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AP Psychology could be allowed in Florida after all.
A day after news broke that the state Department of Education was effectively banning the course by prohibiting instruction on gender and sexual orientation, the department is now clarifying it will allow school districts to teach the class in full, according to a letter sent to superintendents.
“In fact, the Department believes that AP Psychology can be taught in its entirety in a manner that is age and developmentally appropriate and the course remains listed in our course catalog,” Florida Education Commissioner Manny Diaz Jr. wrote in a letter dated Friday.
The letter comes a day after the state advised superintendents they could offer AP Psychology but were instructed to exclude topics related to gender and sexual orientation to comply with Florida law, according to a statement by the College Board.
AP Psychology ‘effectively banned’because of conflict with Florida law on teaching gender, sexuality
The College Board, which runs the AP program, said this exclusion would “effectively ban” the class because such an adjustment would mean it couldn’t be called Advanced Placement or used to earn college credit.
“To be clear, any AP Psychology course taught in Florida will violate either Florida law or college requirements,” the College Board said Thursday. “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.”
The nonprofit, which also administers the SAT, said Friday’s letter provided needed clarity for Florida educators. Nearly 30,000 Florida students were expecting to take the college-level course, and many school districts kick off the school year in just a few days.
“Today’s statement from the Florida Department of Education represents new guidance on AP Psychology,” the College Board said Friday. “While district superintendents continue to seek additional clarity from the department, we note the clear guidance that, ‘AP Psychology may be taught in its entirety.’
“We hope now that Florida teachers will be able to teach the full course, including content on gender and sexual orientation, without fear of punishment in the upcoming school year,” the College Board continued.
Questions remain about the AP Psychology course
In Friday’s letter to superintendents, Diaz said he was writing “out of an abundance of caution” in response to the College Board’s earlier position.
“College Board has suggested that it might withhold the ‘AP’ designation from this course in Florida, ultimately hurting Florida students,” he wrote. “This is especially concerning given that the new school year begins in a week. I want to be clear, AP Psychology is and will remain in the course code directory making it available to Florida students.”
Diaz’s letter is an about face from the state’s position a day earlier, which blamed the College Board and its refusal to edit its AP Psychology curriculum for preventing students from taking the class this year.
“The Department didn’t “ban” the course. The course remains listed in Florida’s Course Code Directory for the 2023-24 school year,” DOE spokesperson Cassie Palelis wrote in an email. “We encourage the College Board to stop playing games with Florida students and continue to offer the course and allow teachers to operate accordingly.”
For months, Florida has been in discussions with The College Board and other college-level course providers about their curriculum content. In May, the agency sent a letter to The College Board asking the organization to review all AP courses to see if they “need modification to ensure compliance” with a Florida law and state Board of Education rule targeting instruction on sexual orientation and gender identity.
Last year, Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis, who is running to be the Republican nominee for president, signed a state law known as the Parental Rights in Education act but derided by critics as the “Don’t Say Gay” bill. The law outlawed instruction on sexual orientation or gender identity in kindergarten through third grade. This spring, the law was expanded to 12th grade.
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