Of all the things for the Legislature to focus on, the Bible elective bill is not one of them. The Dominion Post does not support HB 4780, which was on third reading in the Senate on Wednesday. HB 4780 is the last bill standing after its counterpart, SB 38, died in the Senate Education committee. HB 4780 gives county boards of education the power to create high school “elective” social studies courses on Hebrew Scriptures, Old Testament of the Bible; New Testament of the Bible; or Hebrew Scriptures and New Testament of the Bible for the purported purpose of understanding the Bible’s influence on America. We use “elective” loosely, as anyone who has recently attended high school remembers how class scheduling can force students into courses they don’t want, but they have to fulfill their requirements somehow. A rejected floor amendment would have altered HB 4780 to match the dead SB 38 and allow county boards to offer elective high school courses on any sacred texts or comparative religion. That, at least, would have given this bill the illusion of inclusivity. Beyond any personal feelings regarding religion taught in schools, there are some practical problems with implementing the Bible bill. First, the bill demands “religious neutrality” from BOEs and instructors. In order to be truly neutral, educators would have to teach the text cover-to-cover. Otherwise, focusing on certain aspects or ignoring others could appear to violate this neutrality. Is there enough time in a school year to dedicate equal amounts of time to every page of the Bible? This bill opens up school boards and individual teachers to potential lawsuits. Second, the bill allows each student to use their own version of the texts. While we appreciate the nod to respecting individual interpretations, how exactly are teachers supposed to test a student’s knowledge and deliver grades when no one is using the same book? The Torah and the King James Bible, for example, are not going to contain all the same books nor will they have identical translations of the verses. We’re sure students would happily forgo homework, exams and grades, but we imagine school boards would not approve. In addition, West Virginia already requires students to take World History, which covers all three of the major monotheistic religions and how each religion shaped the cultures and politics of the world. And the required U.S. History courses study the creation of America and address Christianity’s role in our development. Therefore, the new elective courses created by this bill would be redundant. Of all the bills going through the Legislature, our elected representatives should not be wasting time on this one, not when there is legislation addressing the foster care crisis or outrageous insulin costs or the still horrendous conditions of our roads.
