In Rapid City School hallways, the challenge is not simply textbooks and homework; it’s the words that students and teachers choose to not say. As protestors marched demanding equality and justice for those who were marginalized, South Dakota School leaders moved to keep the conservative district policies intact and enforce neutrality for those stepping into school hallways, student and teacher alike.
In 2023, the state adopted new Social Studies curriculum to fit with more conservative views based on the Hillsdale 1776 curriculum. The South Dakota Department of Education dismissed claims that this new curriculum gave a sanitized version of American history in an official statement on their website saying, “The standards incorporate some of the best of American history and some of the worst.” Teachers have observed a reality that is altogether different.
While the department of education argues this new curriculum improves learning, former Stevens High School teacher David Herrick and current Stevens High School teacher Darren Paulsen notice something different: students censoring themselves to blend in and prevent backlash.
Some ways that students censor themselves would be in terms of expressing their lifestyle or political views. “I do feel they might need to self-censor in regards to their peers and friends, not so much for administration,” Herrick said. Paulsen has seen a similar trend seeing that students do this to prevent the backlash that they may face from peers. “I do feel they [self-censor] to prevent possible backlash that could possibly arise or a heated debate over a topic,” he said.
Teachers have also had to navigate keeping their own personal views on issues out of the classroom to comply with the neutrality mandate. “I do try to make sure I do it justice and keep bias out of it; I really focus on historical facts for my kids to think for themselves,” Paulsen said.
However, some classroom environments become so charged or teachers share views that students make big decisions in regard to their education. “I actually dropped my government class because I didn’t have the same political views as my teacher and most the students in here,” Stevens senior Jasmine Rasch said. “I think South Dakota lets politics become a conversation too early in the classroom.”
Some students on the other hand might find the conflict an opportunity to share their beliefs more openly with others. “I feel other students might but for me the opposing political view, since we live in a conservative state, makes me voice my opinions louder than I usually would,” senior Joselyn Johnson (Cal) said. Rasch and Johnson (Cal) were also asked how their experiences impacted them in regards to preparing for their future in a opinion divided world. “I feel like it would discourage me from joining a political party and from voting since it kinda caused me to not get that aspect of education,” Rasch said.
Johnson however, had a different perspective, she said “It gives me more confidence in sharing my opinion with other people that might not share my beliefs but are willing to listen.” This stark contrast, some students experiencing negative connotations while others find more confidence, has displayed the very real and impactful consequences of the neutral mandate South Dakota has imposed for the classroom.
As the standards and requirements shift to accommodate the demand for a neutral place of learning, one question remains for the students and staff of Stevens and other schools in South Dakota. Can a truly neutral curriculum prepare our students for a world that is anything but?
