NC high school students will take one less US history class to accommodate new course
North Carolina high school students will be required to take one less American history course to accommodate the legislature’s new mandated personal finance course.
Starting in the 2020-21 school year, high school freshmen will be required to take an economics and personal finance course before they graduate. To accommodate the class, the State Board of Education adopted new graduation requirements Thursday that say high school students will take one U.S. history courses, instead of two.
State education officials said the change won’t result in students having less knowledge of American history. They said North Carolina students will still learn about U.S. history in elementary and middle school and that the revamped civics class will also include content on U.S. history.
“One of the chief concerns that we have is making sure that our students graduate from our schools with a solid grasp of American history and what it means to be a citizen in this country,” said Lori Carlin, section chief of social studies and arts education at the state Department of Public Instruction.
DPI officials also said that North Carolina will now be among 48 states that only require one credit of American history in high school.
Currently, North Carolina high school students must complete four social studies courses to graduate: Civics and Economics, World History, American History 1 and American History 2.
Legislators made the new finance course and a revamped civics course two of the required classes. It also prevents the state board from requiring more than four social studies courses to graduate.
Under the new graduation requirements, students will be required to take World History, American History, Civic Literacy and Economics and Personal Finance.
The exact sequence of courses offered will be left up to school districts but it’s recommended that students take the finance class in their junior or senior year.
DPI staff presented alternatives Thursday but said each option has barriers. Those alternatives included making the new personal class a career and technical education course or making it a required elective.
The specific standards for the social studies courses are being revised. Public comment on the first draft of proposed standards is being taken through the end of January at https://bit.ly/35wLYM8.
The state board is also revising the social studies graduation requirements for current students to ease the transition on high schools. This will mean students will graduate the next few years taking different social studies courses, depending on what their school can offer.
Some social studies teachers, particularly those who teach U.S. history, have voiced concerns about the changes.
This story was originally published January 9, 2020 at 3:05 PM.
