Following Illinois, NSW also required schools to have Asian history classes

New Jersey will soon require all public schools to teach Asian history.

According to CNN, Gov. Phil Murphy signed a bill on Tuesday (18th) requiring K-12 schools to incorporate History of Asian Pacific Descent into their curricula starting with the 2022-2023 school year. The move made New Jersey the second state in the nation to make such a request after Illinois.

Murphy issued a state address on the 11th. (Image source: Ap News Agency/New Jersey Governor's Office)

"By teaching students about the history and traditions of our Asia Pacific-American community, we can ensure that diversity in our state is reflected in the curriculum and create a more tolerant and informed future for New Jersey," Murphy said in a statement. I am proud to have signed these bills into law. ”

In addition, another bill would create a Commission for Asian American Heritage within the New Jersey Department of Education. One of the purposes of the committee was to provide guidance to public and non-public schools on "implementing historical, cultural, and educational programs on Asian Americans and their descendants" and to help develop guidelines for relevant curricula.

Make Us Visible NJ, a coalition of students, parents, educators and community members, led the support for the bills, which they said was "a concrete way to prevent anti-Asian hatred and support the mental health of Asian-American children."

The coalition has spent months meeting with school boards and teachers' unions to advance the teaching of Asian-Pacific American classes in the classroom, and also organizes rallies and regular meetings with state legislators.

Kani Ilangovan, a member of the coalition, said: "All children should know where they belong and should feel safe. The bills will help secure the place of Asians in U.S. history. ”

Teachers and education researchers have previously said that in the existing school curriculum, there is extremely limited content about Asian Pacific americans. Most of the content in social studies and history courses about them is limited to Japanese internment camps during World War II, Chinese immigrants, and their involvement in railroad construction.

Russell Fan, a high school student and co-founder of the Livingston AAPI Youth Alliance, said the new law will help more students feel valued and even encourage them to participate. (End)