Texas board advances plan to allow Bible material in elemetary school lessons
AUSTIN, Texas– The Texas Board of Education on Tuesday advanced a new Bible-infused curriculum that would be optional for schools to include in kindergarten through fifth grade, one of the latest Republican-led efforts in the U.S. to include more religious education in classrooms.
The vote brings the Texas State Board of Education one step closer to signing off on what’s known as the “Bluebonnet” textbook, which drew hours of often emotional testimony from educators and parents earlier this week.
The board is expected to take a final vote on the measure on Friday.
The curriculum – designed by the state’s public education agency – would bring teachings from the Bible, such as the Golden Rule, and lessons from books like Genesis into classrooms. Under the plan, it would be optional for schools to adopt the curriculum, although they would receive additional funding.
Educators, parents and advocates weighed in on Monday at the State Board of Education’s final meeting of the year, where many opponents argued that the proposal’s emphasis on Christian teachings would alienate students from other faith backgrounds. Its proponents testified that it will give students a more holistic educational foundation.
Educator Megan Tessler testified Monday that the plan contradicts the public school’s mission.
“This curriculum does not meet the standard of a fair, secular curriculum,” Tessler said. “Public schools are meant to educate, not indoctrinate.”
Others strongly supported the idea.
“Parents and teachers want a return to excellence,” Cindy Asmussen said Monday. “Stories and concepts in the Bible have been common for hundreds of years,” and that, she said, is a core part of classical learning.
Religious experts and the Texas Freedom Network, a left-wing watchdog group that oversees the state’s board of education, say the curriculum proposal focuses too much on Christianity and also dances around the history of slavery.
The program was designed by the Texas Education Agency earlier this year after a law was passed giving it a mandate to create its own free textbook. Republican Gov. Greg Abbott has publicly supported the new materials.
Republican lawmakers in Texas have also proposed posting the Ten Commandments in classrooms and are likely to revisit the issue next year.
The proposal to include religious education in Texas public schools mirrors similar efforts across the country, which are also sparking lawsuits.
In Oklahoma, state officials are trying to include the Bible in public school curriculums. But a group of parents, teachers and others of students recently filed a lawsuitin an effort to stop Oklahoma’s top education official from implementing the plan intended for students in grades 5 through 12. The lawsuit before the Oklahoma Supreme Court also asks the court to stop the Republican state superintendent Spending $3 million to buy Bibles in support of the plan.
In Louisiana, a new state law attempted to… Ten Commandments shown in all public classrooms, but a federal judge recently overturned that requirement. U.S. District Judge John W. deGravelles in Baton Rouge said last week that Louisiana’s law had an “overtly religious” purpose, rejecting state officials’ claims that the government can mandate the posting of the Ten Commandments because they have historical significance for the foundation. of US law. His opinion noted that no other foundational documents — including the Constitution or the Bill of Rights — should be posted.
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Lathan is a staff member for the Associated Press/Report for America Statehouse News Initiative. Report for America is a nonprofit national service program that places journalists in local newsrooms to report on undercovered issues.