Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Commission reviews DESE rubric to prevent antisemitism, requests clarity on school roles and rollout
Summary
Commissioners reviewed a draft DESE rubric for preventing antisemitism and societal bias in instructional materials and professional development, urged clearer statements about local school committee responsibilities and monitoring, asked about educator training and audits, and were told the draft is open for public comment through Dec. 1, 2025.
The commission on civic education reviewed a draft Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE) rubric intended to guide evaluation of instructional materials and professional development aimed at preventing antisemitism and societal bias.
During an extended discussion, the chair said the rubric should "remind the school districts of their legal obligations to adhere to nondiscrimination of all sorts" and recommended adding "a statement on the monitoring process for the implementation and adherence to this rubric." The chair also suggested the rubric explicitly delineate "school committee's role in being responsible for approving and overseeing instructional materials." (Chair, meeting remarks at 00:00:02–00:02:05.)
Commissioner Shikir asked whether DESE will provide training and education for the educators who will use the rubric and whether there will be an "audit on current content to ensure that there's alignment."…
Already have an account? Log in
Subscribe to keep reading
Unlock the rest of this article — and every article on Citizen Portal.
- Unlimited articles
- AI-powered breakdowns of topics, speakers, decisions, and budgets
- Instant alerts when your location has a new meeting
- Follow topics and more locations
- 1,000 AI Insights / month, plus AI Chat
