Nov 19 (Reuters) - Texas education officials voted narrowly to offer preliminary approval on Tuesday for a new curriculum that includes Bible lessons for children starting in kindergarten, part of a growing effort in the state and elsewhere to bring Christian principles to public schools. The lesson plan, which is optional for school districts, has drawn criticism that it violates the U.S.
Constitution's prohibition on governmental endorsement of religion, often referred to as the separation of church and state. The state board of education voted 8-7 to keep the curriculum on a list of programs likely to gain final approval at a meeting on Friday. The preliminary decision followed comments from more than 100 members of the public during a marathon hearing on Monday that stretched into the night.
Texas has been at the forefront of a movement among some Christian conservatives to promote religion in public schools , testing the boundaries of U.S. law and potentially inviting an increasingly right-wing Supreme Court to weigh in.
President-elect Donald Trump has signaled support for such efforts. Texas last year became the first state to enact legislation allowing chaplains in public schools, and Republican lawmakers are reviving a failed bill that would require the Ten Commandments to be displayed in school classrooms. A similar Ten Commandments law passed in Louisiana has been temporarily blocked by a federal judge.
Legislators in more than two dozen states proposed at least 91.
