It’s Pearl Harbor Day, but there’s still no guarantee Kentucky’s kids will learn about it

It’s December 7th – again. The date that will live in infamy.

Maybe.

You see, the new revision to Kentucky’s Academic Standards for Social Studies the Kentucky Board of Education approved on December 6, 2022 still fails to even mention this important event.

Even Mississippi ensures its students learn about Pearl Harbor, specifying that requirement on Page 70 of its current social studies standards document.

Not only is the beginning event of the United States’ entry into World War II ignored by Kentucky’s standards, but the key ending event, the dropping of the atomic bomb, is also unmentioned in Kentucky’s standards. Mississippi does better for that, too (find the Atomic Bomb mentioned on Page 70 of the Mississippi standards).

Also still unmentioned: major key battles in World War II such as the Battle of Midway and the D-Day invasion of Normandy. Some key earlier wars such as the War of 1812 and the Mexican-American War go completely unmentioned, as well (Yes, even Mississippi covers all of these, too).

So, be prepared to tell Kentucky’s youngsters a lot more about Pearl Harbor than you might think should be necessary, and maybe a lot more about history in general, too, because there’s no guarantee Kentucky’s school system will tell them anything about the “Date which will live in infamy.”