EDUCATION
GET SCHOOLED! Critical Race Theory is Banned and More Education Laws That Are Now in Effect to Know About
By Susan Day
T
he Tennessee legislature was extremely active in the spring of 2021, and as of July 1, 2021, 32 new laws are now in effect, many of them related to education. We outline many of them here. Of course, the hottest button is the ban on critical race theory (CRT) being taught in other public schools across the country. Regarding the politically controversial CRT ban in Tennessee, in talking with news’ reporters last May, Tennessee Governor Bill Lee said, “We need to make sure that our kids recognize that this country is moving toward a more perfect union,
that we should teach the exceptionalism of our nation and how people can live together and work together to make a greater nation, and to not teach things that inherently divide or pit either Americans against Americans or people groups against people groups.” WHAT THE BAN ON CRT MEANS FOR THE NEW SCHOOL YEAR • Teachers cannot instruct that “an individual, by virtue of the individual’s race or sex, is inherently privileged, racist, sexist or oppressive, whether consciously or subconsciously.”
• “Impartial discussion of controversial aspects of history” is still permitted under the law, and limits on teacher speech won’t apply when a teacher is responding to a student’s question or referring to a historic figure or group. • The state education commissioner can withhold funds from any school found to be in violation of the law. COMMON CORE GONE FOR GOOD • A bill that prohibits the use of textbooks and materials created to align with Common Core standards. Schools in violation of the new law can lose funding. (please turn the page)
nashvilleparent.com
august 2021 21
