Friday, March 5, 2004
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Friday, March 5, 2004 |
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New Web site hopes to improve feedback on curriculum changes By J. FRANK LYNCH Hoping to make it easier to get public input into the proposed changes to Georgia’s school curriculum, State Supt. Kathy Cox this week launched a new Web site, www.georgiastandards.org. The state Department of Education also released a Q&A that addresses some of the most frequently asked questions from Georgians. According to a press release from Cox’s office, the new website is “a one-stop shop for the curriculum needs of Georgia’s educators, parents, students, and the public.” “Not only are we listening to feedback from the public on the proposed curriculum itself, we’re also listening to comments about our online presentation of the standards,” said Cox, who took great heat nationally last month for suggesting the term “evolution” not be used in Georgia classrooms, a decision she later regretted. But the feedback generated from the “evolution” debate highlighted the need for a more accessible, constructive debate on the entire Georgia Performance Standards proposal. “We’ve streamlined the various curriculum resources previously available on multiple sites into one user-friendly resource,” Cox said. “Now people will find it much easier to learn about the proposed curriculum, follow our progress, contact us, and make comments. Plus, our teachers will have the easy-to-use, accessible resource on the Georgia Performance Standards that they have needed.” But many teachers are still unconvinced that Cox has a listening ear, particularly some Fayette County social studies teachers who consider the state superintendent one of them. Cox taught political science in Fayette County for 15 years before being elected in November 2002, most recently at McIntosh High. Joseph Jarrell, a McIntosh teacher who’s written letters to the Citizen expressing his concerns, said despite the outcome the evolution outcry had on the state’s science curriculum, no one is up in arms over history. “We have not seen any real evidence that there will be any substantive changes to the social studies curriculum,” Jarrell said. In a letter on today’s editorial pages, FCHS psychology instructor and 2003 Fayette County Teacher of the Year Jan Daniel expressed fear about the subject matter itself, and disrupting the process by which children have traditionally been expected to learn. The proposed changes will strip key events and historic figures from the learning timeline, including the Civil War, Daniels argues. “I feel passionately that every high school student should not be denied a deep understanding of such topics as the formation of our nation, Jacksonian democracy, and Manifest Destiny,” she wrote. Perhaps the biggest indictment so far of the new social studies guidelines is coming from the college ranks. The faculty of the Georgia State University Department of History adopted a resolution Feb. 16 declaring the proposed changes “inadequate” to meet the needs of Georgia’s students. A detailed report accompanying the resolution specifically addresses issues of concern with Georgia history, U.S. history, world history and Middle Eastern cultures and tradition. The GSU resolution can be downloaded and read in its entirety at www.gsu.edu/~wwwhis. “We encourage fellow historians, teachers, students and other concerned citizens to review and comment ... and to draw attention to the standards and their ramifications through the Board of Regents, the Georgia Department of Education, and other avenues,” the resolution reads. The preliminary comment period ends March 31. Teacher teams meet in March to approve posting of proposed revisions for further public review. The final draft will be submitted to the State Board of Education for approval in June.
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