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The Herald Scotland
a day ago
- Politics
- The Herald Scotland
Oklahoma to require Blue state teachers to take 'America First' test
The state department of education will implement the new certification test for teachers from the two largest Democrat-led states "who are teaching things that are antithetical to our standards" to ensure newcomers "are not coming into our classrooms and indoctrinating kids," Oklahoma schools Superintendent Ryan Walters, said in an interview with USA TODAY. Walters has dubbed the new requirement an "America First" certification, in reference to one of Trump's political slogans. Oklahoma's Republican Governor Kevin Stitt appointed Walters, a Republican, to the helm of the state's education department in Sept. 2020 and voters then elected him for a second term in November 2022. Oklahoma to require schools To teach Trump's 2020 election conspiracy theories Oklahoma is offering teaching bonuses that go up to $50,000 to attract teachers from across the nation and has seen "a dramatic increase in teachers wanting to come to Oklahoma," Walters said. The new test is meant to ensure they weed out teachers with opposing views from the state's standards. The state, like many others, has a persisting teacher shortage. He said the test will only apply to teachers from California and New York, for now, because those states specifically teach lessons that are antithetical to those taught in Oklahoma. "A lot of the credit goes to Gavin Newsom," Walters said. He alleged California under the governor has implemented lessons on "gender theory," and that won't be allowed in Oklahoma schools. (The California Healthy Youth Act, passed in 2016, requires that public school lessons across the state "must be inclusive of LGBTQ students" and same-sex relationships and teach students about "gender, gender expression, gender identity, and explore the harm of negative gender stereotypes" and "about all sexual orientations and what being LGBTQ means.") Oklahoma's 'America First' Test Nonprofit conservative media company Prager U is helping Oklahoma's state department of education develop the test. The company previously helped develop the state's new high school history curriculum standards, which includes lessons on how to dissect the results of the 2020 election, including learning about alleged mail-in voter fraud, "an unforeseen record number of voters" and "security risks of mail-in balloting." The new curriculum also teaches the contested theory that COVID-19 emerged from a lab leak and removed a prior proposal for lessons about George Floyd's murder and Black Lives Matter. "These reforms will reset our classrooms back to educating our children without liberal indoctrination," Walters wrote in a post on X on April 29. "We're proud to defend these standards, and we will continue to stand up for honest, pro-America education in every classroom." The state superintendent said some of the history questions will about American government, how the nation came to be and its founding documents. Walters' office shared five sample questions with USA TODAY: What are the first three words of the Constitution?A. In God We TrustB. Life, Liberty, HappinessC. The United StatesD. We the People Why is freedom of religion important to America's identity?A. It makes Christianity the national religionB. It bans all forms of public worshipC. It limits religious teaching in public lifeD. It protects religious choice from government control What are the two parts of the U.S. Congress?A. House of Lords and CommonsB. Courts and SenateC. Executive and LegislativeD. Senate and House of Representatives How many U.S. Senators are there?A. 435B. 110C. 50D. 100 Why do some states have more Representatives than others?A. They cover a larger geographic areaB. They have held statehood for a longer periodC. The number is determined by military presenceD. Representation is determined by population size Walters said the test will be finished by Aug. 15 and it will be available to prospective teachers the week of Aug. 18. "We're very close," he said. Oklahoma schools have become more has conservative under Walters' took the helm of the state's education department in Sept. 2020, and voters elected him for a second term in November 2022. Along with the changes to the state's history curriculum standards, Walters has ordered public schools to teach the Bible in June 2024. Bible lessons will not be on the new teacher certification exam, he said. Teachers' union leaders: Test will be 'a huge turn off' to teachers amid 'serious teacher shortage crisis' Teachers' union leaders decried the new certification test in interviews with USA TODAY. Randi Weingarten, president of the American Federation of Teachers, said Walters' new test is going to be a "huge turn off" to teachers and that it's not "going to solve a problem." "Teachers in this country are patriotic, and suggesting they're not is insulting," she said. Weingarten went on to criticize Walters for several of his conservative pushes for education in Oklahoma, including bible lessons, and support for a religious charter school, which was blocked by a split Supreme Court vote this May. She called those moves and the implementation of the new test "a major distraction." "Ryan Walters appears to be trying out for MAGA in chief, not educator in chief, because everything that he's doing is about the culture wars, not about the reading, writing and arithmetic," she said. "If he wants to be MAGA in chief then go be MAGA in chief. But let someone else be educator in chief and focus on other things people deserve, which is reading, literacy and wraparound services - and actual teachers who want to be in Oklahoma." Oklahoma and California teachers union leaders agreed. "This is a political stunt to grab attention," said Cari Elledge, president of the Oklahoma Education Association. "All of the mandates coming out of the Department of Education are baseless and are distractions from real issues in Oklahoma." One of those pressing issues is "the serious teacher shortage crisis," she said. "When political ideology plays into whether or not you can teach in any place, that might be a deterrent to quality educators attempting to get a job ... We think it's intentional to make educators fearful and confused." The political climate in Oklahoma has contributed to the teacher shortage, she said, noting there are about 30,000 teachers in Oklahoma who hold state teaching certifications but are not working in classrooms. "We believe the political morale is making it scarier to teach," she said. "We know our jobs are so much more important and at the end of the day it's about the future of our students." The state teachers union told its members in a July 11 letter, which Elledge provided to USA TODAY, that Walters "has no legal authority to vet certified teachers based on political ideology." They say that's because "licensing and certification are governed by state statute, not personal opinion or partisan preferences" and state law "requires us to recognize out-of-state teaching credentials." The letter references part of the state education code that says it "must issue certificates to qualified teachers from other U.S. states and territories if they meet basic requirements, including a criminal background check." The union is also concerned about the state education department's partnership with PragerU "because it's not an educational authority and it's partisan," Elledge said. "OEA is actively monitoring this and other overreaches," the letter reads. "We remain vigilant in protecting the rights of Oklahoma's educators and students." Teachers in Oklahoma don't teach newly implemented conservative ideologies in classrooms, which are expected to be on the 'America First' certification test, Elledge said. "They're not here to give opinions in class; they're here to teach facts," she said. There are not many teachers in Oklahoma who come from California or New York, anyway, because of political differences. "People in Oklahoma have more conservative values," she said. "It's not a destination state for people from California and New York, which is sad because it's a really good place and students here deserve the best they could possibly have." David Goldberg, president of the California Teachers' Association, said he also hasn't heard of an influx of teachers who want to move from California to teach in Oklahoma. But at a time when states are trying to solve teacher shortages, the Oklahoma test is trying to "scare them away," he said. "This almost seems like satire and so far removed from my research around what Oklahoma educators need and deserve," he said. "I can't see how this isn't some kind of hyper-political grandstanding that doesn't serve any of those needs." Goldberg rejects that what teachers need in California - "respect" and a livable wage - is different than what Oklahoma teachers need to thrive. Teachers have a responsibility to take care of kids in both places despite their different education systems, he said. Contact Kayla Jimenez at kjimenez@ Follow her on X at @kaylajjimenez.
USA Today
2 days ago
- Politics
- USA Today
Oklahoma will require teachers from NY, California to prove they back 'America First'
Oklahoma's new "America First" teacher certification test will require educators from California and New York to agree with conservative curriculum. Teachers from California and New York who want to work in Oklahoma public schools will be required to pass a certification test to prove they share the state's conservative political values. Regardless of the subject or grade they teach, they'll have to show they know "the biological differences between females and males" and that they agree with the state's American history standards, which includes teachings of a disproved conspiracy theory that the Democratic Party stole the 2020 presidential election from President Donald Trump. The state department of education will implement the new certification test for teachers from the two largest Democrat-led states "who are teaching things that are antithetical to our standards" to ensure newcomers "are not coming into our classrooms and indoctrinating kids," Oklahoma schools Superintendent Ryan Walters, said in an interview with USA TODAY. Walters has dubbed the new requirement an "America First" certification, in reference to one of Trump's political slogans. Oklahoma's Republican Governor Kevin Stitt appointed Walters, a Republican, to the helm of the state's education department in Sept. 2020 and voters then elected him for a second term in November 2022. Oklahoma is offering teaching bonuses that go up to $50,000 to attract teachers from across the nation and has seen "a dramatic increase in teachers wanting to come to Oklahoma," Walters said. The new test is meant to ensure they weed out teachers with opposing views from the state's standards. The state, like many others, has a persisting teacher shortage. He said the test will only apply to teachers from California and New York, for now, because those states specifically teach lessons that are antithetical to those taught in Oklahoma. "A lot of the credit goes to Gavin Newsom," Walters said. He alleged California under the governor has implemented lessons on "gender theory," and that won't be allowed in Oklahoma schools. (The California Healthy Youth Act, passed in 2016, requires that public school lessons across the state "must be inclusive of LGBTQ students" and same-sex relationships and teach students about "gender, gender expression, gender identity, and explore the harm of negative gender stereotypes" and "about all sexual orientations and what being LGBTQ means.") Oklahoma's 'America First' Test Nonprofit conservative media company Prager U is helping Oklahoma's state department of education develop the test. The company previously helped develop the state's new high school history curriculum standards, which includes lessons on how to dissect the results of the 2020 election, including learning about alleged mail-in voter fraud, "an unforeseen record number of voters" and "security risks of mail-in balloting." The new curriculum also teaches the contested theory that COVID-19 emerged from a lab leak and removed a prior proposal for lessons about George Floyd's murder and Black Lives Matter. "These reforms will reset our classrooms back to educating our children without liberal indoctrination," Walters wrote in a post on X on April 29. "We're proud to defend these standards, and we will continue to stand up for honest, pro-America education in every classroom." The state superintendent said some of the history questions will about American government, how the nation came to be and its founding documents. Walters' office shared five sample questions with USA TODAY: Walters said the test will be finished by Aug. 15 and it will be available to prospective teachers the week of Aug. 18. "We're very close," he said. Oklahoma schools have become more has conservative under Walters' took the helm of the state's education department in Sept. 2020, and voters elected him for a second term in November 2022. Along with the changes to the state's history curriculum standards, Walters has ordered public schools to teach the Bible in June 2024. Bible lessons will not be on the new teacher certification exam, he said. Teachers' union leaders: Test will be 'a huge turn off' to teachers amid 'serious teacher shortage crisis' Teachers' union leaders decried the new certification test in interviews with USA TODAY. Randi Weingarten, president of the American Federation of Teachers, said Walters' new test is going to be a "huge turn off" to teachers and that it's not "going to solve a problem." "Teachers in this country are patriotic, and suggesting they're not is insulting," she said. Weingarten went on to criticize Walters for several of his conservative pushes for education in Oklahoma, including bible lessons, and support for a religious charter school, which was blocked by a split Supreme Court vote this May. She called those moves and the implementation of the new test "a major distraction." "Ryan Walters appears to be trying out for MAGA in chief, not educator in chief, because everything that he's doing is about the culture wars, not about the reading, writing and arithmetic," she said. "If he wants to be MAGA in chief then go be MAGA in chief. But let someone else be educator in chief and focus on other things people deserve, which is reading, literacy and wraparound services – and actual teachers who want to be in Oklahoma." Oklahoma and California teachers union leaders agreed. "This is a political stunt to grab attention," said Cari Elledge, president of the Oklahoma Education Association. "All of the mandates coming out of the Department of Education are baseless and are distractions from real issues in Oklahoma." One of those pressing issues is "the serious teacher shortage crisis," she said. "When political ideology plays into whether or not you can teach in any place, that might be a deterrent to quality educators attempting to get a job ... We think it's intentional to make educators fearful and confused." The political climate in Oklahoma has contributed to the teacher shortage, she said, noting there are about 30,000 teachers in Oklahoma who hold state teaching certifications but are not working in classrooms. "We believe the political morale is making it scarier to teach," she said. "We know our jobs are so much more important and at the end of the day it's about the future of our students." The state teachers union told its members in a July 11 letter, which Elledge provided to USA TODAY, that Walters "has no legal authority to vet certified teachers based on political ideology." They say that's because "licensing and certification are governed by state statute, not personal opinion or partisan preferences" and state law "requires us to recognize out-of-state teaching credentials." The letter references part of the state education code that says it "must issue certificates to qualified teachers from other U.S. states and territories if they meet basic requirements, including a criminal background check." The union is also concerned about the state education department's partnership with PragerU "because it's not an educational authority and it's partisan," Elledge said. "OEA is actively monitoring this and other overreaches," the letter reads. "We remain vigilant in protecting the rights of Oklahoma's educators and students." Teachers in Oklahoma don't teach newly implemented conservative ideologies in classrooms, which are expected to be on the 'America First' certification test, Elledge said. "They're not here to give opinions in class; they're here to teach facts," she said. There are not many teachers in Oklahoma who come from California or New York, anyway, because of political differences. "People in Oklahoma have more conservative values," she said. "It's not a destination state for people from California and New York, which is sad because it's a really good place and students here deserve the best they could possibly have." David Goldberg, president of the California Teachers' Association, said he also hasn't heard of an influx of teachers who want to move from California to teach in Oklahoma. But at a time when states are trying to solve teacher shortages, the Oklahoma test is trying to "scare them away," he said. "This almost seems like satire and so far removed from my research around what Oklahoma educators need and deserve," he said. "I can't see how this isn't some kind of hyper-political grandstanding that doesn't serve any of those needs." Goldberg rejects that what teachers need in California – "respect" and a livable wage – is different than what Oklahoma teachers need to thrive. Teachers have a responsibility to take care of kids in both places despite their different education systems, he said. Contact Kayla Jimenez at kjimenez@ Follow her on X at @kaylajjimenez.
CBS News
10-06-2025
- Health
- CBS News
Modesto school district's proposed "Puberty Talk" curriculum raises concerns
A controversy is brewing in Modesto as the local school district is considering adopting a new health curriculum called "Puberty Talk" for 5th graders. There's growing pushback not just from parents but from one of the district's board members over what the children should or shouldn't be learning about sex and gender. But Modesto City Schools says this is not sex education. It is health education. School board member Jolene Daly says the plan dives too deep into matters that are too adult for children. She's a licensed family therapist who says the lessons could cause students psychological harm. "They're not really understanding the psychological impact of some of the statements that are being made on the cognitive develop of the of these young kids," she said. CBS13 reviewed the material at the district's office. It includes chapters titled "Consent Plus Boundaries," "Identity Plus Expression" and "Puberty Health and Hygiene," which include discussions about different kinds of intercourse. "The hygiene portion of it tells them to make sure that they wash their hands and their genitals," Daly told CBS Sacramento over Zoom. "These 10 and 11-year-olds don't have the capacity to understand some of the information that is in the text." The district says the curriculum meets state requirements under the California Healthy Youth Act and that parents can opt out. But one mother of a student argues these are discussions that need to be had. "I think it's important to talk about it before those changes happen," the mother said. "I think normalizing things makes it better." The board took public comment on the material Monday night, and parents were able to see the material for themselves at the district's professional development building They'll vote on this matter on June 28.
Yahoo
08-06-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
Modesto City Schools trustee is critical of sex education plan for 5th-graders
A Modesto City Schools board member wants parents to know what's in a sex education curriculum designed for fifth-grade classrooms. Jolene Daly spoke at two recent gatherings, arguing that fifth-graders aren't psychologically prepared for the content about gender identity and sexual activity. Daly gave a scathing critique of the curriculum Saturday at Celebration Center, a church in Modesto. She said she spoke as a licensed family therapist, not as a school board member. 'It oversexualizes 10-year-olds,' Daly said. 'These children are not ready for this material.' The proposed fifth-grade sex education curriculum in Modesto City Schools is likely to run into some opposition several months after Stanislaus County voters swung conservative in the November presidential election and the culture wars were one of the issues. About 50 people attended Daly's talk at Celebration Center and more than 100 were at a June 2 event, she said. Several people at Saturday's presentation asked how to get involved with the school district's decision-making process. MCS trustees this month will consider two curriculum options: 'Puberty Talk for Grades 5 & 6' and 'Puberty: The Wonder Years, Grade 5.' A 16-member committee consisting of teachers, parents and board members reviewed curriculum choices and has recommended 'Puberty Talk.' The proposed sex education is under the school district's fifth-grade health curriculum, which focuses on hygiene, nutrition, puberty, internet safety, social influences, healthy communication and relationships. According to an MCS FAQ page, the California Healthy Youth Act also requires sex education topics when school districts offer health education. The classroom instruction must recognize diverse sexual orientations including same-sex relationships, teach gender concepts and cover gender expression, gender identity and the harm of negative stereotypes. The health education must include medically accurate, objective information appropriate for students 'of all races, genders, sexual orientations, ethnicities and cultural background,' the state law says. One of the goals is teaching fifth-graders, who are showing the early signs of puberty, to recognize sexual harassment and abuse and report inappropriate touching and child abuse, the school district says. During her talk Saturday, Daly contended that fifth-graders are too early in mental development for lessons about gender identity and the facts of sex. She referred to a student survey question in one curriculum that asks what transgender means. She also objected to proposed instructional content defining different sexualities and genders and what she said was content regarding hormone replacement therapy and masturbation. Daly said there's too much latitude for fifth-grade teachers to talk with students about sexual acts. It's too early for the kids to hear that sex is fun, Daly said, adding that the classroom material is not culturally sensitive to members of the Christian faith. According to the school district FAQ, fifth-grade sex education is widely taught in California to help students navigate the physical changes of puberty and learn the facts in a supportive educational setting. It follows a trend of young people experiencing puberty at younger age and dealing with developments including physical growth, change in voice, acne, body odor, oily hair and the need for good hygiene. To review the copyrighted curriculum materials, parents must go to the district's Department of Curriculum & Instruction, Professional Development Building B, at 1017 Reno Ave., at certain times through June 30. The school board is scheduled to hear more about the curriculum and receive community input Monday evening. The board could approve the curriculum June 23. The school district says parents can opt their children out of the sex education instruction. Forms will be sent home with children at least two weeks before the lessons, and a form will be provided on Parent Square. Daly said the Puberty Talk program is the sister curriculum of the Teen Talk sex education for eighth=grade students. She said local groups including Without Permission could educate students about human trafficking, harassment and other health education topics required by the state.
