A trio of Georgia education laws that took effect a few weeks ago have set the stage for a possibly contentious opening to Georgia’s school year next month.
The laws address how teachers talk about potentially divisive topics in the classroom and parental control over education.
The source of heated controversy during the legislative session, the laws are now in the hands of schools, school districts, and the state Department of Education to implement.
One law - often called the “divisive concepts” law - prohibits teaching about U.S. history in a way that might make any student feel guilty or that they are superior or inferior to anyone else because of their race.
Georgia’s Board of Education adopted a model complaint policy for complaints under the law in June.
Now it is up to local school boards to adopt their own policies by Aug. 1. Whether they adopt the state’s model or craft their own policy is up to them.
Conflicts over implementation of the law will play out differently in different parts of the state, said education observers, including Lisa Morgan, president of the Georgia Association of Educators.
Morgan said that she expected complaints stemming from language-arts and literature classes along with social studies classes.
A kindergarten teacher for most of her career, Morgan said elementary grades would not be immune to complaints.
She said she expects administrators to sometimes find themselves in “a very tough position” under the new law.
She also expressed concern that a more cautious approach brought about by the law will introduce a “chilling effect” on how teachers and students discuss current events and other social issues.
“The laws are a clear attempt to divide parents and educators and make that relationship adversarial rather than the partnership it must be to guarantee the success of all students,” Morgan said.
The Georgia Youth Justice Coalition will focus its efforts on making sure students, teachers, and parents know their rights under the law, said Alex Ames, organizing director for the organization of high school and college students.
The group wants to make sure educators are not retaliated against, she said.
The new law also reaches beyond the school day to high school athletics. It revamped the governance structure of the Georgia High School Association (GHSA) and provided it with the opportunity to ban transgender high school sports.
Now, Georgia students must participate in high school sports based on their gender at birth. This will prevent transgender students who are born male but identify as female from participating in girls’ sports.