Washington Public Schools and History

I was interested in looking at the state standards for History Curricula in the state of Washington because I am related to a few teachers there. It's also my favorite state that I've ever visited and a place I'd like to eventually live (although I'm pretty flexible, really.)

As with the Michigan Department of Education's website, it is a confusing and illogically constructed website. I had to search a little for the standards since the link on the American Epic website no longer works, and I found that the standards were very broad in a general sense:
1.Understands historical chronology.
2.Understands and analyzes causal factors that have shaped major events in history.
3.Understands that there are multiple perspectives and interpretations of historical events.
4.Uses history to understand the present and plan for the future.
Then for each grade level (I looked at 11th, for no particular reason) it outlines the specifics of these four requirements. In the case of the chronology students are expected to understand in 11th grade, it seems to be American History from the revolution to the recent past. As one would expect, the Causal Factors that need analysis are ones related to this period of American History.

Considering these four broad categories (and still fairly broad requirements therein) it seems like, judging by only this that teachers in Washington have a fair amount of flexibility in teaching History. These are certainly not the detailed lesson plans that might plague other states.

These four also seem to be a fairly sound approach to History from a disciplinary perspective, at least for High School level students. Chronology is important, but Washington's Board of Education also values analysis and using multiple perspectives, not simply the "Best Story" approach to History education that often leads to a more Heritage-centered curriculum. If Washington teachers really do have the students investigate history in the way that these standards suggest, it seems that Washington may be ahead of the curve.