Schools in the United States are making more efforts to raise awareness about the LGBT community, and they are planning to include young students in this endeavor. Public schools in California are now the first ones to teach LGBT history to pupils.
Changing School Curriculum Guidelines
The curriculum changes were approved by the California State Board of Education this week, according to CBS San Francisco. The update, which covers elementary, middle, and high school pupils, requires public schools to teach about LGBT rights and renowned gay Americans during history classes.
Second graders in California will be taught about families with same-sex parents. In fourth grade, they will study how immigrants and LGBT personalities contributed to the state's economy such as Harvey Milk, who was the first openly gay politician to be elected to California's public office.
Fourth graders will also learn about the rise of the U.S.' first gay rights organizations in the 1950s, Los Angeles Times reported. Students will study how LGBT people in California struggled since the 1970s to assert their rights to teach and get married.
Senior high school students, meanwhile, will study the 2015 Supreme Court ruling, which legalizes same-sex marriage in the nation. They will also learn about the recent court cases about transgender students' access to bathrooms and locker rooms, such as North Carolina's anti-LGBT law.
LGBT History Subject Praised
Hours of public testimonies criticized the California State Board of Education's framework for its shortcomings. Speakers argued about how it's unfair that the framework discusses the discrimination suffered by Jews, Muslims, Hindus, and Japan's "comfort women" practice during World War II, but no one thought about including the mistreatments suffered by the LGBT community on a regular basis.
Lauryn Wild, a Southern California curriculum specialist, said the new curriculum guidelines reflect the state's commitment to diversity, CBS San Francisco noted. The update also forbids the use of classroom materials that preach against certain religions and gays.
LGBT advocacy group Equality California said the new curriculum guidelines can teach young students to embrace equality and an "inclusive and respectful society," LA Times further reported. The inclusive curriculum can also make LGBT students more confident in their own skin, and could possibly lower the occurrences of transphobic bullying and discrimination.
California lawmakers already passed a 2012 law called the Fair, Accurate, Inclusive and Respectful (FAIR) Education Act or Senate Bill 48. The law requires history subjects to teach about LGBT and minority people's contributions to the U.S. economy.
