Florida public schools may soon be required to teach about the 9/11 terrorist attacks as part of their curriculum.
A bill filed in the House and Senate would make Florida teachers instruct students on the attacks and their impacts.
At a House committee meeting Wednesday, Hialeah Rep. Manny Diaz (R-Hialeah) said the bill would educate students about the actual event, but otherwise it’s up to the teachers.
“It has to be included. I think that leaving it up to the professionals in the classroom [and] how they teach it is what the intention is here.”
Rep. Mike Hill (R-Hialeah) says the curriculum was developed by the Library of Congress and is free to teachers. They’d be free to incorporate the material anywhere within their course.
Florida State University Middle Eastern Studies Professor Will Hanley says the move might help dispel false notions about the attacks.
“One thing that this bill can do is to help move discussion of these conspiracy theories out of the dark and into the classroom where, I hope, these conspiracy theories would be dispelled.”
Hanley believes it’s important to teach young children about 9/11 and integrating it into curriculum will result in more in-depth discussion and study.
