ELC Opposes U.S. Department of Education’s Attempt to Promote Biased Civics Curriculum
Also Opposes Attempt to Weaken Race-Based Data Collection for Students with Disabilities
Education Law Center submitted public comments opposing the U.S. Department of Education’s proposed priority promoting so-called “patriotic” education. The administration seeks to impose a biased and inaccurate vision of civics education on schools across the nation.
ELC’s comments note that the proposed priority conflicts with multiple federal laws that prohibit the federal government from interfering with state and local autonomy over curriculum decisions. By seeking to impose a particular and biased narrative of American history, ignoring complex and often troubling realities that students have grappled with for many decades such as slavery and discrimination, the priority violates the longstanding principle of local control in education.
In addition, the comments note that the proposed priority would have a chilling effect on neutral and historically accurate civics instruction. By favoring a particular and biased view of civics education, the Department discounts both the toleration of conflicting beliefs and the embrace of diverse viewpoints that fuel the nation’s tradition of public education. Exposure to complex or challenging ideas does not violate the law and is necessary to support independent and critical thinking.
“Students are entitled to receive and are best served by being exposed to accurate information and ideas that prepare them to thrive in a diverse society,” said ELC staff attorney Patrick Cremin. “This priority represents another attempt by the Trump Administration to erode public education by imposing its one-sided ideology on states and districts that are responsible for their own curricular decisions.”
In a separate submission of public comments, ELC also opposed the Department’s proposal to weaken data collection on significant disproportionalities based on race and ethnicity under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA). Congress has specifically mandated the collection and examination of data to determine whether students of color are disproportionately identified with disabilities, segregated by placement, or subjected to exclusionary discipline. To fulfill this mandate, federal IDEA regulations require that states report any updates to their methodology for analyzing disproportionality. ELC attached comments submitted by the Council of Parent Attorneys and Advocates (COPAA) and endorsed COPAA’s reasons for opposition, including the adverse effect that removal of the requirement would have on the Department’s oversight function and the minimal burden the requirement imposes on states.
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Press Contact:
Sharon Krengel
Director of Policy, Strategic Partnerships and Communications
skrengel@edlawcenter.org
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