Senators Kuipers, Basham and Goschka offered the following resolution:

            Senate Resolution No. 108.

            A resolution to memorialize the United States Congress to add social studies to the testing requirements of the No Child Left Behind Act of 2001.

            Whereas, Every generation of Americans has relied on the public schools to prepare young people to be responsible stewards of our national legacy, entrepreneurial economic competitors, and active participants in civic life. The founders believed that well-educated citizens were crucial to a free society; and

            Whereas, Citizens of the twenty-first century face unprecedented challenges, including adapting to widely diverse communities and workplaces, economic competition on a global scale, applying rapidly evolving technologies, managing scarce natural resources, and resolving political and cultural conflicts; and

            Whereas, The No Child Left Behind Act of 2001 requires rigorous assessment of the core academic subjects of reading, mathematics, and science. Success in dealing with the challenges of the twenty-first century require mastering the core disciplines of the social sciences, including civics, government, economics, history, and geography, as well as reading, mathematics, and science; and

            Whereas, Assessing or measuring proficiency in some but not all of the academic subjects necessary for a successful education results in a lack of equitable measurement data of student achievement. This limits accountability for the responsible delivery of the untested academic subjects as well as leading to less instructional attention, fewer resources, and less emphasis on the social studies curriculum; now, therefore, be it

            Resolved by the Senate, That we memorialize the United States Congress to add civics, government, economics, history, and geography to the testing requirements of the No Child Left Behind Act of 2001; and be it further

            Resolved, That copies of this resolution be transmitted to the President of the United States Senate, the Speaker of the United States House of Representatives, and the members of the Michigan congressional delegation.