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'We'll Figure It Out As We Go Along' Doesn't Make It Easy
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California's legislature and Governor, faced with massive deficits and a crisis in the economy, chose instead to mandate that gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender history be taught to all students, from Kindergarten to 12th grade. One small problem: They didn't consult the schools on that. And as a result, many schools have no idea what they're supposed to be teaching. Who defines "gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender history"? Is Harvey Milk enough? Is Stonewall supposed to be given equal play to Rosa Parks? Are they supposed to say that people present at all historical events were gay (even if nobody knows if that's true)? Is teaching that some kids have same-sex-couple parents adequate? Nobody's sure. And nobody's sure that they're not supposed to be teaching the sex part or not, although it appears that sex education will be required to include it. It's not that schools shouldn't mention gays in history or should marginalize homosexuality, but if they're gonna mandate anything, you'd think they'd work out the details beforehand. (Los Angeles Times)
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