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Board reviews K–12 social-studies redesign and multiple new high-school course proposals
Summary
District curriculum staff presented a six-year social-studies review focused on a 9–12 pathway, five proposed new high-school courses and a shift to an inquiry-based pre-AP framework; teachers discussed placement of honors and AP offerings.
The Franklin Board of Education on Oct. 22 heard a multi-year social-studies curriculum review and a slate of new course proposals for grades 9–12.
Amanda Jewell, who presented the high-school portion of the review, told the board the K–12 curriculum review began in 2019 and that the current proposal wraps the 9–12 pathway into a consistent, inquiry-based framework recommended by the Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction. Jewell said the proposal would add five new courses — pre-AP World History and Geography (freshman-level), AP World History: Modern, Introduction to Law, Early Empires, and Myths, Movies and Museums — while removing six existing courses that no longer fit the redesigned pathway.
Jewell said required courses would include a pre-AP freshman year and that sophomores would choose between U.S. History or AP U.S. History. She explained that AP courses may translate to college credit depending on the receiving university and are not guaranteed credits.
High-school teachers in the room described how the proposed changes affect student placement and access. Anna Rembert, who teaches honors U.S. History and AP U.S. History, said she had seen a decline in honors enrollment over seven years and a steady increase in AP enrollment. "We've seen a lot of kids transitioning already out of that honors and into AP if they're wanting that challenge," Rembert said. Another teacher said the pre-AP freshman framework brings some college-level writing and rigor previously concentrated in honors classes into the larger freshman population, which could reduce misplacement and provide broader access to higher-level skills.
Curriculum staff noted that the proposed course additions were drawn from teacher interest and student demand. The district emphasized that new courses must not create additional staffing obligations: "One of the stipulations was that it could not have a fiscal impact to staffing," the presenter said. Staff also said some proposed courses may carry modest startup costs for materials or professional development and that enrollment will ultimately determine which courses run each year.
Board members and staff also discussed related math and career pathway items in the meeting, including plans for dual-enrollment calculus offerings (Calc III) that district leaders said would be delivered in-house through qualified staff and could expand access without significant added staffing costs.
No formal action to adopt the new-courses list or the social-studies pathway was taken at the Oct. 22 meeting; the item remained at the discussion and first-review stage pending further review and a follow-up presentation to the board.
