The Connecticut State Board of Education approved new social studies standards that, for the first time, include Sikhism. Approximately 514,000 children in Connecticut will have the opportunity to learn about the Sikh community, due to its inclusion.
Spearheaded by the Sikh Coalition, a U.S-based Sikh advocacy organisation, Connecticut has become the 18th state in the country to add Sikh Studies to its curriculum. The states that have collaborated with the Coalition to incorporate authentic information about Sikhs into their social studies curriculum for public schools.
"These new standards will provide students the opportunity to learn about the Sikh community at all three levels of their education,” said Norwich City Councilman and sangat member Swaranjit Singh of Norwich, CT. “Classroom instruction about Sikh history and contributions from an early age are critical in creating a safe environment for our students.”
The Sikh Coalition and the Sikh community in Connecticut have collaborated to accomplish this result ever since September 2022. In September 2022, the Sikh Coalition first contacted the Connecticut State Department of Education (DOE) to explain how and why Sikhi should be included in the standards, a news release stated.
Later, the organization acted as an expert reviewer during the standards revision process and helped formulate a sign-on letter with the Sikh Art Gallery to the DOE advocating for Sikh inclusion.
The new standards will start to be adopted and used locally in the upcoming years. Throughout this process, the Sikh Coalition will remain in regular contact with the Connecticut Department of Education to make sure that Sikhi is successfully introduced into schools throughout the state, the release maintained.
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