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House File 2330 - IntroducedA Bill ForAn Act 1relating to education, including by modifying provisions
2related to the social studies instruction provided to
3students enrolled in grades one through twelve and the
4educational programs provided by the institutions of higher
5education under the control of the state board of regents.
6BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF IOWA:
1 Section 1. Section 256.11, subsections 3 and 4, Code 2024,
2are amended to read as follows:
33. a. The following areas shall be taught in grades
4one through six: English-language arts, social studies,
5mathematics, science, health, physical education, traffic
6safety, music, visual art, and, subject to section 279.80,
7age-appropriate and research-based human growth and
8development. Computer science instruction incorporating
9the standards established under section 256.7, subsection
1026, paragraph “a”, subparagraph (4), shall be offered in
11at least one grade level commencing with the school year
12beginning July 1, 2023. The health curriculum shall include
13the characteristics of communicable diseases. The state board
14as part of accreditation standards shall adopt curriculum
15definitions for implementing the elementary program.
16b. The social studies curriculum shall include instruction
17related to all of the following:
18(1) The workings of the federal, state, and local levels of
19government.
20(2) The rights and responsibilities of citizens of the
21United States and the state of Iowa.
22(3) The history of the secular and religious ideals and
23institutions of liberty, including political, religious,
24economic, social, and cultural liberty, in western
25civilization, the United States, and the state of Iowa, which
26emphasizes the good, worthwhile, and best achievements of these
27ideals and institutions of liberty.
28(4) Exemplary figures in western civilization, the United
29States, and the state of Iowa who have fought to secure
30liberty.
31(5) The cultural heritage of western civilization, the
32United States, and the state of Iowa.
33(6) The geography of the United States and the state of
34Iowa.
35(7) The history and meaning of the United States flag and
-1-1the national anthem.
2(8) Admirable Americans, including Benjamin Franklin,
3George Washington, Frederick Douglass, Elizabeth Cady Stanton,
4and Abraham Lincoln.
5c. During grades five and six, the instruction provided as
6part of the social studies curriculum shall incorporate the
7study of documents that are important to the history of the
8United States, including all of the following:
9(1) The Mayflower compact.
10(2) Common Sense, written by Thomas Paine.
11(3) The Declaration of Independence.
12(4) The Articles of Confederation.
13(5) The Pennsylvania Act for the gradual abolition of
14slavery.
15(6) The Virginia statute for religious freedom.
16(7) The northwest ordinance.
17(8) The Constitution of the United States.
18(9) The federalist papers, including federalist number ten
19and federalist number fifty-one.
20(10) A transcript of George Washington’s farewell address.
21(11) Relevant excerpts from Democracy in America written by
22Alexis de Tocqueville.
23(12) A transcript of the first debate between Abraham
24Lincoln and Stephen A.Douglas.
25(13) The Emancipation Proclamation.
26(14) The writings of the founding fathers.
274. a. The following shall be taught in grades seven and
28eight: English-language arts; social studies; mathematics;
29science; health; age-appropriate and research-based human
30growth and development; career exploration and development;
31physical education; music; and visual art. Computer science
32instruction incorporating the standards established under
33section 256.7, subsection 26, paragraph “a”, subparagraph (4),
34shall be offered in at least one grade level commencing with
35the school year beginning July 1, 2023. Career exploration
-2-1and development shall be designed so that students are
2appropriately prepared to create an individual career
3and academic plan pursuant to section 279.61, incorporate
4foundational career and technical education concepts aligned
5with the six career and technical education service areas as
6defined in subsection 5, paragraph “h”, incorporate relevant
7twenty-first century skills to facilitate career readiness,
8and introduce students to career opportunities within the
9local community and across this state. The health curriculum
10shall include age-appropriate and research-based information
11regarding the characteristics of sexually transmitted diseases.
12The state board as part of accreditation standards shall adopt
13curriculum definitions for implementing the program in grades
14seven and eight. However, this subsection shall not apply to
15the teaching of career exploration and development in nonpublic
16schools.
17b. (1) The social studies curriculum shall require at
18least one semester of instruction, or the trimester or quarter
19equivalent, in each of the following areas:
20(a) Civics, which shall include instruction related to all
21of the following:
22(i) The intellectual sources of the United States’ founding
23documents.
24(ii) The political and military narrative of the causes and
25progress of the American Revolution.
26(iii) The United States’ founding documents and the
27original intent of such documents.
28(iv) The Constitution of the United States, with emphasis on
29the Bill of Rights, and the Constitution of the State of Iowa.
30(v) The basic principles of the United States’ republican
31form of government.
32(vi) The historical development of the United States’
33republican form of government.
34(vii) The United States’ republican form of government
35compared with different forms of government including
-3-1dictatorship, monarchy, oligarchy, theocracy, communism, and
2autocracy.
3(viii) The structure, function, and processes of government
4institutions at the federal, state, and local levels.
5(ix) The civic virtues exemplified in the lives of famous
6Americans.
7(b) United States history, which shall include instruction
8related to all of the following:
9(i) The study of and devotion to the United States’
10exceptional and praiseworthy history.
11(ii) The basic political, diplomatic, and military
12history of the United States, which shall include the period
13of discovery, early colonies, the War of Independence, the
14Civil War, the expansion of the United States to its present
15boundaries, World War I, World War II, the Cold War, the civil
16rights movement, and the period of time from the September 11
17attacks to the present day, which shall incorporate the study
18of primary source documents.
19(iii) The basic history of business and technology in the
20United States, which shall incorporate the study of primary
21source documents.
22(iv) The basic history of the religious and secular aspects
23of the United States’ common culture, which shall incorporate
24the study of primary source documents.
25(v) The concept that United States history shall be viewed
26as factual, not as constructed, shall be viewed as knowable,
27teachable, and testable, and shall be defined as the creation
28of a new nation based largely on the universal principles
29stated in the Declaration of Independence.
30(c) The history of western civilization, which shall
31include instruction that constitutes an extended, coherent
32account of western civilization, from Athens, Jerusalem, and
33Rome to the present day, to understand the nature of the
34nation’s ideals and institutions of liberty, how such ideals
35and institutions of liberty came into existence, and what
-4-1actions the nation’s forefathers took to preserve them.
2(d) Iowa history, to be taught during grade eight, which
3shall include instruction related to all of the following:
4(i) The history of the founding of Iowa.
5(ii) The history of famous Iowans and their involvement in
6important events in history.
7(iii) How Iowans have impacted government, policies,
8issues, and procedures over the years.
9(iv) The history of the state motto, bird, tree, and rock.
10(e) Economics, to be taught during grade eight. The
11economics instruction shall focus on the free enterprise system
12and its benefits. The economics curriculum shall include
13instruction related to the failures of economic systems of
14communist regimes and the difference between capitalist and
15communist economic systems.
16(2) The social studies curriculum shall include instruction
17related to admirable Americans, including Benjamin Franklin,
18George Washington, Frederick Douglass, Elizabeth Cady Stanton,
19and Abraham Lincoln.
20(3) The instruction provided as part of the social studies
21curriculum shall incorporate the study of documents that are
22important to the history of the United States, including all
23of the following:
24(a) The Mayflower compact.
25(b) Common Sense, written by Thomas Paine.
26(c) The Declaration of Independence.
27(d) The Articles of Confederation.
28(e) The Pennsylvania Act for the gradual abolition of
29slavery.
30(f) The Virginia statute for religious freedom.
31(g) The northwest ordinance.
32(h) The Constitution of the United States.
33(i) The federalist papers, including federalist number ten
34and federalist number fifty-one.
35(j) A transcript of George Washington’s farewell address.
-5- 1(k) Relevant excerpts from Democracy in America written by
2Alexis de Tocqueville.
3(l) A transcript of the first debate between Abraham Lincoln
4and Stephen A. Douglas.
5(m) The Emancipation Proclamation.
6(n) The writings of the founding fathers.
7 Sec. 2. Section 256.11, subsection 5, paragraph b, Code
82024, is amended to read as follows:
9b. Five units of the social studies including instruction
10in voting statutes and procedures, voter registration
11requirements, the use of paper ballots and voting systems in
12the election process, and the method of acquiring and casting
13an absentee ballot. All students shall complete a minimum of
14one-half unit of United States government, and one unit of
15civics, two units of United States history, and one unit of
16western civilization. The social studies curriculum shall not
17include any advanced placement course that requires action
18civics. The social studies curriculum shall incorporate the
19study of documents that are important to the history of the
20United States, including the Mayflower compact; Common Sense,
21written by Thomas Paine; the Declaration of Independence; the
22Articles of Confederation; the Pennsylvania Act for the gradual
23abolition of slavery; the Virginia statute for religious
24freedom; the northwest ordinance; the Constitution of the
25United States; the federalist papers, including federalist
26number ten and federalist number fifty-one; a transcript of
27George Washington’s farewell address; relevant excerpts from
28Democracy in America written by Alexis de Tocqueville; a
29transcript of the first debate between Abraham Lincoln and
30Stephen A. Douglas; the Emancipation Proclamation; and the
31writings of the founding fathers.
32(1) The one-half unit of United States government shall
33include the voting procedure as described in this lettered
34paragraph and section 280.9A and other instruction related
35to voting statutes and procedures, voter registration
-6-1requirements, the use of paper ballots and voting systems in
2the election process, and the method of acquiring and casting
3an absentee ballot. The government instruction shall also
4include a study of the Constitution of the United States
5and the Bill of Rights contained in the Constitution and an
6assessment of a student’s knowledge of the Constitution and the
7Bill of Rights.
8(2) The one unit of civics shall include a culminating
9civic literacy examination that was not developed by the
10school district or accredited nonpublic school or the teacher
11providing the civics instruction. The examination shall
12include an assessment of the student’s knowledge of United
13States government and United States history, shall provide a
14means of assessing civics instruction in grades nine through
15twelve, and shall provide information that colleges and
16universities may use to determine if incoming students possess
17sufficient civic literacy. The one unit of civics shall not
18include any requirements related to political activism, service
19learning, civic engagement, action civics, or any cognate
20activity. The one unit of civics shall include instruction
21related to all of the following:
22(a) The intellectual sources of the United States’
23founding documents, including documents that illustrate the
24Greek, Hebrew, and Roman exemplars of liberty and republican
25government; the Christian synthesis of Greek, Hebrew, and Roman
26thought that emphasized the equal dignity of all individual
27humans in the eyes of God; the medieval English inheritance
28of common law, jury, local self-government, liberty, and
29representative government; the early modern English inheritance
30of Christian liberty, republicanism, the militia, accountable
31government, mixed government, parliamentary sovereignty,
32freedom of the press, and the English bill of rights and
33toleration Act; the colonial American inheritance of Christian
34liberty, self-government, and local government; and the
35enlightenment theories of John Locke, Montesquieu, Adam Smith,
-7-1and their contemporaries that universalized the European
2traditions of liberty.
3(b) The political and military narrative of the causes and
4progress of the American revolution.
5(c) The original intent of the documents described in
6unnumbered paragraph 1.
7(d) The Constitution of the United States, with an emphasis
8on the Bill of Rights contained in the Constitution, and the
9Constitution of the State of Iowa.
10(e) The basic principles of the United States’ republican
11form of government and the institutions and principles to
12preserve liberty and prevent misuse of government power,
13including balance of power; consent of the governed; the
14electoral college; federalism and the division of powers
15between the federal government and the states; individual
16liberties; rights of life, liberty, and property; popular
17sovereignty; religious freedom; an educated citizenry;
18representative government; civilian control of the military;
19rule of law; control of faction; checks and balances; and
20separation of powers among the executive, the legislature, and
21the judiciary.
22(f) The historical development of the United States’
23republican form of government, including the federalist and
24antifederalist debates; the rise and role of political parties;
25the rise of Jacksonian democracy; the expansion of the ideals
26and institutions of liberty and republican self-government
27to include all Americans, regardless of sex or race; the
28causes and the constitutional consequences of the Civil War;
29the thirteenth amendment, fourteenth amendment, fifteenth
30amendment, and the nineteenth amendment; the rise of the new
31deal administrative state; and United States Supreme Court
32cases, including Marbury v.Madison, McCulloch v.Maryland,
33Dred Scott v.Sandford, Pembina consolidated silver mining co.
34v.Pennsylvania, Plessy v.Ferguson, and Brown v.Board of
35Education.
-8- 1(g) The United States’ republican form of government
2compared with different forms of government including
3dictatorship, monarchy, oligarchy, theocracy, communism, and
4autocracy.
5(h) The structure, function, and processes of governmental
6institutions at the federal, state, and local levels.
7(i) Civic virtues exemplified in the lives of famous
8Americans, including George Washington, Benjamin Franklin,
9Alexander Hamilton, Abigail Adams, Thomas Jefferson, Andrew
10Jackson, Frederick Douglass, Susan B. Anthony, Abraham Lincoln,
11Ulysses S. Grant, Ely Parker, Thomas Edison, Andrew Carnegie,
12Walter Reed, Theodore Roosevelt, Charles Curtis, Will Rogers,
13Jim Thorpe, Jackie Robinson, George Marshall, Martin Luther
14King, Jr., Richard Feynman, Neil Armstrong, and Ronald Reagan.
15(3) The two units of United States history shall include an
16assessment of the student’s knowledge of important historical
17documents, including the Declaration of Independence,
18the Constitution of the United States, the Emancipation
19Proclamation, and excerpts from the federalist papers. One
20unit of United States history shall focus on the period
21of time beginning when the Mayflower landed on Cape Cod to
22the conclusion of the Civil War. The other unit of United
23States history shall focus on the period of time beginning
24at the conclusion of the Civil War to the present day, which
25unit shall include instruction related to the Holocaust and
26crimes against humanity that have occurred under communist
27regimes. The two units of United States history shall include
28significant material related to the War of Independence and
29the creation of the Constitution of the United States. The
30two units of United States history shall be designed to
31include significant biographical material related to exemplary
32Americans to provide both the nation’s shared constitutional
33history and historical context. The two units of United
34States history shall include instruction related to all of the
35following:
-9- 1(a) The United States’ exceptional and praiseworthy
2history.
3(b) The basic political, diplomatic, and military history
4of the United States, which shall include the period of
5discovery, early colonies, the War of Independence, the
6Civil War, the expansion of the United States to its present
7boundaries, World War I, World War II, the Cold War, the civil
8rights movement, and the period of time from the September 11
9attacks to the present day, which shall incorporate the study
10of primary source documents.
11(c) The basic history of business and technology in the
12United States, which shall incorporate the study of primary
13source documents.
14(d) The basic history of the religious and secular aspects
15of the United States’ common culture, which shall incorporate
16the study of primary source documents.
17(e) The concept that United States history shall be viewed
18as factual, not as constructed, shall be viewed as knowable,
19teachable, and testable, and shall be defined as the creation
20of a new nation based largely on the universal principles
21stated in the Declaration of Independence.
22(4) The one unit of western civilization shall include
23instruction related to all of the following:
24(a) Western civilization’s exceptional and praiseworthy
25history.
26(b) The basic political outline of western civilization,
27which shall include the history of ancient Israel, the free
28Greek city states, the Roman republic, the Roman empire, the
29Carolingian empire, the medieval Papacy, medieval England,
30absolutist France, parliamentary England, the Napoleonic
31wars, World War I, World War II, the communist and fascist
32challenges to the European order, and the survival and triumph
33of political and economic liberty, which shall incorporate the
34study of primary source documents.
35(c) The basic intellectual history of western civilization,
-10-1which shall include its Greek, Hebrew, and Roman sources;
2the Christian synthesis of those Greek, Hebrew, and Roman
3sources that emphasized the equal dignity of all individual
4humans in the eyes of God; the renaissance rediscovery of
5republican liberty; the reformation; the medieval and early
6modern English ideals and institutions of common law, jury,
7the militia, local self-government, political and religious
8liberty, representative government, accountable government,
9and parliamentary sovereignty; the scientific revolution;
10the enlightenment ideals of political and economic liberty;
11the nineteenth-century formulation of the scientific and
12humanist disciplines; the emergence of modern conservatism and
13liberalism; and the challenges to liberty of socialism and
14fascism, which shall incorporate the study of primary source
15documents.
16(d) The basic history of science and technology in western
17civilization, which shall emphasize Europe’s unique role as the
18matrix of the modern scientific and industrial world, which
19shall incorporate the study of primary source documents.
20(e) The basic economic history of western civilization,
21which shall emphasize Europe’s unique role as the matrix of
22modern mass prosperity, which emerged from the interplay
23of the ideals and institutions of economic liberty, secure
24property rights, entrepreneurial innovation, and the industrial
25revolution, which shall incorporate the study of primary source
26documents.
27(f) The basic history of the religious and secular aspects
28of western civilization’s cultures, which shall emphasize the
29protective aspects of liberty and incorporate the study of
30primary source documents.
31(g) The basic history of the fruitful and enduring
32attachment of western civilization’s free peoples to their
33nations and faiths, which shall incorporate the study of
34primary source documents.
35(h) The concept that western civilization’s history shall
-11-1be viewed as factual, not as constructed, shall be viewed as
2knowable, teachable, and testable, and shall be defined as the
3creation of a civilization based largely on the ideals and
4institutions of liberty.
5 Sec. 3. Section 256E.7, subsection 2, paragraph g, Code
62024, is amended to read as follows:
7g. Be subject to and comply with the requirements of section
8256.7, subsection 21, and the educational standards of section
9256.11, unless specifically waived by the state board during
10the application process; provided, however, that the state
11board shall not waive the educational standards related to
12social studies instruction established in section 256.11,
13subsections 3 and 4, and in section 256.11, subsection 5,
14paragraph “b”.
15 Sec. 4. Section 256F.4, subsection 2, Code 2024, is amended
16by adding the following new paragraph:
17 NEW PARAGRAPH. p. Be subject to and comply with the
18requirements of section 256.11, subsections 3 and 4, and
19section 256.11, subsection 5, paragraph “b”, relating to
20educational standards related to social studies instruction in
21the same manner as a school district.
22 Sec. 5. Section 262.9, Code 2024, is amended by adding the
23following new subsections:
24 NEW SUBSECTION. 39. a. (1) Direct the institutions of
25higher education under its control to adopt policies that
26require all students admitted to the baccalaureate degree
27program provided by the institution to take a civic literacy
28examination.
29(2) Subparagraph (1) shall not apply to a student who has
30taken and passed the civic literacy examination described in
31section 256.11, subsection 5, paragraph “b”, subparagraph (2).
32b. If a student does not pass the civic literacy examination
33described in paragraph “a”, the institution shall require
34the student to take a remedial civics course. The remedial
35civics course shall include a culminating civic literacy
-12-1examination. The remedial civics course shall not contain any
2requirements related to political activism, service learning,
3civic engagement, action civics, or any cognate activity.
4c. If a student does not pass the civic literacy examination
5described in paragraph “b”, the student shall be allowed to
6retake the examination as many times as is necessary for the
7student to pass the examination; provided, however, that the
8student shall not be allowed to graduate from the institution,
9or progress to more advanced civics courses, until the student
10passes the examination.
11 NEW SUBSECTION. 40. Prohibit the institutions of higher
12education under its control from awarding students any semester
13hours of credit for courses that require action civics or
14political activism.
15 Sec. 6. IMPLEMENTATION OF ACT. Section 25B.2, subsection
163, shall not apply to this Act.
17 Sec. 7. NO IMPACT ON GRADUATION REQUIREMENTS. The section
18of this Act amending section 256.11, subsection 5, paragraph
19“b”, shall not affect the graduation requirements applicable
20to a student enrolled in grades nine through twelve as of the
21effective date of this Act.
22EXPLANATION
23The inclusion of this explanation does not constitute agreement with
24the explanation’s substance by the members of the general assembly.
25This bill relates to education by modifying provisions
26related to the social studies instruction provided to students
27enrolled in grades 1 through 12 and the educational programs
28provided by the institutions of higher education under the
29control of the state board of regents.
30The bill provides that the social studies curriculum
31provided to students enrolled in grades one through six
32in school districts, accredited nonpublic schools, charter
33schools, and innovation zone schools shall include instruction
34related to the workings of the federal, state, and local levels
35of government; the rights and responsibilities of citizens
-13-1of the United States and the state of Iowa; the history of
2the secular and religious ideals and institutions of liberty;
3exemplary figures in western civilization, the United States,
4and the state of Iowa; the cultural heritage of western
5civilization, the United States, and the state of Iowa; the
6geography of the United States and the state of Iowa; the
7history and meaning of the United States flag and the national
8anthem, and certain specified admirable Americans.
9The bill makes similar changes to the social studies
10curriculum provided to students enrolled in grades 7 through
1112, but adds instructional requirements related to the study
12of prominent persons and prominent writings. The bill also
13provides that the social studies curriculum provided in
14grades seven and eight is to include at least one semester of
15instruction, or the trimester or quarter equivalent, in civics,
16United States history, the history of western civilization,
17Iowa history, and economics. The bill establishes what such
18instruction is to include.
19Current law requires school districts, accredited nonpublic
20schools, and charter schools to offer and teach five units
21of social studies in grades 9 through 12, which includes a
22minimum of one-half unit of United States government and
23one unit of United States history. The bill requires all
24students to complete a minimum of one-half unit of United
25States government, one unit of civics, two units of United
26States history, and one unit of western civilization. The
27bill establishes prohibitions and requirements related to this
28instruction, including required examinations and topics of
29instruction and prohibitions related to including forms of
30political activism in civics instruction. The bill provides
31that the social studies curriculum is required to incorporate
32the study of certain specified documents that are important
33to the history of the United States. The bill provides that
34these changes shall not affect the graduation requirements
35applicable to a student enrolled in grades 9 through 12 as of
-14-1the effective date of the bill.
2The bill requires the state board of regents to direct
3the institutions of higher education under its control to
4adopt policies that require all students admitted to the
5baccalaureate degree program provided by the institution to
6take a civic literacy examination. The bill provides that,
7if a student does not pass the examination, the institution
8shall require the student to take a remedial civics course
9that contains a culminating civic literacy examination. If
10the student fails to pass this examination as well, the bill
11provides that the student may retake the examination, but the
12student will not be allowed to graduate from the institution,
13or progress to more advanced civics courses, until the student
14passes the examination.
15The bill requires the state board of regents to prohibit
16the institutions of higher education under its control from
17awarding students any semester hours of credit for courses that
18require action civics or political activism.
19The bill may include a state mandate as defined in Code
20section 25B.3. The bill makes inapplicable Code section
2125B.2, subsection 3, which would relieve a school district
22from complying with a state mandate if funding for the cost of
23the state mandate is not provided or specified. Therefore,
24school districts are required to comply with any state mandate
25included in the bill.
-15-jda/jh
2related to the social studies instruction provided to
3students enrolled in grades one through twelve and the
4educational programs provided by the institutions of higher
5education under the control of the state board of regents.
6BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF IOWA:
1 Section 1. Section 256.11, subsections 3 and 4, Code 2024,
2are amended to read as follows:
33. a. The following areas shall be taught in grades
4one through six: English-language arts, social studies,
5mathematics, science, health, physical education, traffic
6safety, music, visual art, and, subject to section 279.80,
7age-appropriate and research-based human growth and
8development. Computer science instruction incorporating
9the standards established under section 256.7, subsection
1026, paragraph “a”, subparagraph (4), shall be offered in
11at least one grade level commencing with the school year
12beginning July 1, 2023. The health curriculum shall include
13the characteristics of communicable diseases. The state board
14as part of accreditation standards shall adopt curriculum
15definitions for implementing the elementary program.
16b. The social studies curriculum shall include instruction
17related to all of the following:
18(1) The workings of the federal, state, and local levels of
19government.
20(2) The rights and responsibilities of citizens of the
21United States and the state of Iowa.
22(3) The history of the secular and religious ideals and
23institutions of liberty, including political, religious,
24economic, social, and cultural liberty, in western
25civilization, the United States, and the state of Iowa, which
26emphasizes the good, worthwhile, and best achievements of these
27ideals and institutions of liberty.
28(4) Exemplary figures in western civilization, the United
29States, and the state of Iowa who have fought to secure
30liberty.
31(5) The cultural heritage of western civilization, the
32United States, and the state of Iowa.
33(6) The geography of the United States and the state of
34Iowa.
35(7) The history and meaning of the United States flag and
-1-1the national anthem.
2(8) Admirable Americans, including Benjamin Franklin,
3George Washington, Frederick Douglass, Elizabeth Cady Stanton,
4and Abraham Lincoln.
5c. During grades five and six, the instruction provided as
6part of the social studies curriculum shall incorporate the
7study of documents that are important to the history of the
8United States, including all of the following:
9(1) The Mayflower compact.
10(2) Common Sense, written by Thomas Paine.
11(3) The Declaration of Independence.
12(4) The Articles of Confederation.
13(5) The Pennsylvania Act for the gradual abolition of
14slavery.
15(6) The Virginia statute for religious freedom.
16(7) The northwest ordinance.
17(8) The Constitution of the United States.
18(9) The federalist papers, including federalist number ten
19and federalist number fifty-one.
20(10) A transcript of George Washington’s farewell address.
21(11) Relevant excerpts from Democracy in America written by
22Alexis de Tocqueville.
23(12) A transcript of the first debate between Abraham
24Lincoln and Stephen A.Douglas.
25(13) The Emancipation Proclamation.
26(14) The writings of the founding fathers.
274. a. The following shall be taught in grades seven and
28eight: English-language arts; social studies; mathematics;
29science; health; age-appropriate and research-based human
30growth and development; career exploration and development;
31physical education; music; and visual art. Computer science
32instruction incorporating the standards established under
33section 256.7, subsection 26, paragraph “a”, subparagraph (4),
34shall be offered in at least one grade level commencing with
35the school year beginning July 1, 2023. Career exploration
-2-1and development shall be designed so that students are
2appropriately prepared to create an individual career
3and academic plan pursuant to section 279.61, incorporate
4foundational career and technical education concepts aligned
5with the six career and technical education service areas as
6defined in subsection 5, paragraph “h”, incorporate relevant
7twenty-first century skills to facilitate career readiness,
8and introduce students to career opportunities within the
9local community and across this state. The health curriculum
10shall include age-appropriate and research-based information
11regarding the characteristics of sexually transmitted diseases.
12The state board as part of accreditation standards shall adopt
13curriculum definitions for implementing the program in grades
14seven and eight. However, this subsection shall not apply to
15the teaching of career exploration and development in nonpublic
16schools.
17b. (1) The social studies curriculum shall require at
18least one semester of instruction, or the trimester or quarter
19equivalent, in each of the following areas:
20(a) Civics, which shall include instruction related to all
21of the following:
22(i) The intellectual sources of the United States’ founding
23documents.
24(ii) The political and military narrative of the causes and
25progress of the American Revolution.
26(iii) The United States’ founding documents and the
27original intent of such documents.
28(iv) The Constitution of the United States, with emphasis on
29the Bill of Rights, and the Constitution of the State of Iowa.
30(v) The basic principles of the United States’ republican
31form of government.
32(vi) The historical development of the United States’
33republican form of government.
34(vii) The United States’ republican form of government
35compared with different forms of government including
-3-1dictatorship, monarchy, oligarchy, theocracy, communism, and
2autocracy.
3(viii) The structure, function, and processes of government
4institutions at the federal, state, and local levels.
5(ix) The civic virtues exemplified in the lives of famous
6Americans.
7(b) United States history, which shall include instruction
8related to all of the following:
9(i) The study of and devotion to the United States’
10exceptional and praiseworthy history.
11(ii) The basic political, diplomatic, and military
12history of the United States, which shall include the period
13of discovery, early colonies, the War of Independence, the
14Civil War, the expansion of the United States to its present
15boundaries, World War I, World War II, the Cold War, the civil
16rights movement, and the period of time from the September 11
17attacks to the present day, which shall incorporate the study
18of primary source documents.
19(iii) The basic history of business and technology in the
20United States, which shall incorporate the study of primary
21source documents.
22(iv) The basic history of the religious and secular aspects
23of the United States’ common culture, which shall incorporate
24the study of primary source documents.
25(v) The concept that United States history shall be viewed
26as factual, not as constructed, shall be viewed as knowable,
27teachable, and testable, and shall be defined as the creation
28of a new nation based largely on the universal principles
29stated in the Declaration of Independence.
30(c) The history of western civilization, which shall
31include instruction that constitutes an extended, coherent
32account of western civilization, from Athens, Jerusalem, and
33Rome to the present day, to understand the nature of the
34nation’s ideals and institutions of liberty, how such ideals
35and institutions of liberty came into existence, and what
-4-1actions the nation’s forefathers took to preserve them.
2(d) Iowa history, to be taught during grade eight, which
3shall include instruction related to all of the following:
4(i) The history of the founding of Iowa.
5(ii) The history of famous Iowans and their involvement in
6important events in history.
7(iii) How Iowans have impacted government, policies,
8issues, and procedures over the years.
9(iv) The history of the state motto, bird, tree, and rock.
10(e) Economics, to be taught during grade eight. The
11economics instruction shall focus on the free enterprise system
12and its benefits. The economics curriculum shall include
13instruction related to the failures of economic systems of
14communist regimes and the difference between capitalist and
15communist economic systems.
16(2) The social studies curriculum shall include instruction
17related to admirable Americans, including Benjamin Franklin,
18George Washington, Frederick Douglass, Elizabeth Cady Stanton,
19and Abraham Lincoln.
20(3) The instruction provided as part of the social studies
21curriculum shall incorporate the study of documents that are
22important to the history of the United States, including all
23of the following:
24(a) The Mayflower compact.
25(b) Common Sense, written by Thomas Paine.
26(c) The Declaration of Independence.
27(d) The Articles of Confederation.
28(e) The Pennsylvania Act for the gradual abolition of
29slavery.
30(f) The Virginia statute for religious freedom.
31(g) The northwest ordinance.
32(h) The Constitution of the United States.
33(i) The federalist papers, including federalist number ten
34and federalist number fifty-one.
35(j) A transcript of George Washington’s farewell address.
-5- 1(k) Relevant excerpts from Democracy in America written by
2Alexis de Tocqueville.
3(l) A transcript of the first debate between Abraham Lincoln
4and Stephen A. Douglas.
5(m) The Emancipation Proclamation.
6(n) The writings of the founding fathers.
7 Sec. 2. Section 256.11, subsection 5, paragraph b, Code
82024, is amended to read as follows:
9b. Five units of the social studies including instruction
10in voting statutes and procedures, voter registration
11requirements, the use of paper ballots and voting systems in
12the election process, and the method of acquiring and casting
13an absentee ballot. All students shall complete a minimum of
14one-half unit of United States government, and one unit of
15civics, two units of United States history, and one unit of
16western civilization. The social studies curriculum shall not
17include any advanced placement course that requires action
18civics. The social studies curriculum shall incorporate the
19study of documents that are important to the history of the
20United States, including the Mayflower compact; Common Sense,
21written by Thomas Paine; the Declaration of Independence; the
22Articles of Confederation; the Pennsylvania Act for the gradual
23abolition of slavery; the Virginia statute for religious
24freedom; the northwest ordinance; the Constitution of the
25United States; the federalist papers, including federalist
26number ten and federalist number fifty-one; a transcript of
27George Washington’s farewell address; relevant excerpts from
28Democracy in America written by Alexis de Tocqueville; a
29transcript of the first debate between Abraham Lincoln and
30Stephen A. Douglas; the Emancipation Proclamation; and the
31writings of the founding fathers.
32(1) The one-half unit of United States government shall
33include the voting procedure as described in this lettered
34paragraph and section 280.9A and other instruction related
35to voting statutes and procedures, voter registration
-6-1requirements, the use of paper ballots and voting systems in
2the election process, and the method of acquiring and casting
3an absentee ballot. The government instruction shall also
4include a study of the Constitution of the United States
5and the Bill of Rights contained in the Constitution and an
6assessment of a student’s knowledge of the Constitution and the
7Bill of Rights.
8(2) The one unit of civics shall include a culminating
9civic literacy examination that was not developed by the
10school district or accredited nonpublic school or the teacher
11providing the civics instruction. The examination shall
12include an assessment of the student’s knowledge of United
13States government and United States history, shall provide a
14means of assessing civics instruction in grades nine through
15twelve, and shall provide information that colleges and
16universities may use to determine if incoming students possess
17sufficient civic literacy. The one unit of civics shall not
18include any requirements related to political activism, service
19learning, civic engagement, action civics, or any cognate
20activity. The one unit of civics shall include instruction
21related to all of the following:
22(a) The intellectual sources of the United States’
23founding documents, including documents that illustrate the
24Greek, Hebrew, and Roman exemplars of liberty and republican
25government; the Christian synthesis of Greek, Hebrew, and Roman
26thought that emphasized the equal dignity of all individual
27humans in the eyes of God; the medieval English inheritance
28of common law, jury, local self-government, liberty, and
29representative government; the early modern English inheritance
30of Christian liberty, republicanism, the militia, accountable
31government, mixed government, parliamentary sovereignty,
32freedom of the press, and the English bill of rights and
33toleration Act; the colonial American inheritance of Christian
34liberty, self-government, and local government; and the
35enlightenment theories of John Locke, Montesquieu, Adam Smith,
-7-1and their contemporaries that universalized the European
2traditions of liberty.
3(b) The political and military narrative of the causes and
4progress of the American revolution.
5(c) The original intent of the documents described in
6unnumbered paragraph 1.
7(d) The Constitution of the United States, with an emphasis
8on the Bill of Rights contained in the Constitution, and the
9Constitution of the State of Iowa.
10(e) The basic principles of the United States’ republican
11form of government and the institutions and principles to
12preserve liberty and prevent misuse of government power,
13including balance of power; consent of the governed; the
14electoral college; federalism and the division of powers
15between the federal government and the states; individual
16liberties; rights of life, liberty, and property; popular
17sovereignty; religious freedom; an educated citizenry;
18representative government; civilian control of the military;
19rule of law; control of faction; checks and balances; and
20separation of powers among the executive, the legislature, and
21the judiciary.
22(f) The historical development of the United States’
23republican form of government, including the federalist and
24antifederalist debates; the rise and role of political parties;
25the rise of Jacksonian democracy; the expansion of the ideals
26and institutions of liberty and republican self-government
27to include all Americans, regardless of sex or race; the
28causes and the constitutional consequences of the Civil War;
29the thirteenth amendment, fourteenth amendment, fifteenth
30amendment, and the nineteenth amendment; the rise of the new
31deal administrative state; and United States Supreme Court
32cases, including Marbury v.Madison, McCulloch v.Maryland,
33Dred Scott v.Sandford, Pembina consolidated silver mining co.
34v.Pennsylvania, Plessy v.Ferguson, and Brown v.Board of
35Education.
-8- 1(g) The United States’ republican form of government
2compared with different forms of government including
3dictatorship, monarchy, oligarchy, theocracy, communism, and
4autocracy.
5(h) The structure, function, and processes of governmental
6institutions at the federal, state, and local levels.
7(i) Civic virtues exemplified in the lives of famous
8Americans, including George Washington, Benjamin Franklin,
9Alexander Hamilton, Abigail Adams, Thomas Jefferson, Andrew
10Jackson, Frederick Douglass, Susan B. Anthony, Abraham Lincoln,
11Ulysses S. Grant, Ely Parker, Thomas Edison, Andrew Carnegie,
12Walter Reed, Theodore Roosevelt, Charles Curtis, Will Rogers,
13Jim Thorpe, Jackie Robinson, George Marshall, Martin Luther
14King, Jr., Richard Feynman, Neil Armstrong, and Ronald Reagan.
15(3) The two units of United States history shall include an
16assessment of the student’s knowledge of important historical
17documents, including the Declaration of Independence,
18the Constitution of the United States, the Emancipation
19Proclamation, and excerpts from the federalist papers. One
20unit of United States history shall focus on the period
21of time beginning when the Mayflower landed on Cape Cod to
22the conclusion of the Civil War. The other unit of United
23States history shall focus on the period of time beginning
24at the conclusion of the Civil War to the present day, which
25unit shall include instruction related to the Holocaust and
26crimes against humanity that have occurred under communist
27regimes. The two units of United States history shall include
28significant material related to the War of Independence and
29the creation of the Constitution of the United States. The
30two units of United States history shall be designed to
31include significant biographical material related to exemplary
32Americans to provide both the nation’s shared constitutional
33history and historical context. The two units of United
34States history shall include instruction related to all of the
35following:
-9- 1(a) The United States’ exceptional and praiseworthy
2history.
3(b) The basic political, diplomatic, and military history
4of the United States, which shall include the period of
5discovery, early colonies, the War of Independence, the
6Civil War, the expansion of the United States to its present
7boundaries, World War I, World War II, the Cold War, the civil
8rights movement, and the period of time from the September 11
9attacks to the present day, which shall incorporate the study
10of primary source documents.
11(c) The basic history of business and technology in the
12United States, which shall incorporate the study of primary
13source documents.
14(d) The basic history of the religious and secular aspects
15of the United States’ common culture, which shall incorporate
16the study of primary source documents.
17(e) The concept that United States history shall be viewed
18as factual, not as constructed, shall be viewed as knowable,
19teachable, and testable, and shall be defined as the creation
20of a new nation based largely on the universal principles
21stated in the Declaration of Independence.
22(4) The one unit of western civilization shall include
23instruction related to all of the following:
24(a) Western civilization’s exceptional and praiseworthy
25history.
26(b) The basic political outline of western civilization,
27which shall include the history of ancient Israel, the free
28Greek city states, the Roman republic, the Roman empire, the
29Carolingian empire, the medieval Papacy, medieval England,
30absolutist France, parliamentary England, the Napoleonic
31wars, World War I, World War II, the communist and fascist
32challenges to the European order, and the survival and triumph
33of political and economic liberty, which shall incorporate the
34study of primary source documents.
35(c) The basic intellectual history of western civilization,
-10-1which shall include its Greek, Hebrew, and Roman sources;
2the Christian synthesis of those Greek, Hebrew, and Roman
3sources that emphasized the equal dignity of all individual
4humans in the eyes of God; the renaissance rediscovery of
5republican liberty; the reformation; the medieval and early
6modern English ideals and institutions of common law, jury,
7the militia, local self-government, political and religious
8liberty, representative government, accountable government,
9and parliamentary sovereignty; the scientific revolution;
10the enlightenment ideals of political and economic liberty;
11the nineteenth-century formulation of the scientific and
12humanist disciplines; the emergence of modern conservatism and
13liberalism; and the challenges to liberty of socialism and
14fascism, which shall incorporate the study of primary source
15documents.
16(d) The basic history of science and technology in western
17civilization, which shall emphasize Europe’s unique role as the
18matrix of the modern scientific and industrial world, which
19shall incorporate the study of primary source documents.
20(e) The basic economic history of western civilization,
21which shall emphasize Europe’s unique role as the matrix of
22modern mass prosperity, which emerged from the interplay
23of the ideals and institutions of economic liberty, secure
24property rights, entrepreneurial innovation, and the industrial
25revolution, which shall incorporate the study of primary source
26documents.
27(f) The basic history of the religious and secular aspects
28of western civilization’s cultures, which shall emphasize the
29protective aspects of liberty and incorporate the study of
30primary source documents.
31(g) The basic history of the fruitful and enduring
32attachment of western civilization’s free peoples to their
33nations and faiths, which shall incorporate the study of
34primary source documents.
35(h) The concept that western civilization’s history shall
-11-1be viewed as factual, not as constructed, shall be viewed as
2knowable, teachable, and testable, and shall be defined as the
3creation of a civilization based largely on the ideals and
4institutions of liberty.
5 Sec. 3. Section 256E.7, subsection 2, paragraph g, Code
62024, is amended to read as follows:
7g. Be subject to and comply with the requirements of section
8256.7, subsection 21, and the educational standards of section
9256.11, unless specifically waived by the state board during
10the application process; provided, however, that the state
11board shall not waive the educational standards related to
12social studies instruction established in section 256.11,
13subsections 3 and 4, and in section 256.11, subsection 5,
14paragraph “b”.
15 Sec. 4. Section 256F.4, subsection 2, Code 2024, is amended
16by adding the following new paragraph:
17 NEW PARAGRAPH. p. Be subject to and comply with the
18requirements of section 256.11, subsections 3 and 4, and
19section 256.11, subsection 5, paragraph “b”, relating to
20educational standards related to social studies instruction in
21the same manner as a school district.
22 Sec. 5. Section 262.9, Code 2024, is amended by adding the
23following new subsections:
24 NEW SUBSECTION. 39. a. (1) Direct the institutions of
25higher education under its control to adopt policies that
26require all students admitted to the baccalaureate degree
27program provided by the institution to take a civic literacy
28examination.
29(2) Subparagraph (1) shall not apply to a student who has
30taken and passed the civic literacy examination described in
31section 256.11, subsection 5, paragraph “b”, subparagraph (2).
32b. If a student does not pass the civic literacy examination
33described in paragraph “a”, the institution shall require
34the student to take a remedial civics course. The remedial
35civics course shall include a culminating civic literacy
-12-1examination. The remedial civics course shall not contain any
2requirements related to political activism, service learning,
3civic engagement, action civics, or any cognate activity.
4c. If a student does not pass the civic literacy examination
5described in paragraph “b”, the student shall be allowed to
6retake the examination as many times as is necessary for the
7student to pass the examination; provided, however, that the
8student shall not be allowed to graduate from the institution,
9or progress to more advanced civics courses, until the student
10passes the examination.
11 NEW SUBSECTION. 40. Prohibit the institutions of higher
12education under its control from awarding students any semester
13hours of credit for courses that require action civics or
14political activism.
15 Sec. 6. IMPLEMENTATION OF ACT. Section 25B.2, subsection
163, shall not apply to this Act.
17 Sec. 7. NO IMPACT ON GRADUATION REQUIREMENTS. The section
18of this Act amending section 256.11, subsection 5, paragraph
19“b”, shall not affect the graduation requirements applicable
20to a student enrolled in grades nine through twelve as of the
21effective date of this Act.
22EXPLANATION
23The inclusion of this explanation does not constitute agreement with
24the explanation’s substance by the members of the general assembly.
25This bill relates to education by modifying provisions
26related to the social studies instruction provided to students
27enrolled in grades 1 through 12 and the educational programs
28provided by the institutions of higher education under the
29control of the state board of regents.
30The bill provides that the social studies curriculum
31provided to students enrolled in grades one through six
32in school districts, accredited nonpublic schools, charter
33schools, and innovation zone schools shall include instruction
34related to the workings of the federal, state, and local levels
35of government; the rights and responsibilities of citizens
-13-1of the United States and the state of Iowa; the history of
2the secular and religious ideals and institutions of liberty;
3exemplary figures in western civilization, the United States,
4and the state of Iowa; the cultural heritage of western
5civilization, the United States, and the state of Iowa; the
6geography of the United States and the state of Iowa; the
7history and meaning of the United States flag and the national
8anthem, and certain specified admirable Americans.
9The bill makes similar changes to the social studies
10curriculum provided to students enrolled in grades 7 through
1112, but adds instructional requirements related to the study
12of prominent persons and prominent writings. The bill also
13provides that the social studies curriculum provided in
14grades seven and eight is to include at least one semester of
15instruction, or the trimester or quarter equivalent, in civics,
16United States history, the history of western civilization,
17Iowa history, and economics. The bill establishes what such
18instruction is to include.
19Current law requires school districts, accredited nonpublic
20schools, and charter schools to offer and teach five units
21of social studies in grades 9 through 12, which includes a
22minimum of one-half unit of United States government and
23one unit of United States history. The bill requires all
24students to complete a minimum of one-half unit of United
25States government, one unit of civics, two units of United
26States history, and one unit of western civilization. The
27bill establishes prohibitions and requirements related to this
28instruction, including required examinations and topics of
29instruction and prohibitions related to including forms of
30political activism in civics instruction. The bill provides
31that the social studies curriculum is required to incorporate
32the study of certain specified documents that are important
33to the history of the United States. The bill provides that
34these changes shall not affect the graduation requirements
35applicable to a student enrolled in grades 9 through 12 as of
-14-1the effective date of the bill.
2The bill requires the state board of regents to direct
3the institutions of higher education under its control to
4adopt policies that require all students admitted to the
5baccalaureate degree program provided by the institution to
6take a civic literacy examination. The bill provides that,
7if a student does not pass the examination, the institution
8shall require the student to take a remedial civics course
9that contains a culminating civic literacy examination. If
10the student fails to pass this examination as well, the bill
11provides that the student may retake the examination, but the
12student will not be allowed to graduate from the institution,
13or progress to more advanced civics courses, until the student
14passes the examination.
15The bill requires the state board of regents to prohibit
16the institutions of higher education under its control from
17awarding students any semester hours of credit for courses that
18require action civics or political activism.
19The bill may include a state mandate as defined in Code
20section 25B.3. The bill makes inapplicable Code section
2125B.2, subsection 3, which would relieve a school district
22from complying with a state mandate if funding for the cost of
23the state mandate is not provided or specified. Therefore,
24school districts are required to comply with any state mandate
25included in the bill.
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