In April, the Texas State Board of Education approved the creation of African American studies courses for Texas high schools. As soon as this fall, the classes will be offered as electives.
Karla Broadus, director of African American studies at the University of Texas at San Antonio, will start conducting online workshops for future African American studies teachers. The workshops, which start later this month, will prepare teachers for the curriculum.
“I want them to have basic, correct information,” Broadus told Texas Standard host David Brown on Thursday.
The state mandated and approved the necessary material for the African American studies courses. Broadus plans to break the material down into different areas like government, geography and culture.
The first session will cover economics. She believes this is often the most overlooked aspect of African American history.
“I feel that we need to talk about the monetary connection to slavery, and that’s something that a lot of people don’t bring up,” Broadus said. “After slavery, many of the African Americans set up freedman’s areas throughout Texas and in some of the other states, where they set up all for their economic livelihood so that they could exist.”
The ongoing protests over police brutality and the killing of George Floyd by police in Minneapolis added another layer of history to the curriculum. Broadus is looking into incorporating relevant young adult literature, like “The Hate U Give,” which has been banned in some school districts.
“I want [teachers] to have facts that make our students- – so that if they’re down marching or planning to march at a later date, they know why they’re marching,” Broadus said.
Web story by Sarah Gabrielli.
