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In Hawaii, we will face tsunamis of change together in the next fifty years. And as educators, we know that we need to prepare our young people to face these challenges with courage and confidence and handle them in ways that are fair, compassionate and beneficial for all.

An educational policy with foresight will foster the development of a full range of social reasoning, not simply historical reasoning as would be the case under Policy 4540, which is the BOE’s effort to bring the Hawaii public high school diploma in line with Race to the Top objectives.

A broad range of social, political and economic thinking, developed both in Participation in Democracy class and in our social science and humanities electives, helps young people better understand the present and face the futures we will create.

We all have a responsibility to future generations, and fulfillment of that responsibility requires foresight.

The only area in which foresight in public reasoning can be explicitly and systematically cultivated is the currently required Participation in Democracy and social studies electives.

It is my hope that the BOE members will have the wisdom to amend Policy 4540 to maintain the current requirements for social studies education in Hawaii public high schools.

About the author: Amy Perruso is a parent of a public school student and a social studies educator at Mililani High School. She is a member of the Aloha POSSE (Preserve Our Social Studies Education), a group of concerned community members that includes former state Rep. Lyla Berg.