PORTAGE, MI (WKZO AM/FM) — Portage Public School officials are apologizing for a social studies assignment that some are considering insensitive.
The district says that last week 8th-grade students were asked to calculate the economic impact of slavery during an online social studies course, requiring students to estimate the cost of people involved in the slave trade and economy.
Multiple people reached out to school officials expressing concern over how the course addressed the historical effects of slavery. The district maintains that though course sought to teach students about the history of the topic, it instead offended many attending its schools.
“The overall lesson presented was intended to teach an atrocity of slavery and the history of white culturedevaluing humans, but it did not do that. We apologize,” the district said in a released news statement.
Portage Public Schools has stated that it is grateful that community members, parents, and students reached out about their concerns, and that the entire course unit planned for students is being reevaluated.
“This recent event has re-emphasized for us the work we have yet to do. It would be easy for us to say that this lesson was not intended to harm. We realize that doesn’t matter. I am deeply sorry” said Superintendent Mark Bielang in a written statement.
The online lesson was immediately removed on Monday, April 27th, and students were credited for the assignment with no need to complete it.
The district assembled a taskforce to adress equity issues in its curriculum and at schools beginning during the 2018-19 school year, working with the Great Lakes Equity Center and Fetzer Institute to implement diverse perspectives into course material and meet the needs of students of color.
K-12 students at Portage Public Schools are now being educated remotely for the remainder of the school year through the district’s online learning program.
A “Learning Together” course website was launched on Friday, April 17th featuring different curriculum activities depending on the grade level.
