By: Hughes, et al. S.B. No. 3
(In the Senate - Filed July 9, 2021; July 9, 2021, read
first time and referred to Committee on State Affairs;
July 15, 2021, reported adversely, with favorable Committee
Substitute by the following vote: Yeas 6, Nays 2; July 15, 2021,
sent to printer.)
Click here to see the committee vote
COMMITTEE SUBSTITUTE FOR S.B. No. 3 By: Hughes
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
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 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.
SECTION 2. Section 28.002, Education Code, as effective
September 1, 2021, is amended by adding Subsections (h-2) and (h-7)
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, 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).
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) [(h-2)] In providing instruction regarding the
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.
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.
* * * * *