FLORIDA'S AFRICAN AMERICAN HISTORY TASK FORCES CHOOSES MAGA WHITE PEOPLE'S US HISTORY
Florida's African American History Task Force is in the news again, and this time it's not because of their groundbreaking work on teaching Black history in schools. No, this time they're making headlines because they're claiming they were left out of the development of the state's new African American History standards. And let me tell you, it's a mess.
The standards have caused such a stir that Vice President Kamala Harris even made a visit to Jacksonville to criticize them. Apparently, the standards include instruction on how slaves developed skills which, in some instances, could be applied for their personal benefit. And Kamala was not having it. "Pushing propaganda on our children," she said. I mean, I get it, Kamala. But let's be real, if you were a slave, wouldn't you want to develop some skills that could help you out?
State Senator Geraldine Thompson is also up in arms about the new standards. She claims that the African American History Task Force had little say in their development, despite state law providing for their input. I mean, come on, Florida. You can't just create a task force and then ignore their recommendations. That's like hiring a personal trainer and then refusing to do any of the exercises they suggest.
But wait, it gets even better. The Florida Board of Education approved the new set of standards for how Black history should be taught in the state's public schools, sparking criticism from education and civil rights advocates who said students should be allowed to learn the "full truth" of American history. And you know what? They're right. We should be teaching our kids the full truth about American history. The good, the bad, and the ugly.
And speaking of the bad and the ugly, let's talk about the education department's rejection of a preliminary pilot version of an Advanced Placement African American Studies course for high school students. They claimed it lacked educational value. Are you kidding me? If anything, we need more education about African American history, not less.
The Florida African American History Task Force was created in 2020 by Governor Ron DeSantis. The task force was tasked with reviewing the state's African American history standards and making recommendations for revisions. And you know what they recommended? Increasing the number of standards that focus on African American history, including more content on the contributions of African Americans to society, providing more context for historical events that involved African Americans, and addressing the issue of racism in American history. Sounds pretty reasonable to me.
But of course, not everyone is happy about the new standards. Some people have praised them for increasing the amount of attention that is paid to African American history in Florida schools. Others have criticized them for not going far enough and failing to address some of the more difficult aspects of American history, such as slavery and racism. And let me tell you, those people are missing the point. We need to teach our kids about slavery and racism. We need to teach them about the struggles and triumphs of African Americans throughout history. We need to teach them the full truth.
The debate over the new Black history standards in Florida is a reflection of the larger debate over the role of race and racism in American history. And as much as we might want an easy consensus on how to teach these difficult topics in schools, there isn't one. But what we can do is listen to the experts, like the Florida African American History Task Force, and take their recommendations seriously.
In conclusion, Florida needs to get its act together when it comes to teaching African American history in schools. We can't just ignore the experts and push propaganda on our children. We need to teach them the full truth about American history, even if it's difficult or uncomfortable. And hey, if we can do it with a little bit of humor and wit, all the better.
Florida Board of Education approves new Black history standards that critics call 'a big step backward' | CNN https://www.cnn.com/2023/07/20/us/florida-black-history-education-standards-reaj/index.html
Big Education Ape: FLORIDA GOV. DUHSANTIS ANNOUNCED THAT HIS DEPARTMENT OF MISEDUCATION HAS ADOPTED NEW BLACK PEOPLE STANDARDS https://bigeducationape.blogspot.com/2023/07/florida-gov-duhsantis-announced-that.html
‘I thank God for slavery:’ Florida African American History Task Force appointments raise concerns https://news.yahoo.com/thank-god-slavery-florida-african-215036843.html
Big Education Ape: FLORIDA GOV. DUHSANTIS DEFENDS FLORIDA'S VERSION OF SLAVERY: IT WAS FUN https://bigeducationape.blogspot.com/2023/07/florida-gov-duhsantis-defends-floridas.html
Big Education Ape: GOOFY REWRITES FLORIDA'S SOCIAL STUDIES BOOKS https://bigeducationape.blogspot.com/2023/05/goofy-rewrites-floridas-social-studies.html