On Sept. 1, the State Board of Education moved forward with an overhaul of what Texas high schoolers will learn in four social studies courses: U.S. History, U.S. Government, World History and World Geography.
Roughly 100 Texans testified about the high school curriculum rewrite at an Aug. 31 board meeting, with the debate revolving around how students would learn about the two largest world religions, Christianity and Islam.
The discussion comes as the Republican-led board nears the finish line on its new K-12 social studies curriculum standards, which have received pushback from some historians, religious scholars, educators and Texas families, according to previous reporting. Hundreds of Texans spoke at SBOE meetings earlier this year.
What’s happening
This week’s testimony focused almost entirely on the portrayal of Islam in the classroom.
The SBOE gave initial approval to the high school course requirements on Sept. 1. According to the proposal, students would be taught about Islam, the second-largest world religion, through the lens of:
Extremism and “radical Islam” in all four courses
The role of Islamic societies in wars in the World History course
“The Prophet Mohammed’s brutal military campaigns against Jewish and Christian tribes, the normalization of slavery, and the taking of female captives as harem slaves” in the World History course
In lessons on Christianity, the world’s largest religion, students would be taught about:
The “roots of Western civilization in Christianity” in the World History course
“The life and teachings of Jesus” in the World History course
The early spread of Christianity and how Christians contributed to Western civilization in all courses
Speaking against the proposed plan, dozens of Muslim Texans asked that students learn about the religion’s core principles and how Muslims have contributed to advancements in math, science and medicine throughout history.
“It is clear the [standards] were written intentionally to portray one face in a positive light while deliberately casting another in a negative light,” said Bahia Amawi, a Central Texas speech pathologist, during the Aug. 31 meeting. “I ask some of the board members to reflect on why you ran for the SBOE: Was it to fulfill the role of providing educational standards that are factual, honest, promote critical thinking, and bridge the multicultural, multifaith reality of Texas students, or was it to teach students to distrust their Muslim classmates and neighbors?”
On the other side, some testifiers and Republican board members argued that the social studies curriculum standards should highlight the role of Christianity in the founding of Texas and America. They praised the board for prioritizing “American exceptionalism” and topics they said would teach students to love the country.
“We're going to roll back 80 years worth of historical revisionism, where they've watered down our history, where they've taken the Christian foundation of our history out, where they painted our founding fathers [as] villains,” SBOE member Brandon Hall, R-Aledo, told reporters during a June 22 board meeting. “We are bringing the Bible back into schools.”
High school students will also be expected to learn about dozens of other topics in the curriculum standards, including:
The American Revolution
The Battle of the Alamo
Slavery in the American South and other world regions
Racial segregation and the Civil Rights movement
Human migration patterns throughout history
Ancient and medieval civilizations
World War I, World War II and the Cold War
Board members are scheduled to take a final vote Sept. 4 on the new requirements. Once approved, the social studies standards will be rolled out to public school classrooms in the 2030-31 school year, alongside previously approved curriculum requirements for elementary and middle school students.
Zooming in
The proposed standards reference Islam and Muslims 12 times across four high school history courses, without direct references to the Quran. Students would be required to learn that the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks were “motivated by radical Islam,” as written by state officials and a group of nine advisers appointed to shape the curriculum rewrite. They would also be asked to describe how the teachings of jihad led to “the conquest of Christian lands” and study the Islamic slave trade.
Kawther, a Muslim high school student who did not provide her last name, said she was concerned that the board’s negative portrayal of Islam would contribute to existing anti-Muslim sentiments. She described being called a terrorist in school and hearing racial slurs directed at her family.
“When I see Islam and terrorism repeatedly placed together in a curriculum, I don't see it as just words on a page,” she told the board Aug. 31. “I think about the student who may sit in a classroom and begin associating the Muslim student right next to them with the terrorism they have just learned [about]. History shows us that we can teach extremism without condemning an entire religion.”
One standard states that students taking the World Geography course would be expected to “describe [the] central ideas of religions or philosophies,” including Christianity, Judaism, Buddhism, Hinduism, Islam, Sikhism, Confucianism and Daoism. Students would also study religious texts and “significant beliefs” of Judaism, Buddhism and Hinduism, although this would not be required for Islam.
Christianity is referenced at least 18 times in the high school standards, with one direct mention of the Bible, descriptions of the religion’s origin and requirements that students learn about the “moral teachings from the Old and New Testaments.”
More context
In June, the SBOE rewrote the social studies curriculum standards for kindergarten through eighth-grade students and approved a list of dozens of books that students will be required to read each school year. Both are infused with biblical references, previous Community Impact reporting shows.
Some Texans said mentions of the Bible would deepen students’ understanding of American and world history, pushing back on concerns that the standards may proselytize or “establish a state religion.”
“The Bible is foundational to American history,” David Waller, a Fort Worth pastor, said Aug. 31. “It was read and studied and discussed in classrooms up until recent history, and because of its vital role in our heritage, the Bible should be mandatory reading for every high school student.”
During this week’s meeting, Democratic board members sought to amend the standards to include information about Muslim contributions to algebra and astronomy and describe Islam in more neutral terms. Andrea Hutchinson, a Prosper ISD curriculum coordinator and appointed content adviser, said parts of the proposal “mischaracterized” the religion.
“Some of these suggestions are just ways to use a little bit more neutral language and talk about Islam in more of a description of the religion and the teachings of the Prophet Mohammed in a way that I understand [to be] more accurate and neutral,” Hutchinson said Sept. 1.
Those amendments were voted down by the board’s Republican majority. Board members will have the chance to make additional amendments before a final vote on Sept. 4, SBOE chair Aaron Kinsey, R-Midland, said.
One more thing
At least two people who testified Aug. 31 said they were concerned that the standards included overly dense content that would not adequately prepare students for life after high school.
Meghan Dougherty, an Austin-area social studies specialist, said the standards did not comply with Texas’ college, career and military readiness requirements, which dictate that all high school students must “have access to high-quality pathways to career and college.” She told the board the proposed standards do not contain “diverse human perspectives and experiences” and would “hand students conclusions” instead of teaching them how to think for themselves.
“We are not protecting students by narrowing what they see,” Dougherty said. “We are sending them to college a step behind peers in other states who were taught analysis skills.”
