Florida Department of Education will review Asian-American and Pacific-Islander history standards

The state Department of Education is preparing to review academic standards related to Asian-American and Pacific-Islander history, after lawmakers approved new requirements this year.

The education department has scheduled three meetings in October for a “civics workgroup,” which is slated to “review and possibly write new standards” that align with a measure (HB 1537) approved by the Legislature and Gov. Ron DeSantis.

The wide-ranging education law said the history of Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders must include “the history of Japanese internment camps and the incarceration of Japanese-Americans during World War II; the immigration, citizenship, civil rights, identity and culture of Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders; and the contributions of Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders to American society.”

Also under the law, instructional materials “shall include the contributions of Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders to American society.”

The workgroup meetings are scheduled Oct. 2, Oct. 5 and Oct. 9.