OH HB799

Ohio Department of Education and Workforce required to develop a model curriculum for world history instruction that includes ancient African civilizations and their global influence

Curriculum must cover eight ancient African civilizations including Egypt, Nubia, Carthage, Great Zimbabwe, Axum, Kush, the Mali Empire, the Moors in Spain, and the Songhai Empire

Required topics include African contributions to mathematics, medicine, and architecture; trans-Saharan and Indian Ocean trade routes; Timbuktu as a center of scholarship; and the African diaspora including the Haitian Revolution and Pan-Africanism

Curriculum must address European colonization, the "scramble for Africa," and African independence movements in Ghana, Kenya, Nigeria, and other nations

Adoption is voluntary—school districts, community schools, and STEM schools will be notified of the curriculum but may choose whether to utilize it