About Florida’s AP Psychology “Situation”

Dear Journalists covering the recent kerfuffle surrounding the Florida Department of Education, College Board and Advanced Placement Psychology – Developmental Psychology Topic 6.7 Gender and Sexual Orientation,

Stop reporting that the Florida Department of Education (FLDOE) has somehow “lifted its ban” on A.P. Psychology. I do not think that is what Florida’s Commissioner of Education, Manny Diaz Jr.’s recent letter to superintendents said.

The letter, sent on August 4, 2023, was not a reversal of a decision but a veiled threat to any teacher or district that dares to teach about “Gender and Sexual Orientation” and, also, an attempt to shift blame for the loss of the A.P. Psychology course away from recently enacted legislation and state rules and onto the College Board, which administers AP classes and exams. In his letter, the Commissioner denies discouraging the teaching of AP Psychology and insists the Department has remained steadfast in its belief that “A.P. Psychology can be taught in its entirety in a manner that is age and developmentally appropriate.”

“Age and developmentally appropriate” does A LOT of  work in that sentence.

HB1557: Parental Rights in Education (aka “Don’t Say Gay”) passed the legislature and was signed into law in March 2022, forbidding classroom instruction by school personnel or third parties on sexual orientation or gender identity in kindergarten through grade 3 or in a manner that is not age-appropriate or developmentally appropriate for students in accordance with state standards. At the time, parents’ and teachers’ concerns regarding the vagueness of “not age-appropriate or developmentally appropriate” fell on deaf ears.

In April 19, 2023, the Florida State Board of Education (FLBOE) essentially expanded the definition of “age inappropriate,” to all grade levels (with a few specific exceptions) by amending Rule 6A-10.081, the Principles of Professional Conduct for the Education Profession in Florida, to state:

6. (The teacher) “Shall not intentionally provide classroom instruction to students in prekindergarten through grade 3 on sexual orientation or gender identity.

7. Shall not intentionally provide classroom instruction to students in grades 4 through 12 on sexual orientation or gender identity unless such instruction is either expressly required by state academic standards as adopted in Rule 6A-1.09401, F.A.C., or is part of a reproductive health course or health lesson for which a student’s parent has the option to have his or her student not attend.”

-Rule 6A-10.081

Violation of the Professional Conduct rules “shall subject the individual to revocation or suspension of the individual educator’s certificate, or the other penalties as provided by law.”

In May 2023, the legislature passed HB1069, expanding the initial K-3 prohibitions to PreK-8th grade and to charter schools. For grade 9-12, such instruction still needed to be “age-appropriate or developmentally appropriate:

“Classroom instruction by school personnel or third parties on sexual orientation or gender identity may not occur in prekindergarten kindergarten through grade 8, except when required by ss. 1003.42(2)(n)3. and 1003.46. If such instruction is provided in grades 9 through 12, the instruction must be age-appropriate or developmentally appropriate for students in accordance with state standards. This subparagraph applies to charter schools.” -https://www.flsenate.gov/Session/Bill/2023/1069

In June 2023, the College Board said it would not comply with the Department of Education’s mandate that lessons about gender identity and sexual orientation be removed. FLDOE officials signaled that, without changes, the course would not be permitted.

On July 19, 2023, the FLBOE approved Social Studies Course Descriptions for 2023, including A.P. Psychology for grades 9-12 (on page 666) and AICE and IB Psychology courses. This caused confusion.

On August 2nd, the American Psychological Association wrote a letter to Cambridge/AICE asking them to reconsider their agreement with the FLDOE to remove instruction on sexual orientation and gender identity from their AICE Psychology courses in Florida.

“The American Psychological Association respectfully urges you to continue to support Florida students in learning psychology as defined by psychological science and codified in our APA National Standards for High School Psychology Curricula (American Psychological Association, 2022). We urge you to reconsider your decision to agree to the request from the Florida Department of Education to conduct a thorough review of the Cambridge/AICE psychology course to ensure it does not provide instruction on the topics of sexual orientation and gender identity. If this is incorrect, please clear the record. An advanced psychology course cannot exclude components that are essential.” –https://www.apa.org/news/apa/2023/apa-cambridge-aice-letter-teaching-psychology-florida.pdf

This past week, representatives from the FLDOE met with Florida’s superintendents, saying they would only permit the CENSORED (gender and sexual orientation) version of AP (or AICE or IB) Psychology courses to be taught in Florida (for AP Psychology this meant the elimination of Topic 6.7 Gender and Sexual Orientation).

On August 3rd, College Board released a statement saying “Any course that censors required course content cannot be labeled “AP” or “Advanced Placement,” and the “AP Psychology” designation cannot be utilized on student transcripts.” They said this curriculum is not new, “gender and sexual orientation have been part of AP Psychology since the course launched 30 years ago.”

“We are sad to have learned that today the Florida Department of Education has effectively banned AP Psychology in the state by instructing Florida superintendents that teaching foundational content on sexual orientation and gender identity is illegal under state law. The state has said districts are free to teach AP Psychology only if it excludes any mention of these essential topics…

To be clear, any AP Psychology course taught in Florida will violate either Florida law or college requirements. Therefore, we advise Florida districts not to offer AP Psychology until Florida reverses their decision and allows parents and students to choose to take the full course.” – https://newsroom.collegeboard.org/statement-ap-psychology-and-florida

So, if a student takes a censored AP Psychology course in Florida, it can not be labeled “Advanced Placement” on their transcripts and it will not count in their weighted GPA, unless Florida removes all restrictions and students can take the full, un-censored course. This fall, 27,000 students in Florida are scheduled to take this course. School starts next week.

Returning to Commissioner Diaz’ letter to the superintendents on August 4, 2023:

NOTE: the FLDOE is STILL insisting the course be taught “in a manner that is age and developmentally appropriate.” Unless the FLBOE reverses its decision forbidding high school instruction on sexual orientation or gender identity “unless expressly required by state academic standards or as part of a reproductive health course or health lesson,” teaching A.P. Psychology “in its entirety” cannot be done without violating Professional Conduct rules, HB1557 and HB1069. Such a violation, if reported, could result in ” revocation or suspension of the individual educator’s certificate, or the other penalties as provided by law.”

Like I said at the beginning, “age and developmentally appropriate” does A LOT of work in that sentence.