosshairs and don't want to deal with it. For instance, if you go to teach the Renaissance, you will be accuse of Eurocentrism and too much focus on white men and European culture. You will be asked to spend as much or more time on the same period in Africa or Asia or the Americas. The attitude is that if you cannot teach all of history from all perspectives than whatever you pick and choose to teach should not be overly focused on white Europeans. This puts people in a bind because while there is some truth to this criticism, it's also a fact that our current culture, language, and political structures are directly derived from European political and cultural movements.

But likewise if you want to teach, say, the Spanish Inquisition or the Protestant Revolution, you risk pissing off religious groups who will argue that any criticism of the Catholics or the Protestants is prejudicial and ostracizing for kids. If you try to teach history of non-European peoples which includes discussion of non-Christian belief systems, you will be accused of indoctrination and violating religious freedom, which of course some extremists view as the freedom to never have to think or consider a religious history different from their own.

And on and on. No matter what you teach, people get mad at you for not having taught something else, or for exposing kids to ideas they find scary. It sucks.[/quote]

This is all very true, sadly.  If you really care about educating your kids on the historical front, you really are on your home. The good news: you’ll do a much better job anyway.[/quote]

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