The Massachusetts Board of Elementary and Secondary Education
Update on Department Support for History, Social Science, and Civics Education
At the Board of Elementary and Secondary Education (Board) meeting on May 21, 2019, Heather Peske, Senior Associate Commissioner for the Center for Instructional Support, and Michelle Ryan, History and Social Science Content Support Lead, will facilitate a discussion about the implementation of the 2018 History and Social Science Curriculum Framework. The Board will hear from a panel of educators who will share their experiences implementing the standards in their respective districts.
Department Support for History, Social Science, and Civics Education
Adopted by the Board on June 26, 2018, the 2018 History and Social Science Curriculum Framework sets forth the skills, competencies, and knowledge in history and social science, including civics, that students should attain at each grade or grade cluster from pre-K-12. Specific features of the Framework include Content Standards outlining what students should know and be able to do at the end of each grade or grade cluster in history and social science, including civics; Practice Standards designed to reflect the work of political scientists, economists, geographers, historians, and ordinary citizens; Literacy Standards drawn from the 2017 English Language Arts and Literacy Curriculum Framework; and a full-year civics course in grade 8, including coursework in news/media literacy.
Signed into law by Governor Baker on November 8, 2018, Chapter 296 of the Acts of 2018 is a law to promote and enhance civic engagement and support implementation of the Framework. Among other provisions, the law calls for each public school serving students in grade 8, and each public high school, to provide not less than one student-led, non-partisan civics project consistent with the Framework for each student.
In July 2018, the Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (Department) hosted a three-day Civics Institute for 250 educators. The purpose of the institute was to provide an introduction and overview of the 2018 History and Social Science Curriculum Framework, support the implementation of the new grade 8 civics course, and support implementation of the Practice and Literacy Standards.
Thirty-three districts received a total of $199,897 through the Department's History and Social Science Instructional Planning and Implementation Grant. With these funds, districts deepen their understanding of the Framework, analyze current curriculum for alignment to the Framework, and revise, adapt, and/or adopt high-quality standards-aligned curricular materials for use in the 2019-2020 school year and beyond.
Throughout the 2018-2019 school year, the Department hosted eight regional networks to assist teams of educators in analyzing the 2018 History and Social Science Curriculum Framework and fostering high quality curriculum development and instruction. Through this network, educators were able to: (1) understand key changes in the content and organization of the Framework; (2) generate strategies to integrate the Content, Literacy, and Practice Standards; and (3) support high quality instruction that facilitates engaged student learning.
Throughout the 2018-2019 school year, the Department hosted The Framework on Tour, a series of 11 in-person presentations across the state that introduced approximately 1,000 educators to the structure of the 2018 History and Social Science Curriculum Framework. Participants included history and social science educators as well as teachers of other subjects, special education and English language teachers, school and district leaders, and staff from educational collaboratives.
On June 11, 2019 at the Edward M. Kennedy Institute for the U.S. Senate, the 2019 Civics Literacy Conference will gather educators and representatives from state, education, and community organizations to develop a deeper understanding of the importance of civic learning and the role educators serve in supporting all students to become informed, engaged citizens in a democracy and a global society. The theme is Civic Empowerment for Today and Tomorrow: In the Classroom and Community. Workshops will include a range of topics connected to the 2018 History and Social Science Curriculum Framework; Chapter 296 of the Acts of 2018; and school and community partnerships.
On June 13–14, 2019 at Harvard Law School, the Department will partner with Facing History and Ourselves, the Democratic Knowledge Project (DKP) from the Edmond J. Safra Center for Ethics at Harvard University, and InquirED to present the 2019 History and Social Science Professional Learning Institute. Educators will engage in experiential learning and review curricular materials, key implementation strategies, and a facilitator's guide to sustain new learning with district teams. Sessions will illustrate strategies for increasing student engagement through meaningful, relevant, and standards-aligned learning experiences. In addition, the Institute provides an opportunity for educators to deepen both their content and pedagogical knowledge related to specific facets of the 2018 History and Social Science Curriculum Framework, including civics life and government, news and media literacy, diverse perspectives and people, current events and critical issues, and inquiry-based learning in the elementary classroom.
The Department contracted with DKP and Generation Citizen to develop guidance to support implementation of Chapter 296 of the Acts of 2018, which includes examples of student-led civics projects for middle and high school students. The projects will include high quality curricular materials for teachers to facilitate project development, rubrics for teachers and students to assess project quality, and any ancillary materials necessary to aid students in searching for and executing the projects. The civics learning activities will be designed to aid students in learning civics topics aligned to grade level standards; highlight connections to the Content, Literacy, and Practice Standards; and utilize openly licensed primary sources. These materials will be available to districts before the start of the 2019-2020 school year.
The Department expects districts to begin implementing the 2018 History and Social Science Curriculum Framework in the 2019-2020 school year. At that time, student-led civics projects should also begin in many districts, with students in all middle and high schools doing projects by 2020-2021. In anticipation of stakeholder interest, the Department foresees collecting information on local implementation of civics projects beginning in the 2019-2020 school year.
We look forward to discussing this with the Board and hearing from the panel of educators at our meeting on May 21.
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