Michigan Merit Curriculum 15
Frequently Asked Questions - 09/17
This document is intended to provide general guidance. Due to the complexity of the law, policies and guidance will continue
to evolve. For specific information regarding the law, please refer to MCL 380.1278a and MCL 380.1278b.
5. Recent legislation requires “that the high school social studies content
standards developed by the Michigan Department of Education include the
content covered by the federal naturalization test.” What do we need to do
at the local level to make sure this content is addressed?
MDE completed a crosswalk of the 100 Citizenship questions and the Social Studies
Content Expectations. 79 of the citizenship questions are already included in the
Social Studies Content Expectations. The other 21 questions are either rote
memorization, have different answers in different parts of the state, or change over
time. Schools and teachers addressing the Social Studies Content Expectations with
appropriate detail will address all content on the Citizenship test.
6. Recent legislation requires “that Michigan's social studies curriculum and
statewide assessment program include instruction and testing about
genocides, including the Holocaust.” What changes in the Social Studies
Content Expectations will MDE make to address this concern?
Michigan’s current Social Studies Content Expectations already include the
Hololcaust, “the genocides of Armenians, Romas (Gypsies), and Jews, and the mass
exterminations of Ukrainians and Chinese,” and “-causes of and responses to ethnic
cleansing/genocide/mass extermination (e.g., Darfur, Rwanda, Cambodia, Bosnia).”
Schools and teachers addressing the Social Studies Content Expectations with
appropriate detail will address content on the genocides including the Holocaust.
Visual, Performing and Applied Arts
What the Michigan Merit Curriculum Law Says:
Sec. 1278a (1)(iv) The board of a school district or board of directors of a public school
academy shall not award a high
school diploma to a pupil unless the pupil has successfully
completed at least 1 credit in Visual Arts, Performing Arts, or
A
pplied Arts, that is aligned
with guidelines developed by the Michigan Department of Education.
Sec. 1278a (2) ….For pupils who graduate from high school in 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019,
2020, or 2021 ONLY, a pupil may
partially or fully fulfill 1 credit of [a world language] by
completing a Department-approved formal Career and Technical Education (CTE) program
or curriculum or by completing visual or performing arts instruction that is in addition to
the
requirements under Subsection (1) (a)(iv).
Sec. 1278b (5)(g)(j)(j) The Visual Arts, Performing Arts, or Applied Arts credit requirement
under Section 1278a (1)(a)(iv) may
be modified as part of a personal curriculum only if the
modification requires the pupil to complete 1 additional credit in
English Language Arts,
Mathematics, or Science or 1 additional credit in a language other than English, or requires
the pupil
to 1 complete a formal CTE program. This additional credit must be in addition to