Texas Social Studies Changes Approved

AUSTIN, Texas (AP) _ The State Board of Education’s vote approving several new social studies curriculum standards ends months of idelogical haggling that drew attention beyond Texas.

The new standards, approved late Friday, include having Texas students evaluate the efforts of the United Nations and other global organizations to determine whether they undermine U.S. sovereignty.

The curriculum guidelines will be used to teach some 4.8 million students for the next 10 years.

Educators have blasted the changes, saying they politicize education.

In one of the most significant curriculum changes, the board diluted the rationale for the separation of church and state in a high school government class.

The board noted that the words were not in the Constitution and are requiring students to compare and contrast the judicial language with the First Amendment’s wording.

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