“I am in agreement with Governor Deal and the State Board of
Education that our Social Studies – and Science – standards must be
Georgia-owned and Georgia-grown. We will conduct a full review of our Social
Studies standards to ensure that they have proper focus on the Founding
Fathers, the Declaration of Independence, the Constitution, and all aspects of
American History. We will also forge partnerships to supply every 5th
grader in Georgia with a pocket Constitution so the foundations that built our
great country are easily accessible to them.
I have deep concerns regarding the College Board's new Advanced
Placement U. S. History (APUSH) framework and testing. I fully support SR 80’s
move to ensure that Georgia’s students are being taught using the very best
history standards possible. Any opportunity for our academic or our nation’s
historical integrity to be eroded must not be allowed.
One important issue to note in Georgia is that all students,
including our Advanced Placement (AP) students, must take the state end of
course test in U.S. History. That means, regardless of what may be missing from
the AP frameworks, our students will be taught the foundational principles
found in our Georgia standards and will be required to demonstrate that
knowledge on our state test. This will provide our state the ability to
address some of the APUSH shortcomings. However, more must be done.
Though this is a short-term solution, SR 80 provides steps to
address the long-term problem of high school students not being taught key
people, events, and documents that are the cornerstone of the history of our
nation. I applaud the members of our General Assembly for working together to
protect the education of Georgia’s students.”