Study shows majority of states fail to teach the civil rights movement

The Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC) recently released a study called “Teaching the Movement:  the State of Civil Rights Education 2011” that suggests the majority of States are not adequately teaching the civil rights movement to children.

The study compared the state standard requirements to a body of knowledge that reflects what civil rights historians and educators consider core information about the civil rights movement.

Researchers concluded that states are failing to set high expectations for student learning about the civil rights movement.  States’ curricula on the movement tend to be about leaders and events, but are less likely to include information about the obstacles that civil rights activists faced, like racism and white resistance.

Researchers gave a grade to each state indicating how that state performed in teaching civil rights.  35 states received a grade of “F.” 16 states have no requirements for teaching the movement.  Only three states received an A:  Alabama, Florida, and New York.  The study found that less attention is paid to the movement in states farther away from the South.

SPLC suggests that learning about the civil rights movement educates children “about the possibilities of civic engagement while warning…about the kinds of resistance that stand[s] in the way of change.”  The study also states that teaching about the movement “helps minority students to find themselves in history classes that are often alienating and confusing.”

This study is part of Teaching Tolerance, a project of the Southern Poverty Law Center.  Teaching Tolerance is a program designed to reduce prejudice, improve intergroup relations and support equitable school experiences for children.