In 2023, Minnesota passed a bill requiring government classes to be taken in 11th and 12th grade. As Edina High School originally held government classes in ninth grade, this decision will perplex its voters.

The curriculum adjustments come with new school requirements that occurred in the spring of 2023, with the state of Minnesota revising its graduation credits requirements. In order to prepare students for the future, the statute now mandates that all U.S. government courses must be offered only in 11th and 12th grade, as students are closer to voting age. The revision was backed by two former Minnesota social studies teachers Dean Urdahl and Steve Cwodzinski. The bill was intended with students in mind, but the change shows otherwise.

For many decades, Edina has offered U.S. Government and AP U.S. Government courses to ninth graders. When the new statute mandated government courses to move from ninth grade to 11th or 12th grade, the EHS social studies department recommended taking civics courses in 12th grade. However, this is the wrong choice as seniors will not be prepared for the election.

Since government courses have been consolidated from a two-semester course to one for seniors, the course materials have been shortened.

U.S. Government courses teach everything from the Constitution to political parties. With shortened government courses, students will have less understanding of necessary life skills. Thanks to a single bill, students might not have a reliable understanding of civics and government.

If young voters are unprepared, our democratic system might struggle. If students are taking civics courses senior year, young voters at EHS will have only learned two months of coursework in preparation for the election. 

This will perpetuate a cycle of uninformed voters, directly impacting the education and preparedness of students and young adults.

This piece was originally published in Zephyrus’ print edition on November 4, 2024