HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES	H.C.R. NO.	124
TWENTY-EIGHTH LEGISLATURE, 2015
STATE OF HAWAII

HOUSE CONCURRENT

RESOLUTION

 

 

urging the department of education to implement an ETHNIC studies curriculum for students in kindergarten through twelfth grade.

 

 

 

WHEREAS, education is a powerful tool that can empower our communities to remedy societal ills, such as racism, gender inequity, and discrimination, and can contribute to the development of civically- and critically-minded citizens; and

 

WHEREAS, under the current Department of Education curriculum, students are not exposed to accurate accounts of the history of various ethnic groups in a comprehensive manner; and

 

WHEREAS, many students do not perform well in school because they are unable to relate to curricula that is not culturally relevant to their experiences; and

 

WHEREAS, ethnic studies courses and lessons appeal to students who have felt invisible, marginalized, and disconnected from educators and the community at large; and

 

WHEREAS, the teaching of ethnic studies with an analysis of history through a community’s nuanced perspective is an effective approach that can redefine the lives of people of color in the community; and

 

WHEREAS, high schools across the nation and in the State have found that implementation of ethnic studies curricula boosts academic achievement, test scores, and student engagement in all subjects; and

 

WHEREAS, as an interdisciplinary study, ethnic studies is easily incorporated into existing subjects such as history, social studies, and language arts programs; and

 

WHEREAS, ethnic studies promotes perspective-based learning and critical reading skills, which have the power to increase student involvement, reading comprehension, and standardized test scores and to decrease dropout rates; now, therefore,

 

BE IT RESOLVED by the House of Representatives of the Twenty-eighth Legislature of the State of Hawaii, Regular Session of 2015, the Senate concurring, that the Department of Education is urged to develop an ethnic studies curriculum appropriate for public school students in kindergarten through the twelfth grade; and

 

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Department of Education is requested to submit a report regarding its plans to implement an ethnic studies curriculum for public school students in kindergarten through the twelfth grade, including any proposed legislation, to the Legislature no later than twenty days prior to the convening of the Regular Session of 2016; and

 

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that certified copies of this Resolution be transmitted to the Governor, Chairperson of the Board of Education, and Superintendent of Education.

 

 

 

	OFFERED BY:	_____________________________

Report Title: 

Department of Education; Ethnic Studies; Curriculum