Bill Text: TX SB3 | 2021 | 87th Legislature 1st Special Session | Engrossed
Bill Title: Relating to certain curriculum in public schools, including certain instructional requirements and prohibitions.
Sponsorship: Partisan Bill (Republican 9)
Status: (Engrossed - Dead) 2021-07-16 - Reported engrossed [SB3 Detail]
Download: Texas-2021-SB3-Engrossed.html
| By: Hughes, et al. | S.B. No. 3 | |
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| relating to certain curriculum in public schools, including certain | ||
| instructional requirements and prohibitions. | ||
| BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS: | ||
| SECTION 1. Subchapter J, Chapter 21, Education Code, is | ||
| amended by adding Section 21.4555 to read as follows: | ||
| Sec. 21.4555. CIVICS TRAINING PROGRAM. (a) To facilitate | ||
| the teaching of curriculum consistent with Sections 28.002(h-2) and | ||
| 28.0022, the commissioner shall develop and make available civics | ||
| training programs for teachers and administrators. | ||
| (b) A civics training program developed under this section | ||
| must include training in: | ||
| (1) the essential knowledge and skills for the social | ||
| studies curriculum related to civic knowledge adopted under Section | ||
| 28.002(h-2); | ||
| (2) guided classroom discussion of current events, as | ||
| appropriate for the grade level and consistent with the | ||
| restrictions under Section 28.0022; | ||
| (3) classroom simulations and models of governmental | ||
| and democratic processes consistent with the requirements and | ||
| restrictions of Sections 28.002(h-2) and 28.0022; | ||
| (4) media literacy, including instruction on | ||
| verifying information and sources, identifying and responding to | ||
| logical fallacies, and identifying propaganda, as appropriate for | ||
| the grade level and consistent with the restrictions under Section | ||
| 28.0022; and | ||
| (5) strategies for incorporating civics instruction | ||
| into subject areas other than social studies. | ||
| (c) The commissioner by rule shall establish the grade | ||
| levels at which a teacher provides instruction to be eligible to | ||
| participate in a civics training program. In making the | ||
| determination, the commissioner shall include grade levels for | ||
| which the State Board of Education makes significant revisions to | ||
| the essential knowledge and skills for the social studies | ||
| curriculum under Section 28.002(h-2). | ||
| (d) Each civics training program developed under Subsection | ||
| (a) must be reviewed and approved by the State Board of Education. | ||
| The board shall annually review each program. | ||
| (e) Each school district and open-enrollment charter school | ||
| shall ensure that each district or school campus that offers a grade | ||
| level described by Subsection (c) has at least one teacher and one | ||
| principal or campus instructional leader who has attended a civics | ||
| training program. The agency shall provide assistance to school | ||
| districts and open-enrollment charter schools in complying with the | ||
| requirements of this subsection. | ||
| (f) From funds available for that purpose, a teacher who | ||
| attends a civics training program may receive a stipend in an amount | ||
| determined by the commissioner. A stipend received under this | ||
| section is not included in determining whether a district is paying | ||
| the teacher the minimum monthly salary under Section 21.402. | ||
| (g) The commissioner may delay implementation of Subsection | ||
| (e) to a school year not later than the 2025-2026 school year if the | ||
| revision of the essential knowledge and skills for the social | ||
| studies curriculum under Section 28.002(h-2) or the availability of | ||
| civics training programs does not occur in a manner that reasonably | ||
| affords public schools the ability to comply with that subsection | ||
| by an earlier school year. This subsection expires September 1, | ||
| 2026. | ||
| (h) Nothing in this section may be construed as limiting the | ||
| teaching of or instruction in the essential knowledge and skills | ||
| adopted under Subchapter A, Chapter 28. | ||
| SECTION 2. Section 28.002, Education Code, as effective | ||
| September 1, 2021, is amended by adding Subsections (h-2), (h-7), | ||
| and (h-8) to read as follows: | ||
| (h-2) In adopting the essential knowledge and skills for the | ||
| social studies curriculum for each grade level from kindergarten | ||
| through grade 12, the State Board of Education shall adopt | ||
| essential knowledge and skills that develop each student's civic | ||
| knowledge, including: | ||
| (1) an understanding of: | ||
| (A) the fundamental moral, political, | ||
| entrepreneurial, and intellectual foundations of the American | ||
| experiment in self-government; | ||
| (B) the history, qualities, traditions, and | ||
| features of civic engagement in the United States; | ||
| (C) the structure, function, and processes of | ||
| government institutions at the federal, state, and local levels; | ||
| (D) the founding documents of the United States, | ||
| including: | ||
| (i) the Declaration of Independence; | ||
| (ii) the United States Constitution; | ||
| (iii) the Federalist Papers, including | ||
| Essays 10 and 51; | ||
| (iv) excerpts from Alexis de Tocqueville's | ||
| Democracy in America; | ||
| (v) the transcript of the first | ||
| Lincoln-Douglas debate; and | ||
| (vi) the writings of the founding fathers | ||
| of the United States; and | ||
| (E) the history and importance of: | ||
| (i) the federal Civil Rights Act of 1964 (42 | ||
| U.S.C. Section 2000a et seq.); | ||
| (ii) the Thirteenth, Fourteenth, and | ||
| Nineteenth Amendments to the United States Constitution; | ||
| (iii) the complexity of the historic | ||
| relationship between Texas and Mexico; and | ||
| (iv) the diversity of the Hispanic | ||
| population in Texas; | ||
| (2) the ability to: | ||
| (A) analyze and determine the reliability of | ||
| information sources; | ||
| (B) formulate and articulate reasoned positions; | ||
| (C) understand the manner in which local, state, | ||
| and federal government works and operates through the use of | ||
| simulations and models of governmental and democratic processes; | ||
| (D) actively listen and engage in civil | ||
| discourse, including discourse with those with different | ||
| viewpoints; | ||
| (E) responsibly participate as a citizen in a | ||
| constitutional democracy; and | ||
| (F) effectively engage with governmental | ||
| institutions at the local, state, and federal levels; and | ||
| (3) an appreciation of: | ||
| (A) the importance and responsibility of | ||
| participating in civic life; | ||
| (B) a commitment to the United States and its | ||
| form of government; and | ||
| (C) a commitment to free speech and civil | ||
| discourse. | ||
| (h-7) The agency shall ensure that each school district or | ||
| open-enrollment charter school teaches civics education as part of | ||
| the district's social studies curriculum in a manner consistent | ||
| with the essential knowledge and skills adopted under Subsection | ||
| (h-2). | ||
| (h-8) Nothing in Subsections (h-2) and (h-7) may be | ||
| construed as limiting the teaching of or instruction in the | ||
| essential knowledge and skills adopted under this subchapter. | ||
| SECTION 3. Section 28.002(h-2), Education Code, as added by | ||
| H.B. 4509, Acts of the 87th Legislature, Regular Session, 2021, is | ||
| redesignated as Section 28.002(h-6), Education Code, to read as | ||
| follows: | ||
| (h-6) [ |
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| founding documents of the United States as described by Subsection | ||
| (h-1)(4), a school district or open-enrollment charter school shall | ||
| use those documents as part of the instructional materials for the | ||
| instruction. | ||
| SECTION 4. Subchapter A, Chapter 28, Education Code, is | ||
| amended by adding Section 28.0022 to read as follows: | ||
| Sec. 28.0022. CERTAIN INSTRUCTIONAL REQUIREMENTS AND | ||
| PROHIBITIONS. (a) For any course or subject, including an | ||
| innovative course, for a grade level from kindergarten through | ||
| grade 12: | ||
| (1) a teacher may not be compelled to discuss a | ||
| particular current event or widely debated and currently | ||
| controversial issue of public policy or social affairs; | ||
| (2) a teacher who chooses to discuss a topic described | ||
| by Subdivision (1) shall, to the best of the teacher's ability, | ||
| strive to explore that topic from diverse and contending | ||
| perspectives without giving deference to any one perspective; | ||
| (3) a school district, open-enrollment charter | ||
| school, or teacher may not require, make part of a course, or award | ||
| a grade or course credit, including extra credit, for a student's: | ||
| (A) work for, affiliation with, or service | ||
| learning in association with any organization engaged in: | ||
| (i) lobbying for legislation at the | ||
| federal, state, or local level; or | ||
| (ii) social policy advocacy or public | ||
| policy advocacy; | ||
| (B) political activism, lobbying, or efforts to | ||
| persuade members of the legislative or executive branch at the | ||
| federal, state, or local level to take specific actions by direct | ||
| communication; or | ||
| (C) participation in any internship, practicum, | ||
| or similar activity involving social policy advocacy or public | ||
| policy advocacy; and | ||
| (4) a teacher, administrator, or other employee of a | ||
| state agency, school district, or open-enrollment charter school | ||
| may not: | ||
| (A) require or make part of a course inculcation | ||
| in the concept that: | ||
| (i) one race or sex is inherently superior | ||
| to another race or sex; | ||
| (ii) an individual, by virtue of the | ||
| individual's race or sex, is inherently racist, sexist, or | ||
| oppressive, whether consciously or unconsciously; | ||
| (iii) an individual should be discriminated | ||
| against or receive adverse treatment solely or partly because of | ||
| the individual's race or sex; | ||
| (iv) an individual's moral character, | ||
| standing, or worth is necessarily determined by the individual's | ||
| race or sex; | ||
| (v) an individual, by virtue of the | ||
| individual's race or sex, bears responsibility for actions | ||
| committed in the past by other members of the same race or sex; | ||
| (vi) an individual should feel discomfort, | ||
| guilt, anguish, or any other form of psychological distress on | ||
| account of the individual's race or sex; | ||
| (vii) meritocracy or traits such as a hard | ||
| work ethic are racist or sexist or were created by members of a | ||
| particular race to oppress members of another race; | ||
| (viii) the advent of slavery in the | ||
| territory that is now the United States constituted the true | ||
| founding of the United States; or | ||
| (ix) with respect to their relationship to | ||
| American values, slavery and racism are anything other than | ||
| deviations from, betrayals of, or failures to live up to the | ||
| authentic founding principles of the United States, which include | ||
| liberty and equality; | ||
| (B) teach, instruct, or train any administrator, | ||
| teacher, or staff member of a state agency, school district, or | ||
| open-enrollment charter school to adopt a concept listed under | ||
| Paragraph (A); or | ||
| (C) require an understanding of the 1619 Project. | ||
| (b) Subsection (a)(3) may not be construed to apply to a | ||
| student's participation in community charitable projects, such as | ||
| building community gardens, volunteering at local food banks, or | ||
| other service projects. | ||
| (c) A state agency, school district, or open-enrollment | ||
| charter school may not accept private funding for the purpose of | ||
| developing a curriculum, purchasing or selecting curriculum | ||
| materials, or providing teacher training or professional | ||
| development for a course described by Subsection (a)(4). | ||
| (d) A school district or open-enrollment charter school may | ||
| not implement, interpret, or enforce any rule, including a standard | ||
| provided by a student code of conduct adopted under Section 37.001, | ||
| in a manner that would result in the punishment of a student for | ||
| discussing the concepts described by Subsection (a)(4) or have a | ||
| chilling effect on student discussions involving those concepts. | ||
| (e) Nothing in this section may be construed as limiting the | ||
| teaching of or instruction in the essential knowledge and skills | ||
| adopted under this subchapter. | ||
| SECTION 5. Sections 28.002(h-2), (h-3), (h-4), and (h-5), | ||
| as added by H.B. 3979, Acts of the 87th Legislature, Regular | ||
| Session, 2021, and effective September 1, 2021, are repealed. | ||
| SECTION 6. (a) Except as provided by Subsection (b) of this | ||
| section, this Act applies beginning with the 2021-2022 school year. | ||
| (b) Section 28.002(h-2), Education Code, as added by this | ||
| Act, applies beginning with the 2022-2023 school year. | ||
| SECTION 7. Not later than December 31, 2022, the State Board | ||
| of Education shall review and revise, as needed, the essential | ||
| knowledge and skills of the social studies curriculum as required | ||
| by Section 28.002(h-2), Education Code, as added by this Act. | ||
| SECTION 8. If any provision of this Act or its application | ||
| to any person or circumstance is held invalid, the invalidity does | ||
| not affect other provisions or applications of this Act that can be | ||
| given effect without the invalid provision or application, and to | ||
| this end the provisions of this Act are declared to be severable. | ||
| SECTION 9. This Act takes effect September 1, 2021, if it | ||
| receives a vote of two-thirds of all the members elected to each | ||
| house, as provided by Section 39, Article III, Texas Constitution. | ||
| If this Act does not receive the vote necessary for effect on that | ||
| date, this Act takes effect on the 91st day after the last day of the | ||
| legislative session. | ||
