State Board of Education members on Tuesday preliminarily approved a rewrite of what Texas high schoolers learn in social studies, largely disregarding pleas from Muslims who testified that schools should teach how people of Islamic faith positively contributed to world history.
The Republican majority instead advanced a recommendation, for example, that would require public school students to learn that "radical Islam" motivated the 9/11 attacks, as opposed to more narrowly focusing on terrorist groups such as al-Qaeda and extremists such as Osama bin Laden. A Muslim American EMT was notably among those killed while attempting to save lives during the tragedy.
The board also greenlit a proposal that students learn about early Islam through the lens of "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." No credible Islamic scholar would find such a portrayal accurate, the Muslim Texans argued.
At least two of the board's appointed experts also cautioned against the characterization. Andrea Hutchison, a social studies curriculum coordinator for Prosper ISD, said it does not "hold up to close historical scrutiny."
The members also declined to revive an expectation that schools teach about Muslim contributions to algebra and astronomy. Students testified earlier in the week that the decision to instead portray Islam as violent will cause significant harm to them and their classmates.
"I feel attacked, as if my religion doesn't belong," Habiiba Quresh, 15, told board members. "I shouldn't have to defend my religion in the middle of history class because of one sentence someone on this board wrote."
Preliminary revisions to high school history, government and geography studies come after the board's Republican majority approved changes to Texas' K–8 social studies materials in June alongside a mandatory reading list that includes Bible stories.
The group postponed four of the upper level courses after members expressed concerns about rushing the process and potentially causing unintended errors. Preliminary votes occurred after hours of discussion Monday and Tuesday, with final decisions expected Friday.
The contentious process to rewrite social studies has stretched several years. The board delayed changes to the courses in 2022 after pressure from conservative lawmakers who complained about how students would learn about topics such as race and gender.
Those leaders and activists now champion the current proposals, which they view as the final battle in a push to rid Texas schools of instruction they say paints America in a negative light and trains students to hate the country.
Hundreds of people have testified at meetings that often extended overnight, well into the early morning. Throughout the board's deliberations, many Republicans have attacked Islam, a religion they see as incompatible with their interpretation of Christianity.
"All they need to know is how evil Islam is," Chuck Allmon, one of over 100 people who spoke Monday, said of Texas students.
Democrats, educators and students, meanwhile, criticize the minimization of racial, ethnic and cultural diversity reflected in U.S. and world history courses, as well as the materials' hefty emphasis on Christianity. The critics also note that many of the proposed learning expectations would teach children what to think — not how to arrive at their own conclusions.
The education board may soon require, for example, that students graduate with the ability to describe arguments against "the modern welfare state that emerged from continued expansion of Great Society programs." The Great Society refers to President Lyndon B. Johnson's 1960s policy agenda that sought to abolish poverty and racial inequality.
Regarding Christianity, another proposal would ensure students learn how "biblical imagery and founding principles of equality and justice from the Declaration of Independence" connect to Martin Luther King Jr.'s "I Have a Dream" speech.
Some speakers noted Monday that the recommendations whitewash other aspects of the religion, such as how white Americans used the Bible to justify violence against Black Americans, including slavery.
"Slavery existed for thousands of years before Islam," said Sarah, an 11-year-old softball player who did not provide her last name. "It is unfair to label slavery as Islamic without also discussing the Christian role in the slave trade to the Americas."
Democratic members and some of the board's content experts also highlighted that proposed learning expectations in U.S. history describe slavery as an institution that "existed in many societies throughout history," failing to emphasize the race-based nature of American slavery that made it distinct.
"Slavery is foundational to this country, and for us to not pour energy and time into exploring the influences and impact that slavery had on the development of this country, it's striking for me," Marisa B. Pérez-Díaz, D-San Antonio, said. "I think we're doing a disservice to our students if we're not spending time on that."
Many teachers have said they felt excluded from the revision process as the board majority placed more value on the input of conservative activists than on their own. Others point to a lack of transparency as the reason for their frustration, noting the difficulty in figuring out who influenced the lessons' conservative approach.
The new social studies framework eliminates the current sixth-grade world cultures course, which some educators see as evidence that Texas officials do not prioritize traditions outside of Western civilization. They believe the lack of emphasis will diminish students' knowledge of the world beyond America.
Republican members believe the opposite will happen, saying that students need more knowledge of the state and country they live in, as well as the influences that shaped them. Republican Chair Aaron Kinsey said it was also important for members to cut down the number of learning expectations in each course after warnings from Texas Education Agency officials that the board had proposed too much content.
"The intention is not to shortchange anything," Kinsey told members Tuesday. "But we have to determine what is essential."
Texas schools will begin phasing in the adopted social studies changes during the 2030-31 school year.
On Monday, Republicans on the State Board of Education welcomed another member to their majority, temporarily increasing their presence to 11-4.
Houston Democrat Staci Childs vacated her seat as she campaigns for the Texas House. Gov. Greg Abbott has since replaced her with Pasadena Republican Tammie Nielsen, who will serve on the board through the end of the year. Nielsen remained silent for most of her first two days on the board, often voting alongside the most conservative of her Republican colleagues.
Democrat Coretta Mallet-Fontenot will appear on the November ballot to permanently serve as Childs' replacement.
This article first appeared on The Texas Tribune.
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