ACTA in the NewsHistorical Literacy
National group backs NC REACH Act
RALEIGH — A national group focused on academic freedom and excellence is backing a North Carolina House bill that would increase courses in American history and government.
A new report released Tuesday criticizes New England colleges for being lax on core requirements like history and foreign languages.
The American Council of Trustees and Alumni’s latest survey calls out Northeastern colleges for not requiring all students to take a broad range of courses.
The Council surveyed more than three hundred schools in the region and found only 13 percent require foreign language courses at the intermediate level. Only 6 percent require a course in U.S. government or history. That’s compared to the national average of 18 percent.
“The Northeast region has long been viewed as a bastion of excellence in American higher education and home to many of this country’s most highly regarded institutions,” said ACTA President Michael Poliakoff. “However, what we have found is that a majority of these colleges and universities are failing, at the most fundamental level, to provide an education geared toward long-term career success and informed citizenship.”
Overall, five Northeastern colleges earned an “A” by requiring enough core subjects. Three are military academies and the other two are Thomas More College of Liberal Arts in New Hampshire and St. John’s College in Maryland.
RALEIGH — A national group focused on academic freedom and excellence is backing a North Carolina House bill that would increase courses in American history and government.
On April 2, Nick Down, ACTA’s Associate Director of External Affairs, offered proponent testimony before the North Carolina House Higher Education Committee on H. 7. This legislation would require all students attending public colleges and universities within the state to take a three-credit hour course in American history prior to graduation. Read the full testimony […]
In this episode, ACTA Vice President of Policy Bradley Jackson talks with Jane Calvert, director of the John Dickinson Writings Project and a member of ACTA’s National Commission on American History and Civic Education.
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