After years of controversy over course content, San Francisco’s public school district approved a new, permanent ethnic studies curriculum on Tuesday.
But pushback over ethnic studies isn’t over, as the vote renewed calls to review the district’s two-semester course mandate.
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Long considered a pioneer in the subject matter, the San Francisco Unified School District has offered its homegrown curriculum for high schoolers since 2010 — first as an elective, and beginning in 2024, as a graduation requirement taught to all ninth graders.
Last summer, after some parents and a national education group raised concerns about some of its lesson plans, SFUSD briefly considered pausing the requirement, and later opted to set aside its own curriculum in favor of piloting Voices: An Ethnic Studies Survey. The program, which is now nearing the end of its yearlong trial run, is also in use in other California school districts, like San Leandro, as well as nationally, according to SFUSD’s website.
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