Do you know what your kids are expected to learn with the new proposed Civics and Government standards?

The revisions come after Gov. Ron DeSantis signed a bill in 2019, requiring the Florida Department of Education to review their statewide civics education standards.

This year the governor announced the “Civic Literacy Excellence Initiative." The initiative is a $106 million proposal that DeSantis said would “make Florida a national leader in civics education.” Some say the move came following an, arguably, volatile 2020 election cycle.

Several educators contacted Spectrum Bay News 9 complaining about the changes. Some of them compared the proposed standards to an authoritarian approach with education. They also said they believe the proposed standards are politically motivated.

We reached out to the Florida Department of Education to ask how they came up with the proposed changes in the 2021-2022 Civics and Government standards and we're still waiting for a response. The public was allowed to submit suggestions earlier in this school year but there aren't many details about how the Florida Department of Education came up with this latest draft. 

Friday, April 23, is the last day stakeholders can voice their opinion about the proposed civics standards. That can be done by clicking here.

The proposed standards for Holocaust Education and Character Education have also been presented. The public can give their input for Holocaust Education standards here and Character Education standards here.​

The department encourages all stakeholders to participate in the review process through the online surveys, which will be open when the draft standards are posted through April 23, 2021.