AUSTIN (AP) \u2014 The Texas education board on Friday approved a required reading list for more than 5 million public school students that includes Bible passages, widening conservative efforts to push Christian teachings in U.S. classrooms.<\/p>\n
The Texas State Board of Education, which is controlled by Republicans, approved the list of over critics who argued the titles lack diversity and blur the separation of church and state enshrined in the U.S. Constitution. Supporters say Judeo-Christian traditions were fundamental to the nation\u2019s founding and that should be reflected in the public school curriculum.<\/p>\n
The proposal, which mandates literary works such as Charles Dickens\u2019 \u201cGreat Expectations\u201d alongside passages from the New Testament, has been closely followed by education observers who say it appears to be the first of its kind in the nation. It is a departure from letting schools or teachers decide what students read.<\/p>\n
The rollout will be staggered, starting with elementary school students in 2030.<\/p>\n
Texas, which educates roughly 1 in 10 of the nation\u2019s public school students, has been at the forefront of a charge by conservatives to incorporate more religion into classrooms. The state also allows public schools to hire chaplains to counsel students, mandates the display of the Ten Commandments in classrooms and has approved an optional Bible-infused curriculum.<\/p>\n
A focus on Christianity<\/strong><\/p>\n Critics say the reading list lacks diversity, blurs the separation of church and state that is enshrined in the Constitution and leaves teachers and students with little room to decide what to read.<\/p>\n \u201cKids of all faith backgrounds and no faith are served by Texas schools and they should all feel welcome in Texas schools,\u201d said Elva Mendoza, legislative communications associate for the progressive Texas Freedom Network. \u201cBut this is sending the message to children that one and only one religious text \u2014 a Christian one \u2014 is worthy of making this required reading list.\u201d<\/p>\n Others have applauded the possibility of mandated Christian religious reading in public schools. Brooke Mazel, a retiree from Lubbock, encouraged the board to adopt biblical materials, saying her children and grandchildren grew up with \u201cstrong faith and family values.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cAmerica should celebrate our 250 years that started as a nation of unwavering Christian values,\u201d Mazel said.<\/p>\n The board is also set to vote Friday on a social studies curriculum that links Bible stories with American history.<\/p>\n Texas may be a trailblazer<\/strong><\/p>\n A state law passed in 2023 required a mandatory list of at least one literary work be taught in each grade level. The proposed new list contains around 200 texts, including Bible passages, essays and books, far in excess of that requirement.<\/p>\n Antero Garcia, president of the National Council of Teachers of English and a Stanford University professor, said he doesn\u2019t know of any other state with a mandatory reading list that includes religious texts. Educators at the district and school level usually choose the texts their students will read, Garcia said.<\/p>\n Kasey Meehan, director of PEN America\u2019s Freedom to Read program, agrees the move is \u201cunique\u201d to Texas.<\/p>\n Picture-book stories for elementary students including \u201cDavid and Goliath\u201d and \u201cDaniel and the Lion\u2019s Den\u201d are on the required reading list. By fourth grade, students would encounter passages about Jesus in the New Testament.<\/p>\n By middle school, students would be expected to read several passages about Jesus, including passages from his most famous sermon, and another where he instructs people to cast aside earthly anxiety and seek the kingdom of God.<\/p>\n For high schoolers, the list requires the reading of specific Bible passages as supportive materials for literary works including works by Dickens and Jane Austen\u2019s \u201cPride and Prejudice.\u201d Such strict requirements amount to \u201calmost de facto censorship,\u201d Meehan said, comparing the list to book bans.<\/p>\n \u201cIt certainly leans ideologically more conservative,\u201d she said. \u201cIt excludes a lot of diverse voices from the reading list.\u201d<\/p>\n The list mandates that students reading Shakespeare\u2019s \u201cThe Tragedy of Julius Caesar\u201d also read a eulogy for President Ronald Reagan written by former British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher, a staunch conservative.<\/p>\n Frank Strong, an English and journalism teacher and co-founder of the student advocacy group Texas Freedom to Read, said diversity is not only important for students needing to see themselves in what they read but also as a way to learn about different cultures.<\/p>\n Many of the books on the reading list are not controversial, but Mendoza asks why books like \u201cChicka Chicka Boom Boom\u201d need to be required for kindergartners.<\/p>\n \u201cCan\u2019t our kindergarten teachers be trusted to choose board books?\u201d Mendoza asks.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" AUSTIN (AP) \u2014 The Texas education board on Friday approved a required reading list for more than 5 million public school students that includes Bible passages, widening conservative efforts to push Christian teachings in U.S. classrooms. The Texas State Board of Education, which is controlled by Republicans, approved the list of over critics who argued … Continue reading Texas board approves Bible stories as required reading in public schools<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":65,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"fifu_image_url":"","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[164],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1518708","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-state-news"],"publishpress_future_action":{"enabled":false,"date":"2026-06-28 17:28:06","action":"change-status","newStatus":"trash","terms":[],"taxonomy":"category","extraData":[]},"publishpress_future_workflow_manual_trigger":{"enabledWorkflows":[]},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/ktbb.com\/post\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1518708","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/ktbb.com\/post\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/ktbb.com\/post\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ktbb.com\/post\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/65"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ktbb.com\/post\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=1518708"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/ktbb.com\/post\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1518708\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1518716,"href":"https:\/\/ktbb.com\/post\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1518708\/revisions\/1518716"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/ktbb.com\/post\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=1518708"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ktbb.com\/post\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=1518708"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ktbb.com\/post\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=1518708"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
\nHolding diversity in check<\/p>\n