Programs Submitted for California History-Social Science Adoption (2005)

This assessment was provided to California Curriculum Development and Supplemental Materials Commission members and education policymakers in August 2005, between the preliminary review of materials for legal and social compliance, and the final stages of review that involved state board meetings and public hearings. Availing itself of the public comment component of the adoption process, CIE is provided this assessment as a resource for policymakers in their effort to evaluate the programs submitted for adoption.

In addition to reflections regarding the programs’ conformity to the state-mandated criteria, CIE’s assessment provides insights on how well the submitted programs’ reflect current scholarship on world religions within the world history narrative, and to what extent they reflect constitutional guidelines for teaching about religions, such as those articulated and nationally disseminated by the First Amendment Center. This document addresses how publishers have presented world religions in light of the California History-Social Science Standards, prevailing constitutional guidelines for teaching about world religions, and current world history scholarship. This assessment is intended to help distinguish the substantive and legitimate critiques leveled during the adoption process from those that cloud or detract from the process.