Back to Basics?

I like the idea of going back to the basics....reading, writing and arithmetic, but then where does ancient Mali fit in? Does China have a place in an elementary school when students are reading below grade level? Should students memorize words like Appalachian Plateau when they have not yet memorized all of the basic sight words? I think we know answers to these questions, but  the VA DOE isn't asking us, they are telling us, so are these really questions at all?