The Georgia Performance Standards, the new curriculum proposed by the Department of Education for the public schools of Georgia, is a giant step forward for students and teachers in the Peachtree State. The culmination of many months of study and writing by Georgia teachers, leaders from around the state in the specific content areas, and national experts, these standards set high expectations.
Joseph Jarrell, a teacher at McIntosh High School, has taken issue with the new social studies standards (see http://www.edexcellence.net/gadfly/issue.cfm?issue=132#1645). I couldn't disagree more.
The proposed framework for social studies is centered on studies of history, geography, civics, and economics. Students are introduced to these four essential content areas in kindergarten and the rigor and depth grows each year. These subjects are not treated in isolation, because events occur in specific time and place. In every civilization, people live under specific forms of government and find ways to produce the goods and services others want and need.
Not everything can be contained in a year, or even 13 years of study, but under these standards students learn about key events, ideas, people, and trends that have influenced major human civilizations and have produced the world as it is today.
The present Quality Core Curriculum has been widely criticized as "a mile wide and an inch deep." The analysis by Phi Delta Kappa believes it would take 23 years to teach the present QCC. No wonder Mr. Jarrell noted, "I feel as though I am running a marathon...."
The new standards propose fewer units, so that teachers will have ample time to teach in depth. The ultimate goal is to make enough time available so that students are able to read multiple sources, engage in debates, go on field trips, read biographies and complete projects. This framework draws on nationally recognized work of other states, especially Virginia, Massachusetts, Texas, Arizona, and California.
The Georgia Performance Standards build a foundation in the early grades and complete the framework through 13 years. According to national consultant and historian Dr. Diane Ravitch, who helped draft these standards, "the goal of the framework is to provide students with the knowledge that they need to act thoughtfully in their lives, to understand other peoples and cultures, and to contribute to the vitality of our democratic institutions." That they do, admirably.
Holly Robinson was a history professor for 18 years before joining the Georgia Public Policy Foundation as senior vice president.
