SACRAMENTO, Calif. — Over a week after taking to the steps of the State Capitol calling for a change to how Native American history is taught in California schools, Assembly member James Ramos has introduced Assembly Bill 1703.
"I authored AB 1703 because it’s critical that we teach all students about the diversity of California’s more than 100 tribes,” Ramos said in a statement.
According to his office, there has been support buildings to revamp the state’s Native American social science curriculum. His office adds that the California Department of Education, as well as more than 600 individuals and 28 organizations, have showed their support and are backing the bill.
"This is just the beginning of a long process, and we're not going to sit back and take no for an answer," Ramos said in an interview with ABC10 earlier this month. "We're going to keep moving pieces of legislation with strong support with strong allies till we get the curriculum changed for factual information."
According to the press release, "AB 1703 would require that local districts identify the extent of the achievement gap between Native American students and their non-Native peers and strategies to close them." The finding, when complete, will be set to the Assembly and Senate Education committees.
Ramos' office expects the bill to be assigned to a committee in the next several weeks.
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