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Texas has joined several other states that have changed what schools teach about Israel since 2023.
Earlier this month, Texas’ State Board of Education approved new high school social studies standards that revise the wording on Israel’s establishment in 1948 and identify moral and ethical teachings in the Torah as an influence on the United States.
It comes after the board approved similar curriculum requirements for third grade in June, covering ancient Israel and its connections to America and Texas.
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The revised standards, which are set to be implemented in third-grade classrooms in 2030-31 and in high schools in 2033-34, have been welcomed by pro-Israel groups but criticized by pro-Palestinian advocates and organizations critical of Israeli government policies.
Newsweek reached out to the Texas State Board of Education and the Texas Education Agency for comment via email on Thursday.
Other states also have changed statewide standards for teaching about Israel in recent years, although to varying degrees and with the subjects covered differing.
Oklahoma, Iowa and Alabama's revisions generally give more prominence to Jewish and Israeli history, while Maryland more explicitly places Israel within the wider context of the Israeli—Palestinian conflict.
In each state, the changes concerning Israel were part of broader revisions to social studies standards, rather than separate measures focused solely on Israel.
These changes have not been explicitly linked to the current Israel-Hamas conflict but they have all taken place after October 7, 2023, when Hamas attacked Israel, killing around 1,200 people and taking about 250 people hostage. Israel responded with a military campaign in Gaza, killing around 73,919 Palestinians as of Wednesday, according to Gaza health authorities, and destroying much of the territory.
The conflict sparked multiple protests on U.S. campuses and forms the backdrop to a wider debate over what American students are taught about Israel.
Some online critics have slammed Texas' changes, saying it could steer students toward a particular view of Israel, while others have spoken out against how the changes are being framed, arguing that the subject of Israel has long been taught about in similar ways in Texas schools.
Newsweek has broken down the details of some of the major standards changes below.
Texas
1948 Wording
Under the new standards, high school students taking U.S. History or World History will be expected to "identify the year 1948 as the date of the establishment of the modern State of Israel, in the ancestral homeland of the Jews, and U.S. President Truman as the first world leader to formally recognize Israel."
The 2022 U.S. History standards mentioned American "support for Israel," while the 2022 World History standards covered factors contributing to the Arab-Israeli conflict. Neither explicitly required students to identify 1948 or used the ancestral homeland wording. That does not mean teachers had not covered Israel’s founding: the Texas Education Agency shared resources on the conflict with schools in 2023, including a timeline beginning in 1947 and the Texas Education Agency’s comparison of the 2018 and 2022 World History standards shows that both versions required students to study Israel’s influence among classical civilizations and discuss factors contributing to the Arab-Israeli conflict.
The new wording also removes phrasing that credits the United Nations with establishing Israel, focusing instead on Truman’s recognition of the state. It also does away with explaining the events previously taught as leading to Israel’s establishment.
The Torah in World History
Texas high school students who take World History are already taught about "the major political, religious/philosophical, and cultural influences" of Israel, along with Persia, India, China, Greece and Rome, according to Texas’ 2022 World History standards.
This list has now been reduced to Israel, Rome and Greece, with specific requirements for each section.
Under Israel’s section, it says students should be able to "identify the contributions of ancient Hebrews, including monotheism and moral and ethical teachings found in the Torah, which influenced the development of Western civilizations."
The previous World History standards already required students to study Judaism and the "Judeo-Christian legal tradition," but did not name the Torah—although it did cite "the Jewish Ten Commandments."
Who Was Involved in Texas’ New Standards?
Before the new standards were approved, an evangelical pro-Israel Christian group Proclaiming Justice to the Nations (PJTN) advocated for certain curriculum changes.
Founder and president Laurie Cardoza Moore addressed the Texas State Board of Education to advocate for "future generations [to] understand America’s Judeo-Christian heritage and Israel’s role in history" and for schools to "teach the roles which Jews have played in America’s founding," a June PJTN announcement says.
Israeli outlet The Jerusalem Post reported last week that PJTN had since said the board had accepted some of its recommendations, although it did not specify which ones. Newsweek has been unable to independently verify this. It contacted PJTN on Thursday, via email, for comment.
During Moore’s testimony, she also questioned the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR)’s involvement in the standards review.
CAIR’s Texas chapter opposed the final standards, saying they "entirely erase Palestinian history" and called for the board’s decision to be reversed.
How the Changes Are Being Framed
Some critics have portrayed the changes as reflecting pro-Israel or Zionist influence over curriculum policy, including an account called Earth Hippy (@hippyygoat), followed by public figures such as Catholic activist Carrie Prejean Boller and libertarian comedian and podcast host Dave Smith.
"AMERICA IS COOKED," he said in a post on X. "Texas has adopted new social studies curriculum standards that will require public-school students to study Israel's history and Zionism. I HOPE THEY TEACH THE CHILDREN ABOUT THE GENOCIDE OF PALESTINIANS."
Others, such as media commentator and podcast host Mario Nawfal, expressed concern about the "facts teachers are required to emphasize, and the context they aren’t."
"Texas is about to decide how an entire generation understands one of the world’s most divisive conflicts," he said.
"Under the 2030 social studies standards, students would explicitly connect Israel’s 1948 establishment to the Jewish ancestral homeland," he said, "emphasize Judeo-Christian influences on American history and identify 'radical Islam' when studying 9/11."
But others accused critics of overstating how much the new standards change existing lessons about Israel, pointing out that earlier Texas standards already covered Israel’s founding and Jewish history.
Texas State Board of Education member Brandon Hall previously responded to a viral post from the media account Remarks (@remarks), which has had more than 7.4 million views.
"Israel is the ancestral homeland of the Jewish people, with a history stretching back more than 4,000 years," Hall said. "Our students deserve to know the full history of this land and its pivotal role in shaping world events from ancient history to the present day."
Earlier this month, The Dallas Express published a fact-check debunking a widespread interpretation of his post to mean that Texas had created a stand-alone Israel course.
A user called Ánridda/Culver (@Anridda), who said they taught social studies in Texas previously, said: "It was in the curriculum in some shape or form this whole time."
Other States Revising Israel Lessons
Iowa
Seventh-grade students in Iowa will learn about "the evolution of the state of Israel," with Zionism, Israel's 1948 independence, the Palestinian conflict and Hamas listed among the topics to be covered, according to the state’s revised social studies standards presented to the Board of Education in January 2026.
It also recommends teaching about antisemitism—both its historical roots and its "contemporary manifestations," including "scapegoating and Holocaust denial."
Maryland
Maryland revised its sixth- and seventh-grade social studies framework in 2025. It lists "analyzing how the outcomes of the Holocaust influenced the founding of Israel" as an objective for students
The Israeli-Palestinian conflict, along with the Israeli-Egyptian conflict, the Iran-Iraq War and the Gulf War, were listed as examples of what regional conflicts and diplomacy to study when looking at how they "have influenced efforts toward stability and cooperation in the Middle East."
"The inclusion of examples is designed to provide clarity and support instructional planning," the state education department said in a memo. "They should be understood as possible points of focus, not mandated case studies."
Oklahoma
As part of a section looking at the effects of World War II, Oklahoma’s 2026 social studies standards say high school students who take Modern World History should be taught to "describe the creation of the modern State of Israel, including the rationale for its establishment, the Zionist movement, increased migration of Jews to the British Mandate for Palestine, and the United Nations Partition Plan."
It also asks students to explain how the 1948 war between Israel and five Arab states "contributed to a refugee crisis" and "led to future conflicts," and to examine the "roots of the ongoing regional instability" in the Middle East, including the Iranian Revolution and the invasion of Kuwait.
Alabama
Alabama approved a new social studies course of study in December 2024. Its ninth-grade standards ask students to "describe the establishment of a unified Israel under Kings Saul, David, and Solomon," "outline the multiple exiles of the Jewish people and their return to Israel" and to "trace the origin of the Arab-Israeli conflict following the establishment of the State of Israel and explain its impact on the global community."
Update 09/25/26, 1:00 p.m. ET: This article has been updated with further information.
Contact Newsweek editors on this story: Ben Kelly, Cristina Diciu and Tony Phillips.
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