Texas approves Bible-heavy reading list for public schools, sparking backlash

The Texas State Board of Education approved a required reading list on June 26 that will put Bible passages in front of more than 5 million public school students, setting up a fight over whether the state is expanding cultural literacy or crossing into religion in the classroom.

The list, backed by the Republican-controlled board, pairs familiar works such as E.B. White’s Charlotte’s Web and Charles Dickens’ Great Expectations with passages from the New Testament and excerpts from the Book of Job. It also pulls in Bible stories for younger students, including Noah’s Ark, David and Goliath and Daniel and the Lion’s Den, under a rollout that begins with elementary school students in 2030. Texas educates roughly 1 in 10 of the nation’s public school students, giving the decision national reach far beyond Austin.

Teachers will not just be deciding whether to use Bible-adjacent literature. Some required texts are tied to specific translations, including the New International Readers Version in some grades and the King James Version in others. That detail has sharpened criticism from opponents who say translation choices can shape tone and interpretation, and that the state is moving from teaching about religion to embedding religion in required instruction.

The vote came after months of public controversy and nearly 500 people signed up to testify. Teachers, students and community members filled tense hearings as supporters argued that Judeo-Christian traditions were foundational to the nation’s founding and should be reflected in school materials. Critics countered that the list was too narrow, not diverse enough and likely to leave educators with little room to decide what children read.

The board’s action also came alongside a major rewrite of Texas K-8 social studies standards, scheduled to take effect in the 2030-31 school year if implemented. Those changes would eliminate the current sixth-grade world cultures course and shift more emphasis to Texas and the United States, while removing a proposed standard that would have required students to learn about Muslim contributions to algebra and astronomy. Opponents said that approach could minimize racial, geographic and cultural diversity, while advocates on the right cast it as a corrective to anti-American instruction.

The reading list arrives on top of a broader conservative push in Texas schools. The state already allows public school chaplains, requires the Ten Commandments to be displayed in classrooms and has approved an optional Bible-infused curriculum. With the new list, a Texas student will now be required to read biblical material that would not have been part of the state’s standard reading requirements before, in a change that reaches deep into daily instruction and the constitutional line between education and religious endorsement.