Kansas: A Case Study in Social Studies Curricular Reform

0n March 12,1991, the Kansas State Board of Education adopted the Quality Performance Accreditation System which focused on “the skills, attitudes, and disciplines that students will need to live, learn, and work in a global society….[and] in the 21st century.” According to the State Board, students needed to acquire these learning or outcomes “through an integrated, comprehensive curriculum with emphasis on creative thinking, problem solving, and communication.” (Kansas State Board of Education, 1992,p.2) Statewide assessment in the major subject areas would serve as a major indicator of each district’s performance. Five years later, Kansas is preparing students for life in a “worldwide” society; is placing greater emphasis on content and less on skills; is designing standards as opposed to outcomes; and, at least in the area of social studies, is considering postponing statewide assessment for at least two years, due in part to criticism leveled against a pilot social studies assessment program. Global or worldwide society? Skills or knowledge? Standards or outcomes? Social studies or social sciences? What were the reasons for these changes? How did they affect social studies within the state? What lessons were learned which might benefit other stales? These questions serve as the focus of this article, which is a case study of curricular reform at the state level in an era of national curricular change.