The Texas State Board of Education has approved a proposal to make Bible passages required reading for its K-12 English and literature curriculum.

The Republican-controlled board voted 9-5-1 in favor of the new required reading list, which includes sections of the Book of Exodus for fifth graders, The Shepherd’s Psalm for seventh graders, and others.

CNN shared further:

The plan will impact more than 5 million public school students, as Texas emerges as a leader in a national conservative effort to infuse Christian teachings into American classrooms.

Multiple titles will be mandated for each grade, and each one must be read “in its entirety.” The effort goes far beyond a 2023 law that requires at least one state board-approved literary work be taught in each grade level.

While it is not unusual for states to suggest book titles for schools, Texas may be the first to prescribe a literary canon for every public school student, two experts told The Associated Press.

ADVERTISEMENT

Many Texas students are already familiar with at least some Christian teachings: The state last year became the largest state to require classrooms to display the Ten Commandments, a law recently upheld in federal court.

The new list of required titles will include a picture-book adaptation of the David and Goliath story for elementary students and Bible passages about Adam and Eve for older students, among other references, according to a proposed list online. It will also heavily emphasize classic literature and historic American texts such as Abraham Lincoln’s “The Gettysburg Address.”

The required reading list will begin a phased rollout in 2030, starting with elementary school students.

“We need to focus on what our nation was founded on and not apologize for that,” said Susan Perez, founder of Citizens for Education Reform, according to the Associated Press.

“It is the truth and we should not be afraid,” she added.

Watch below:

More from the Associated Press:

One proposed Bible story, a picture book about Noah’s Ark, was removed from a list of first-grade titles this week after a board member said it only had one page of text and voiced objections to descriptions of animals killed in the flood.

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. Another would connect a reading from the Book of Lamentations and its themes of the destruction of Jerusalem with readings about the Holocaust.

In high school, students would read the parable of the prodigal son, portions of the Book of Job, and the story of Adam and Eve.

ADVERTISEMENT

Texas may be the first state to enact a required reading list that includes Bible passages.

Antero Garcia, president of the National Council of Teachers of English and a Stanford University professor, said he doesn’t know of any other state that has such a list. Educators at the district and school level usually choose what texts their students will read, Garcia said.

Kasey Meehan, director of PEN America’s Freedom to Read program, said she believes a reading list with mandatory religious texts is “unique” to Texas.

“I think there’s lots of state lists that exist that are like advised readings, suggested readings,” she said.

The required readings rely heavily on the King James Bible, one of the most popular translations, and more recent evangelical translations that critics argue lean too heavily on Christian interpretations of the texts.

Other critics question whether religious stories should be taught at all in schools attended by thousands of children of Muslim, Buddhist, Hindu and other faiths, and others who identify as atheist or agnostic.

 

Join The Conversation. Leave a Comment.