Virginia Dept. of Education reveals new history standards

RICHMOND, Va. (WWBT) — A revised draft of Virginia’s K-12 history standards has been sent to the state Board of Education.

The Virginia Department of Education said in a press release on Friday that the proposed History and Social Science Standard of Learning tells “a more complete story” about the past and how it shaped the commonwealth.

“These draft standards will build student understanding of the attributes, ideals and actions that have made America the world’s exemplar of freedom and opportunity,” said Superintendent of Public Instruction Jillian Balow. “At the same time, the standards are unflinching in their presentation of those times when Virginia and the nation failed to live up to our founding ideals.”

The Department of Education says the revised standards recommend grade-level content that starts in kindergarten that “focus on essential skills, state and national symbols, and communities, and culminates in high school with World History, Virginia and United States History, and Virginia and United States Government.”

The draft incorporates input from more than 200 people over the past two years.

“These draft standards are stronger because they reflect the contributions of subject-matter experts, thoughtful citizens, and a broad set of organizations across two administrations,” Secretary of Education Aimee Guidera said.

Guidera says the standards “better meet Gov. Glenn Youngkin’s directive to teach all history — the good and the bad.”

Once the Board of Education accepts the draft, public hearings on the proposals will be held before a final approval.

“The frameworks — which are used by teachers and division instructional staff to develop lesson plans and local curricula — will include content from the framework documents presented last summer and will be ready for review by the Board of Education in August 2023,” Balow said.

Copyright 2023 WWBT. All rights reserved.