N.Y. Wrestles With Social-Studies Framework

By Debra Viadero

A New York state task force, working two years behind its orginal schedule, is nearing completion of a framework for teaching social studies that would focus more on nonwhite cultures.

The new framework is being closely watched for two reasons.

First, two state reports that preceded it ignited a national debate over whether school curricula wrongly emphasized the contributions of white Europeans over those of Africans, Asians, and other...