San Mateo Union High School District considering updated history program

Heeding student calls for a history program that reflects the diversity of its student body, the San Mateo Union High School District is on the path to adopting an updated curriculum that would give teachers some guiding principles for incorporating alternative perspectives into lessons.

“They felt that the course needed updating, that it would provide a more comprehensive view and antibias view, one that was more inclusive,” said Dr. Julia Kempkey, assistant superintendent of Curriculum and Instruction. “Really what it came down to was the students were asking us to revise the course so it reflected them, that they would see themselves in the history of the U.S. and that they would see a more inclusive history of world history.”

Members of the Board of Trustees held a study session Thursday, April 13, to learn more about how staff proposes updating the district’s U.S. history course of study. The document is meant to provide teachers with a framework and multiple entry points for discussing different points in American history.

The district began its review of its U.S. history course of study in early 2021 by forming a task force that would spend about a year reviewing the current course of study — adopted in 2018 — for potential bias. From that work, they were also charged with proposing an updated course that included updated course purpose content goals, student outcomes and enduring themes.

After being reviewed by stakeholders at all district sites, a district Social Justice and Equity Committee and a student equity group, the document was updated and validated by the district’s Social Science Council.

The final draft aligns with the state’s Social Science Framework and was updated to “be more culturally relevant, anti-racist, comprehensive, balanced, and inclusive,” according to a district staff report shared online.

The document’s main updates and highlights include a de-emphasis of traditional dominant narratives of U.S. history, creates opportunities for teachers to discuss contemporary issues or materials and entry points for students to see themselves and their communities in the course work, ensures that people of color and other diverse communities are central to the historical narrative and reflects the foundational tenets of the district’s ethnic studies course.

“It’s really important to learn and analyze history through the lenses of the folks who experienced it, that history did not happen upon folks but people have continued to assert their agency and ability to create change,” said Angela Zink, one of multiple social studies teachers who worked on the updated course of study.

Curriculum concerns

Trustees underwent a similar study session process about a month ago when discussing its ethnic studies program. That meeting was contentious at times, noted board President Greg Land during the most recent study session which saw only four public comments made — two in favor of the update and two against.

Michelle Costella, a parent of an eighth grader who will soon attend high school in the district, was one of the two speakers against the update. She asked that the board not approve the new course of study after noting the proposal seemed to de-emphasize or do away with lessons on the founding of the nation and the Founding Fathers.

“I can’t think of anything more important in an American history class than to teach students to understand the founding ideals of our democracy. Our shared ideals are what bound us together as Americans despite our differences,” Costella said. “Knowing about our shared ideals as Americans will make us better citizens.”

She and fellow parent Chris Cavioli also expressed concerns that lessons from the ethnic studies course were to be implemented into the history course. Given how controversial ethnic studies has become, Cavioli said the district should keep the curriculum separate rather than pulling controversial ideas into U.S. history classes.

Backing the program

Alternatively, two teachers spoke in favor of the curriculum update, Alexandra Dove, a history teacher at Mills High School and Candace Thomas, a social studies teacher at Hillsdale High School. Both educators have also played integral roles in updating and defending the district’s ethnic studies program.

Dove said she was able to weigh in on the proposed updated course of study and shared her confidence that students would be prepared for higher-level courses and to grapple with the nation’s complex history.

Beyond seeing themselves in the course material, Dove also argued students will be able to connect to those who have sparked change through their advocacy work.

“I can see that it’s rich and really reflects what we want for our San Mateo Union High School District students,” Dove said. “It’s not just about learning about history but being able to connect with it and I see where this does that.”

Thomas noted many have quoted Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. during similar discussions to argue against discussing race and history. She used her allotted three minutes to quote King’s “Letter from Birmingham Jail,” specifically the portion in which he underscores the institutional barriers that have kept Black Americans from prospering and his concerns with the “white moderate” and a tempered approach to change.

No decision was made during the study session. Instead, trustees will vote on the measure during the next meeting this Thursday, April 20. But trustees did ask questions and shared feedback.

Trustee Jennifer Jacobson shared similar concerns students were missing out on foundational lessons about the starting of the nation and noted her daughter, a student in the district, has yet to receive that type of information in her classes.

Staff assured Jacobson that while the updated course might not directly call out the founding of the nation, new objectives still require that portion of U.S. history to be covered. Trustee Bob Griffin asked that staff present a visual of where previous and new ideals align which they said would be presented during this Thursday’s meeting.

Ultimately though, staff and trustees acknowledged that more was outlined in the course than could be taught by one teacher in a class and the goal was for students to be given the tools to dive deeper into areas of interest and to dissect historical issues on their own.

“There’s a fundamental question we’re grappling with as an educational institution and that is what are the enduring skills kids need because there’s no way that anybody could teach all the things someone thinks all kids should know,” said Brian Simmons, director of Curriculum and Assessment. “In fact, we want kids driving their own learning more often than not and their own thinking so there’s something to be said for the historical thinking skills that have been referenced a lot.”

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