Abstract
The current History/Social Science Framework currently used by social studies educators in today's classroom is substantially out of date as it was written in 1986. The primary authors of this document were European American senior scholars working within a European American perspective who in return must have been educated in the early 1970s. As a result, the “History/Social Science is structured largely as a story of European immigration and the construction of a nation around Judeo-Christian values and European political institutions" (Sleeter & Stillman, 2005, p. 43) due to the political and ethnic makeup of the people commissioned to draft the 1986 framework. Since the initial adoption in 1987, the History/Social Science Framework is supposed to be updated every seven years but has been "readopted three times with only minor updates" (Sleeter & Stillman, 2005 p. 33). According to Campbell (2000), "the classical, Eurocentric curriculum inaccurately represents history and the humanities, discounting or ignoring the contributions of people of color" (p. 305) Because of this, the present History/Social Science curriculum is divorced from the realities and experiences of the youth, particularly, students of color many of who cannot relate to History/Social Science curriculum. The historical content, facts and figures printed in textbooks and taught by educators is predetermined. Due to the framework, most schools fail to teach an accurate or omits, the complete history of minorities, such as the recruitment and contribution of the Hmong by the CIA during the conflict in Vietnam. This is a problem created in part by the failure to revise the History/Social Science Framework and Standards. Thus, with this lack of an inclusive and equitable curriculum, the responsibility is placed on teachers to develop the multicultural and Hmong focused lessons for California's students. The absence of Hmong American history from the standard curriculum in today's public schools has created a disconnection with Hmong American's identity, culture and heritage. Hmong American students feel alienated because they are group labeled and lumped as the model minority and their culture and history is excluded as a larger part of American history. For this reason, proponents of teaching and incorporating history of minorities history into the curricula suggest a student learning about his or her culture not only improves individual self-esteem and provides a sense of identity, but raises their grades and increases interest in school (Asante, 1991; Banks, 1993; King 1992; Ladson-Billing, 1999). The same can be said for Hmong American students who feel alienated because the history and contribution of the Hmong is underrepresented in school curriculum. Thus, the teaching of this supplemental unit on Hmong American history in a school setting intention is to provide an equitable and need to empower Hmong American students, who are one of the lowest academically performing minorities in California underrepresented and overtly omitted in school curriculum. For this supplemental unit on Hmong and their contribution to American in Laos during the conflict in Southeast Asia to be successful, the author identify that the incorporation and implementing culturally responsive and critical pedagogical teaching strategies in essential.