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A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
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AN ACT
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relating to the inclusion of a course on modern conflicts in the |
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curriculum requirements for public high school students. |
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BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS: |
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SECTION 1. Section 28.025, Education Code, is amended by |
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amending Subsection (b-1) and adding Subsection (b-25) to read as |
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follows: |
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(b-1) The State Board of Education by rule shall require |
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that the curriculum requirements for the foundation high school |
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program under Subsection (a) include a requirement that students |
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successfully complete: |
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(1) four credits in English language arts under |
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Section 28.002(a)(1)(A), including one credit in English I, one |
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credit in English II, one credit in English III, and one credit in |
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an advanced English course authorized under Subsection (b-2); |
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(2) three credits in mathematics under Section |
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28.002(a)(1)(B), including one credit in Algebra I, one credit in |
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geometry, and one credit in any advanced mathematics course |
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authorized under Subsection (b-2); |
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(3) three credits in science under Section |
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28.002(a)(1)(C), including one credit in biology, one credit in any |
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advanced science course authorized under Subsection (b-2), and one |
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credit in integrated physics and chemistry or in an additional |
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advanced science course authorized under Subsection (b-2); |
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(4) three and one-half credits in social studies under |
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Section 28.002(a)(1)(D), including one credit in United States |
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history, at least one-half credit in government and at least |
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one-half credit in economics or personal financial literacy & |
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economics, [and] one credit in world geography or world history, |
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and one-half credit in modern conflicts; |
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(5) except as provided under Subsections (b-12), |
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(b-13), and (b-14), two credits in the same language in a language |
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other than English under Section 28.002(a)(2)(A); |
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(6) four and one-half [five] elective credits; |
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(7) one credit in fine arts under Section |
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28.002(a)(2)(D); and |
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(8) except as provided by Subsection (b-11), one |
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credit in physical education under Section 28.002(a)(2)(C). |
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(b-25) In adopting rules under Subsection (b-1), the State |
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Board of Education shall ensure that a course on modern conflicts |
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taken to comply with the requirements under Subsection (b-1)(4) |
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includes instruction in accordance with Section 28.0122. |
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SECTION 2. Subchapter A, Chapter 28, Education Code, is |
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amended by adding Section 28.0122 to read as follows: |
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Sec. 28.0122. REQUIRED COURSE ON MODERN CONFLICTS. A |
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course in modern conflicts required under Section 28.025(b-1)(4) |
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must include instruction relating to: |
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(1) the modern history of Russia, including: |
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(A) the Bolshevik Revolution; |
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(B) the Chernobyl disaster; |
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(C) the government structure of the Soviet Union |
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and the disbursement of wealth in the region; |
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(D) the collapse of the Soviet Union, including |
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the Revolutions of 1989 and Ronald Reagan's "Tear Down This Wall" |
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and "Evil Empire" speeches; |
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(E) economic reform under Mikhail Gorbachev; |
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(F) the invasion of Afghanistan and the funding |
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by the United States of the mujahideen related to the invasion; and |
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(G) relevant political ideologies, including: |
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(i) Leninism; |
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(ii) War Communism; and |
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(iii) Stalinism, including atrocities |
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committed under Stalin; |
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(2) the history of the People's Republic of China, |
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including: |
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(A) the rise of the Communist Party of China; |
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(B) the concept of the Great Leap Forward; |
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(C) the 1989 Tiananmen Square protests; |
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(D) any history of famine experienced in the |
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country; |
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(E) the conquering of Tibet and the effects on |
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the Dalai Lama; and |
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(F) the treatment of ethnic and religious |
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minorities, including the Uyghurs and Tibetans and the followers of |
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Falun Gong; |
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(3) the history of North Korea; |
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(4) the Communist Party of Cuba and the economic |
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effects of communism on Cuba; |
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(5) the Cambodian Genocide; |
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(6) the fall of the Berlin Wall; |
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(7) the Gulf War and Operation Desert Storm; |
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(8) the attacks of September 11, 2001, and the |
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collapse of the World Trade Center Twin Towers; and |
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(9) the Iraq and Afghan Wars, including: |
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(A) the history of Saddam Hussein; |
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(B) the history of the mujahideen and the |
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Taliban; |
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(C) the concept of Sharia law; |
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(D) the history of Osama Bin Laden; and |
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(E) the history of the Islamic State of Iraq and |
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Syria (ISIS). |
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SECTION 3. Section 28.025(b-1), Education Code, as amended |
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by this Act, applies only to students entering the ninth grade |
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during the 2025-2026 school year or a later school year. For |
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students entering a grade above ninth grade during the 2025-2026 |
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school year, Section 28.025(b-1), Education Code, as that section |
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existed before amendment by this Act, applies, and that section is |
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continued in effect for that purpose. |
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SECTION 4. This Act applies beginning with the 2025-2026 |
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school year. |
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SECTION 5. This Act takes effect immediately if it receives |
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a vote of two-thirds of all the members elected to each house, as |
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provided by Section 39, Article III, Texas Constitution. If this |
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Act does not receive the vote necessary for immediate effect, this |
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Act takes effect September 1, 2025. |