During Monday’s hearing on the proposed K-12 health curriculum standards, State Board of Education Standards vice-president Rich Meyer’s insisted repeatedly that sex trafficking is an “epidemic” that the standards ought to address.
Epidemic? That’s a funny word for a good conservative Republican to use. If the health standards are supposed to address epidemics, why aren’t we revising them to specifically mention vaccines? Vaccines prevent actual epidemics, and we currently have an epidemic of vaccine disinformation coming from some of Rich’s favorite political leaders. That epidemic of lies is causing a decline in vaccination rates, which puts us at risk of more disease epidemics. Curriculum standards and teachers ought to do something to prevent those epidemics, right?
I don’t expect doctors, nurses, and professional organizations dedicated to science and public health to storm the two remaining public hearings on the health standards demanding specific language, as a quick review of the standards shows that the current health standards invite discussion of the benefits of vaccines throughout the K-12 health curriculum (I quote the current standards and performance indicators, as their counterparts in the proposed revision show little significant change):
Standard 1: “Students will comprehend concepts related to health promotion and disease prevention to enhance health.”
- Grade K–2 students will…
- 1.2.3 Describe ways to prevent communicable diseases.
- Grade 3–5 students will…
- 1.5.4 Describe ways to prevent common childhood injuries and health problems.
- Grade 6–8 students will…
- 1.8.4 Describe ways to reduce or prevent injuries and other adolescent health problems.
- 1.8.5 Explain how preventative health care can promote personal health.
- 1.8.6 Compare and contrast the benefits of and barriers to practicing healthy behaviors.
- Grade 9–12 students will…
- 1.12.5 Propose ways to reduce or prevent injuries and health problems.
- 1.12.6 Investigate the relationship between access to health care and health status.
- 1.12.7 Propose strategies for promoting the benefits of and overcoming barriers to practicing a variety of health enhancing behaviors.
Health Standard 2: “Students will analyze the influence of family, peers, culture, media, technology, and other factors on health behaviors.”
- Discussion of vaccines supports every performance indicator under this standard. Especially salient:
- 2.8.9 Identify how public health policies can influence health promotion and disease prevention.
- 2.12.5 Critique the influence of media on personal and family health.
- 2.12.10 Investigate how public health policies and government regulations can influence health promotion and disease prevention.
Health Standard 3: “Students will demonstrate the ability to access valid information and products and services to enhance health.”
- All profoundly important and relevant to discussing vaccines and the health science literacy necessary to make healthy choices and prevent epidemics. For example…
- 3.2.1 Identify trusted adults and professionals who can help promote health.
- 3.5.1 Identify characteristics of valid health information, products, and services.
- 3.5.2 List resources from home, school, and community that provide valid health information.
- 3.8.3 Investigate the validity of products and services that promote health and wellness.
- 3.12.1 Compare and contrast health information products and services.
Health Education Standard 8: “Students will demonstrate the ability to advocate for personal, family[,] and community health.”
- Encouraging students to speak up about the importance of public health and call out anti-vaxxer baloney:
- 8.2.2 Encourage others to make positive health choices.
- 8.5.1 Express opinions and give accurate information about health issues.
- 8.8.1 State a health-enhancing concept and support it with accurate information.
- 8.8.4 Demonstrate how to influence and support others to make positive health choices.
- 8.12.1 Advocate the role of individual responsibility in enhancing health.
- 8.12.2 Persuade and support others to make positive health choices.
- 8.12.3 Collaborate to advocate for improving personal, family, and/or community health.
So hey, Board VP Meyer, don’t let your fundie-lobbyist friends and your Twitter feed trick you into thinking the K-12 standards are weak on tackling “epidemics”. The proposed standards, with their minor changes, carry the same mission as the current standards: to turn our kids into real epidemic-fighting machines, whether the epidemic is any of the diseases that vaccines can beat down or the faulty information that spreads like wildfire via social media and current Cabinet meetings.
Related Health Class Reading:
- One 2025 study estimates covid vaccines saved 2.5 million lives in their first four years of use.
- The Mayo Clinic debunks numerous myths about covid vaccines.
- The American Academy of Pediatrics says the MMR vaccine is 97% effective and poses minimal risks far outweighed by the individual and public health benefits.