Our current climate feels ready for educational reform. Between the COVID-19 pandemic, Black Lives Matter movement and fake news, it is imperative that we respond with change. COVID-19 has proven that with perseverance and the right technology tools, we can find a way to continue the education of our students. The Black Lives Matter movement has shed a light on the facts that our nation’s history lessons need to do a better job of revealing the complexities of our past. Fake news and social media begs us to learn how to check our sources and seek the truth.
Yes, I believe it is prime time to redesign K12 curriculum. We should reevaluate our American history curriculum to ensure that our students are learning about all the influences in our past, not just the “white men” experiences. We need to include diversity and ethnicity and race and cultural awareness into our social studies and literature curriculum. We need to teach our students how to evaluate sources and ways to distinguish facts from opinions, how to be responsible content creators, and the impact of our digital footprints.
I have no ideas about how these changes can be made. I have no solution to this problem. Fortunately, I am not the only voice of concern. Like me, other educators have noticed signs for change, too. I have faith that collectively, we can work towards a solution with curriculum redesign.