The Texas State Board of Education has voted to adopt Bible passages as part of the required reading list for public schools across the state.
On Friday, the Republican-led State Board of Education voted 9-5, with one member abstaining, to approve the reading list. The curriculum requires students to read passages from the Bible, including the Book of Exodus in fifth grade and the story of David and Goliath in second grade. Other required readings include Charles Dickens’ “Great Expectations” and key American founding documents.
The new reading list follows the Texas Legislature’s passage of House Bill 1605 in 2023, which required the SBOE to adopt at least one literary work for each grade level in English and Spanish language arts and reading for K-12 students.
The required readings will take effect beginning with the 2030-31 school year for elementary students and will apply to more than 5 million public school students.
The approval came months after intense debate between supporters and critics of the required readings. Opponents argued the selections violate religious freedom protections and lack diversity.
Supporters argued that the biblical texts are foundational to Western civilization, literature, and the founding of the United States.
Despite the criticism, the board voted in favor of the reading list. All Democratic members voted against the proposed list, while nearly all Republican members supported it. Republican board member Evelyn Brooks joined Democrats in opposing the measure.
Following the vote, SBOE member Brandon Hall, who represents Tarrant, Parker, and Johnson counties, called the decision a major victory for students.
“MAJOR VICTORY [sic] The Texas State Board of Education just passed incredible pro-American K-8 social studies standards rolling back 80 years of historical revisionism!” Hall wrote on X. “Big win for [sic] future of Western Civilization, the American Republic, and our Texan way of life. To God be the Glory.”
In a press release issued after the vote, the board said it took a classical approach to ensure students engage with “important literary texts that cross-reference the historical events they are studying in social studies.”
“Students will finally get the full story. This is how historians work. Students can trace the development of liberty, self-government, free enterprise, and constitutional principles across generations,” said SOBE Chairman Aaron Kinsey. “Students will see how people, ideas, events, and institutions influenced one another across time rather than studying them as separate topics.”
