A Completely New Direction for Idaho Schools

Our current Idaho students may become the remnant that preserves this Republic for the next 250 years!

For most of my time in the legislature, I’ve been a vocal critic of the direction our Idaho education system has chosen to take and have actively encouraged parents to home school or find alternative options to educate their children. I was discouraged when Common Core standards were snuck into our curriculum, and when public education openly welcomed the wokeness of DEI in our classrooms. Our schools appear to be indoctrinating with un-American influences more than educating.

Many Idahoans have been waiting for a public education course correction and have lost confidence in the system.

The state legislature is required by our constitution “to establish and maintain a general, uniform and thorough system of public, free common schools.” What this is supposed to look like has sadly been left in the hands of bureaucrats for way too long! Dumping more and more money into a broken system has got us nowhere, certainly not smarter students or training future American leaders. The woke teachers’ unions have bullied the education system for way too long.

This is why I wanted to share something exciting!

This session, the Idaho Legislature passed Senate Bill 1336 (sponsor Rep. Barbara Ehardt), which is a step toward refocusing education back to some of the key American foundational principles. In many ways, this may be one of the most important underappreciated pieces of legislation passed in decades to help re-direct our kids in public education towards a more positive direction.

This 7-page bill directs public school teachers on what is required to be taught in our schools. It expands and formalizes civics & history instruction, adds specific required content and themes, creates new rules for curriculum materials and tightens civics testing and graduation expectations. I encourage you to read the bill in its entirety HERE.

Here is a summary of what will be be required of our government run public education system starting on July 1st:

1. A stronger focus on “virtues” in education with a new requirement to ensure students develop character qualities including Prudence, Justice, Fortitude, Moderation and Patriotism. This new requirement will promote responsibility, citizenship, and moral reasoning and reinforce shared civic values.

2. A new directive to teach specific political & philosophical principles requiring students to understand concepts like natural law over government, consent of the governed, role of morality in government, federalism & separation of powers. This requirement will increase civic literacy and help students understand how government works.

3. A new expanded list of required historical documents to be taught including: the Magna Carta, Federalist Papers, Declaration of Independence, Tocqueville’s Democracy in America, Lincoln-Douglas debates, and the Idaho Constitution. This will encourage primary source learning and deepen students understanding of foundational history.

4. More detailed American History content will be required to make sure the inclusion of the following:

• Influence of Western civilization & Christianity

• Founding principles like natural rights & liberty

• Role of Anglo-American heritage

• Symbols (Gadsden flag, Liberty Bell, etc.)

• Anti-slavery framing during founding of our country

This will provide clear structure for curriculum and reinforce understanding of our shared American origins.

5. There is new requirement for mandatory teaching about failures of totalitarian systems requiring students to learn about communism & fascism failures and include events like the Holocaust, Stalin’s purges, and Mao’s Great Leap Forward. This will teach children the historical consequences of authoritarianism and help them understand the benefits of freedom vs. oppression.

6. New curriculum content rules will require all instructional materials must be factually accurate, use primary sources be academically rigorous, and inspire patriotism which promotes moral character. Western civilization heritage, and the appreciation of U.S. government will also be mandatory coursework. This will raise quality standards and encourage source-based learning.

7. English/Language Arts must now incorporate founding-era texts and Revolutionary-era literature. This will reinforce civics across subjects and build historical literacy through reading

8. There will be changes to Civics Testing Requirements and students must now pass a civics test and take government/history coursework. The test must include Constitution principles, Federal powers, Electoral college, and the branches of government. This will ensure baseline civic knowledge and standardized expectations statewide.

9. There is a new requirement to encourage (not force) George Washington portraits to be displayed in classrooms. This will reinforce historical awareness.

This new law gives me hope and may signal a shift back toward stronger curriculum, clearer standards, and a renewed focus on what truly matters in American education. It is a real opportunity to redirect our classrooms back toward knowledge, truth, citizenship and accountability. With its passage, we will finally be taking a meaningful step in the right direction.

Our current Idaho students may become the remnant and future foundation that preserves this Republic for the next 250 years!

In Liberty,

Rep. Heather Scott