Public Schools Need to Teach History
To the Editor:
In Texans for Fiscal Responsibility report, “For over three decades, the Texas Lottery has been sold to Texans as a voluntary way to support public education without raising taxes,” recent developments suggest an ‘organized crime syndicate has infiltrated the state agency that operates it.’
Abbott signed Senate Bill 3070 “abolishing the Texas Lottery Commission outright, banning courier services, imposing new restrictions on bulk buying, and transferring oversight.” This may be a victory for accountability and reducing government bloat but how does it serve education funding?
Speaking of education, the Texas State Board of Education recently held hearings to review the social studies TEKS (Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills) 2025. Like the representatives in the state legislature, SBOE members are elected by the public across the state. They receive no salary and cannot be ‘bought off’ by special interest groups but they can be influenced by special interest propaganda.
There was a rally on the Capitol Mall in Austin not far from where the SBOE was meeting last week that waved signs that read, “Don’t whitewash our history” and “Teach theTruth.” Felicia Martin of Texas Freedom Network (TFN. org/SBOE), with a bullhorn, told her audience, “Religion has profoundly shaped our history and students should absolutely learn that. The Bible is not a history book. The public classroom is not Sunday school.”
I can agree with the previous statements.
However, she continues to espouse, “there are “right-wing extremists connected to political advocacy groups shaping the new social studies standards.” Based on this assessment, she claims “there is a problem when schools stop teaching about religion and endorse one version of it.”
I question what are public schools teaching about religion? Is Ms. Martin equating the reintroduction of the Ten Commandments back into the classroom as evidence of “endorsing” a religion? “The Ten Commandments have a long history in U.S. education, appearing in early textbooks like The New England Primer and McGuffey’s Readers for nearly 300 years.” Chief Justice William Rehnquist acknowledged, “the Ten Commandments have an undeniable historical meaning. Simply having religious content or promoting a message consistent with a religious doctrine does not run afoul of the Establishment Clause.” Justice Stephen Breyer concurred stating “the establishment clause does not justify a blanket ban on such displays in public spaces.”
Society has changed since the nine colleges established in the colonies before 1776. The purpose of those nine original colleges was to train religious leaders. The curriculum focused on classical literature, logic, rhetoric and moral philosophy. Theology dominated until the mid-18th century when subjects like science, modern geography and advanced mathematics were included.
Matthew A. McIntosh’s essay FromHornbookstoHarvard: The Evolution of Education in Colonial America, Brewminate. com, May, 2026, states, “The foundations of American education in the colonial period were deeply shaped by religious motivations and regional variations, particularly between New England and the Southern colonies. In New England, the Puritans were especially concerned with ensuring that children could read the Bible and understand religious doctrine, leading to a widespread belief in the necessity of literacy for all.” “The colonial South lacked a widespread educational infrastructure, and literacy rates lagged behind those of New England well into the eighteenth century The backbone of public education systems began in the colonies. If our public schools today are responsible to ‘Teach the Truth’, are students today being taught this history of religion in America’s founding? “Historical knowledge can inform policy decisions, shape national identity, foster critical thinking, and promote empathy by allowing us to understand different perspectives and experiences. Did you know that the word “history” comes from the Greek word “historia,” meaning “inquiry” or “knowledge acquired by investigation”?