San Dieguito Union High School District is one of hundreds of high schools across California preparing to meet the Ethnic Studies graduation requirement for the Class of 2030.
This requirement, mandated under Assembly Bill 101, has been controversial since the beginning of the model curriculum, which included anti-Semitic and anti-Israel viewpoints.
Marcia Sutton
(File photo)
Due to strong opposition, a revised Ethnic Studies Model Curriculum (ESMC) was created, with the governor stating that ethnic studies courses “do not reflect prejudice, prejudice, or discrimination, directly or indirectly, against any individual or group.” or promote it.'' Man. “
A letter dated Aug. 23, 2023, written by Brooks Allen, education advisor to the governor and executive director of the State Board of Education, directs school districts to ensure course materials comply with established standards. He warned that it should be closely scrutinized.
Although these guardrails were praised by many who opposed the original version, there are no state-level mechanisms to ensure that school district ethnic studies lessons comply with the statute, nor are there any consequences for noncompliance. there is no.
The original model curriculum, now called the “Liberated” Ethnic Studies Model Curriculum, has been opposed and discredited by the state. However, the program is still promoted by a number of groups and is said to be full of controversial content presenting colonialism, political systems of oppression, anti-Semitism, and anti-Israel viewpoints.
The San Diego County Office of Education has advised the district to use the state-approved ESMC because of the resources available, and Brian Marcus of San Dieguito said the district intends to do so.
Marcus, SDUHSD's assistant superintendent of educational services, shared the district's timeline for ESMC development, noting that committee work and course model selection began last fall.
The district will begin professional development opportunities for teachers this spring and will begin developing a semester-long pilot course this fall to be offered during the 2025-2026 school year.
The City of San Dieguito plans to offer a final ethnic studies course in the fall of 2026 for high school graduation in 2030, as required by law. So far, no course models or teaching materials have been developed.
According to the district, California State University and the University of California do not yet require ethnic studies as an admissions requirement. However, if that happens, SDUHSD will submit that coursework to the university system to ensure it meets subject requirements for admission.
public review
However, school districts are not required to use state-approved ESMCs. Developing your own course is an option, but there are certain requirements and potential risks.
For locally developed ethnic studies courses, “the proposed course must first be presented at a public meeting of the school district's governing board…and until a subsequent public meeting of the governing board or governing body. SHALL NOT BE APPROVED.According to AB-101, there was an opportunity to express opinions on the proposed course.
In other words, the public must be given the opportunity to review the proposed course and provide comments to the Board. He will then have to hold a second board meeting to approve or reject the proposal.
If a state-approved ESMC is used, public review is not required, but public review must be allowed to ensure transparency.
Santa Ana Unified School District is an example of the risks involved when districts design their own courses.
Last September, the Santa Ana School District was sued by a coalition of groups citing strong evidence that the district failed to provide adequate public notice before approving several ethnic studies courses, and the groups accused of anti-Semitic They claim that it contains bias.
The lawsuit also accuses the school district of failing to protect the public, including members of the Jewish community, both adults and students, from intimidation and harassment on the board.
A press release issued by the Louis D. Brandeis Center for Human Rights Under Law, the Anti-Defamation League, and the American Jewish Committee said last spring that the Santa Ana Unified School District “willfully circumvented the law and was misleading in its efforts.” “He committed an act,” he claims. Passing, without community knowledge, a curriculum containing dangerous anti-Semitic teachings that violates state regulations and ethical standards. ”
The lawsuit alleges that the lack of transparency was intentional and that “curriculum developers questioned the way they 'addressed Jewish issues' and sought to engage not the Jewish community but outsiders with a history of controversial views.” “Because I proposed to cooperate with the organization.”
According to the complaint, “When community members attended a meeting to discover the school board's actions and publicly comment on the secret approval of the controversial curriculum, they were harassed with anti-Semitic rhetoric. “I received it.”
biased presentation
Ethnic studies began in the 1960s with the Third World Liberation Front at the University of California, Berkeley, and studies the historical, social, cultural, economic, and political perspectives of four major peoples: African, Asian, and Latinx. It was a university-level course for research. And Native American.
Rethinking the curriculum for high schools may be a good idea, but implementation has been extremely difficult.
The state-recognized ESMC focuses on four subgroups, but includes some cultural, religious, and ethnic groups, which distract from the law's focus.
Not only does this leave a biased presentation space, but it also leaves underrepresented and underrepresented others who similarly face discrimination and are exposed to a lack of education about their contributions and struggles in our society. This leaves the obvious danger of ignoring groups of people.
“We've had some setbacks and we're learning a lot from other districts that have gone through things that we want to avoid,” San Dieguito's Marcus said, adding that the district plan “does what we're asked to do.” “We use ethnic studies frameworks to do what we do.” These he focuses on four subgroups. ”
Marcus said the purpose of ethnic studies is to give students “a better understanding of not only the diversity of our school district, but the diversity that they will be working with in the future.”
In addition to the possibility of guardrail violations, insufficient funding is another hurdle.
“This bill would add new duties to local educational agencies and would result in state-mandated local programs,” according to a summary of AB-101's text. “The California Constitution requires the state to reimburse local agencies and school districts for certain state-mandated costs.”
The state has so far provided a portion of what the Senate Appropriations Committee estimated the bill would cost taxpayers: $276 million annually.
But this isn't the first time the district has had to deal with an unfunded mandate.
Given that all sorts of political ideologies can be injected into ethnic studies classes without affecting them, combined with funding issues, ethnic studies is a burdensome requirement that is sure to leave already overworked educators It has become a headache for me.
Opinion columnist and education writer Marsha Sutton can be reached at suttonmarsha@gmail.com.
