Bill pushes Western civilization studies

Iowa lawmakers are on the brink of passing new social studies requirements that include a focus on “Western civilization,” among other themes and topics.

Senate Republicans revived the proposal in a last-minute amendment to a separate bill Tuesday, approving a plan for the State Board of Education to review and revise Iowa’s social studies standards — over the objections of Democrats.

Those new standards would be required to include instruction on the structure of government, civics and “exemplary figures and important events in Western civilization, the United States and the state of Iowa.” It also specifies teaching on “the crimes against humanity that have occurred under communist regimes since 1917.”

A previous bill containing the curriculum requirements passed the House but died ahead of one of the session’s “funnel” deadlines. As lawmakers enter the final days of session, Sen. Brad Zaun, R-Urbandale, added the requirements to House File 2545, which commissions a state review of standards and curriculum.

“It came over here, and it was negotiated into the bill we’re talking about,” Zaun said of talks between House and Senate Republicans.

Democrats unsuccessfully attempted to remove references to “Western civilization” throughout the bill, seeking to replace them with “world civilization.” Sen. Herman Quirmbach, DAmes, argued that when using the former term, “what we’re really talking about is white people.”

“When we direct the study four times over to just Western civilization, we’re giving a signal of the type of results we want,” Quirmbach said.

Zaun responded that he didn’t believe the language in the bill prohibited any teaching of other societies or world figures.

“There’s nothing here to say that is not part of, or cannot be a part of (curriculum) in this amendment,” Zaun said.

Democrats remained opposed to the amended bill, with Sen. Molly Donahue, D-Cedar Rapids, saying it “is not the job of the Legislature to prescribe curriculum that would limit teachers’ time and resources.”

The version of the bill that earlier this session passed the House had curriculum requirements sourced from Civics Alliance, a New York-based group aiming to stop civics education from being turned “into a recruitment tool of the progressive left.” The National Council for the Social Studies, which says it represents more than 10,000 educators, has opposed the Civics Alliance’s proposed standards.

Senators approved of the altered bill in a 33-14 party-line vote, sending it back to the House for final approval.