It will now be mandatory for all schools in Oklahoma to incorporate the Bible and the Ten Commandments into their lessons for students in grades 5 through 10, predominantly for historical contexts.

Ryan Walters, the Oklahoma Superintendent of Public Instruction, announced this new educational requirement to superintendents across the state. Walters emphasized that this initiative aligns with the educational standards approved in May 2019.

“We’ve seen the radical leftist drive God out of schools, drive the Bible out of schools, and we have to make sure that our kids have an understanding of what made America great. Not teaching our kids about the faith of our founders and the influence that the Bible had in our history is just academic malpractice,” Walters stated.

For example, when students learn about subjects such as the Mayflower Compact, predating the formation of the U.S., they will review quotes from pilgrims that referenced the Bible.

Moreover, during the Civil Rights Movement, leaders made numerous references to the Bible, including Martin Luther King Jr.’s letter from the Birmingham Jail.

For those who are not religious, Walters stresses that the lessons involving the Bible are purely for historical understanding.

“The left can be offended, that’s fine. They can be offended all they want, but what they can’t do is rewrite history. That is our history. That is the history of this country,” he noted.

The State Department of Education will provide teaching materials to ensure uniformity across the state, Walters added.

The new curriculum will begin in the 2024-25 school year, and superintendents will receive additional information about monitoring and reporting on the new initiative.