Democrats are furious with Oklahoma lawmakers for requiring out-of-state teachers, many of them from deep-blue states, to pass a basic civics test before teaching in Oklahoma classrooms.
The law is straightforward: anyone responsible for educating American students must demonstrate knowledge of the U.S. Constitution, the Bill of Rights, and basic principles of government.
Yet the left is treating this as if it were some radical assault on public education.
The test itself is not complicated. It mirrors the civics portion of the U.S. naturalization exam—the same test immigrants must pass to become citizens.
Sample questions include: Who wrote the Declaration of Independence? or What is the supreme law of the land?
If immigrants seeking citizenship can learn these answers, surely teachers entrusted with the education of young Americans should be held to the same standard.
The statistics speak for themselves.
According to a 2022 survey from the Annenberg Public Policy Center, only 47% of Americans could name all three branches of government. Even more troubling, 23% could not name a single branch.
The growing crisis of civic illiteracy reflects decades of neglect in schools where basic U.S. history and constitutional principles have been sidelined in favor of political activism.
Teachers who do not know or respect America’s founding documents cannot be expected to instill civic responsibility in their students.
Oklahoma’s approach is both reasonable and popular. Polling consistently shows that Americans want more civics in schools.
Hellbound and Down 