The Texas State Board of Education approves a statewide K-12 reading list that requires public students to read passages from the Bible starting in 2030, a decision that affects about 5.5 million pupils and takes effect in four years.The Republican-controlled board specifies Bible versions and grade-level texts — including the New International Reader’s Version, the King James Version and the English Standard Version — pairing those selections with standard literature and changing elementary and middle-school social studies while postponing a vote on high-school social studies.Parents, educators and religious-freedom organizations such as Americans United for Separation of Church and State say the policy privileges Christianity, contravenes the constitutional separation of church and state and will face legal challenges in court.Ken Paxton and allied right-wing groups defend the lists as reflecting national foundations and point to a 2023 law and prior measures, including
Ten Commandments classroom displays, as context for the board’s action.