"the district will require all high schoolers to take a full-year course on the subject."
They must have figured out that if this class were elective, no one would take it-of any color.
I would love to see the curriculum.
A full year on George Washington Carver; one day on George Washington.
They should be required to read a dictionary first.
"African and African-American studies, now offered as an elective at 11 of the city's 54 high schools, has captivated students who have taken it"
"Captivated" is probably not a good word to use when talking about Afro-American history.
I would agree that all Philadelphia kids should learn about how the Arab Muslims enslaved African Blacks themselves centuries before a single slave stepped foot in America, and then invented the international slave trade. Perhaps they can also learn how Muslims continue to keep millions in labor and sexual slavery to this very day. Perhaps they can also learn how it was the Western Whites who eliminated slavery, first in Britain, and then in America, whereas even a nation as modernized as Saudi Arabia permits slavery today.
It's absolutely fascinating that they can do this. Amazing!
"I think if we have to take African-American history as a mandatory class, that we should have it open to other cultures: Hispanic-Americans, Asian-Americans," said Briggitte Rodriguez, 14, a freshman at Philadelphia High School for Girls, which is 62 percent black. "It's a big world. You have to think about everyone else, too."
Just wait, Briggitte. I'm sure those courses are on the way as well.
The historical debate in black education has been "technical" (to teach a field of study which can be applied for gain) versus "classical" (to teach a classical education to build high character). At long last, the dilemma is ended by the genius of the public schools: "useless".
Career path: (1) a year of Black history; (2) major in Ethnic Studies, (3) "You want fries with that?"
I think there is already TOO MUCH black history being taught in our government schools all across the country.
Despite the fact that blacks are only about 12%-14% of the population, black historical (some, HYSTERICAL) figures, have pushed, from our textbooks, great generals, battles, and other happenings in our great history, particularly where the civil war (known where I live as the "War of Northern Aggression") is concerned.
Some black history is fine, but not when their representation and importance in our textbooks FAR OUTWEIGHS their actual percentage of membership and contributions in our society.
The worst thing is that this disproportionate amount of black history being put into our kids history books, requires that other great American heroes, who happen to be mostly white, are jerked out of the books, and our kids are not taught about them in schools we pay for.
It's a sad, maddening, and disgusting situation.
Will that course be taught in English or in Ebonics?
This is America -- it is not Africa! Because America has been great, many are here to celebrate freely and fearlessly their identities and their origins. Because Africa is not and has not been great, many fake Africans are HERE trying their best to create heroic legends that have little or no basis in fact. Enough is enough -- A solid reality alert is called for here!
There used to be a consensus on what was important in American history. Unfortunately, no such consensus exists today. I have no faith in a curriculum proposed by liberals and leftists.
Typical liberal thinking: to reach racial harmony, we must take every opportunity to point out differences between the races and put down one of them (guess which one).
It will be another milestone in the victimology curriculum.
Sounds great.
It's probably a very easy class. Such classes usually are in college.
I think this is a good idea. Any idea in the Philly Schools -- they need something.
Delaware Valley-bred bump