Fort Bend Independent School District trustees have moved forward with sampling Bluebonnet Learning materials, paving the way for a possible future adoption of the state-sponsored curriculum that aims to save districts money while providing new educational content.
At Monday’s board meeting, trustees voted 5-2 to order a free sample set of the curriculum from Bluebonnet Learning. While this vote does not mean the curriculum will be fully adopted, it is the first step in evaluating and comparing it to the district’s existing curriculum.
Bluebonnet Learning is an Open Educational Resource, meaning it is owned by the state and available free of charge to Texas school districts. This follows the passage of House Bill 1605 in 2023, which mandated that instructional materials be provided free to Texas schools.
The law required the Texas Education Agency to develop the curriculum. TEA stated that the materials were designed to “improve student learning, close achievement gaps, and better support Texas teachers.”
The Texas Legislature has provided additional funding for Bluebonnet Learning. Schools are eligible for $20 per student, specifically for printing costs, in addition to the $40 per student available for any state-approved instructional resource. Unlike the $40 stipend, which can roll over year-to-year, the $20 per student for Bluebonnet is only available for the first year and would go entirely toward printing costs.
District leaders confirmed during last week’s workshop that implementing Bluebonnet Learning would cost at least $1.6 million for teacher and student materials in the first year. The cost could reach up to $2.1 million for K-5 reading materials alone, based on Fort Bend ISD’s enrollment. This comes out of the $8.3 million funding available for pre-K through 12th-grade materials across all subjects.
The controversy surrounding Bluebonnet Learning centers on its inclusion of religious references, most of which relate to Christianity.
These references appear in various contexts, such as in a lesson about Ancient Rome, which discusses the positive influence of Christianity on Roman culture, as compared to Roman mythology.
Another example is a passage from the Gospel of Matthew, which is used in a lesson about studying Leonardo da Vinci’s “The Last Supper.”
According to data from the TEA, around 10 percent of the reading and language arts lessons contain religious source material.
During last week’s board meeting, several parents and community members testified against adopting the new curriculum.
One mother became so upset that she was removed from the meeting by district police after making an obscene gesture toward a board trustee and calling him a “fascist.”
In response, Board President Kristin Tassin stated, “In order for the administration to even be able to review it, we have to say, ‘Yes, go ahead and order a sample set.’ That’s what we’re voting on. It doesn’t make us fascist, it doesn’t make us Christian nationalist, it doesn’t make us any of these things.”
Trustee David Hamilton, who voted in favor of ordering the curriculum sample, spoke strongly in support of Bluebonnet Learning.
He claimed that part of the “communist agenda” is to “get control of the schools, use them as transmission belts for socialism and current Communist propaganda. Soften the curriculum, get control of teacher associations, put the party line in textbooks … and eliminate prayer or any phase of religious expression in the schools.”
In contrast to Fort Bend ISD’s decision, Spring Branch ISD reviewed the curriculum but ultimately chose not to proceed with its implementation. However, Conroe ISD voted last month to adopt the curriculum, citing concerns over improving literacy and critical thinking skills.
