Attention all you woke teachers from California and New York who are trying to sneak into Oklahoma to subvert the minds of the state's young students. (One report claims there are at least five a year from California alone.) The America First Test prepared by public school Superintendent Ryan Walters and PragerU is either done, or almost done. PragerU just released their part, 34 questions, which leaves 16 still unidentified. Presumably those 16 were left for the Superintendent himself to formulate. It's unclear at this time if he has done so, or not. Perhaps they're ready to go and are currently sitting on his desk next to his TV remote control.
Many of the PragerU questions seem innocuous enough. Question 10 asks, "What are the two parts of the United States Congress? Question 11, How many total U.S. Senators are there? Number 21, When was the Declaration of Independence adopted? This is stuff any 7th, or 8th grade civics student should have down pat. Okay, except in Oklahoma where, under Walters' leadership, the public education system has sunk to 50th in the nation.
Other questions seem a bit idealistic in nature given who is currently in the Oval Office. Number 19 asks, What is the supreme law of the United States? The correct answer is the Constitution, although Donald Trump might disagree. Number 34 is, From whom does the United States government derive its power? According to the test the answer is, the people. Again, they might want to check with Donnie Trump on that.
The first question actually appears tougher than it really is. First the entire test is multiple choice and second, if you know even a little bit about Ryan Walters you know what he wants to hear. . Question one reads, According to the Supreme Court cases, Meyer v Nebraska (1923) Pierce v Society of Sisters (1925) who has the ultimate right to direct a child's education? The correct answer is the parents. The problem being there are a whole lot of MAGA parents out there who don't give a rat's ass about their children's education. Not to mention a huge bunch who are more concerned their kids might learn something they don't want them to--evolution comes to mind as does a true history of the institution of slavery. However, one supposes that's the point of the question. That's right pal. Just remember a jury of parents found John Scopes guilty and he had Clarence by God Darrow as his attorney.
Then there is question 9 which seems a little odd given the Superintendent's painfully obvious beliefs. It asks, "Why is freedom of religion important to America's identity? The answer Prager is looking for is, it protects religious choice from government control. Really Mr. Superintendent? is that why you have mandated that every Oklahoma classroom have at least one copy of the King James Version of the Christian bible on hand? (His original plan to have the Lee Greenwood-Donald Trump version was thwarted.) Is it why you insist teachers stress America was founded on New and Old Testament principles instead of the tenets of the enlightenment?
Hell, Ryan, none of the first three presidents (another question.) were your sort of Christian. Washington was a deist who refused to take Anglican communion. Adams was a Unitarian who didn't believe in the holy trinity. And Jefferson, when he wasn't knocking up his slave, Sally Hemings, was writing letters praising those who doubted the presence of a divine Creator in the earthly affairs of mankind.
Finally, there are questions 2 though 7. What are the fundamental biological differences between male and female? How is a child's biological sex identified? (Pedos everywhere, rejoice! The answer is visual anatomical observation.) Which chromosome pair identifies the biological sex in humans? Why is the distinction between male and female considered important in areas like sports and privacy? Should teachers be allowed to express their own political viewpoints in the classroom to persuade the students to adopt their point of view? What did the Supreme Court rule in the 2025 case Mahmoud v Taylor? Then answer to that last one you can't teach anything about the LGBTQ community without allowing parents to pull their kids from the lesson if they want to.
Has anyone else seen the most obvious flaw in this attempt to cement the MAGA hold on Oklahoma's public education system? Here is a hint. When you give a test, you don't tell the people who have to take it the fucking questions and answers in advance. It pretty much defeats the definition of the word, test.
Well, no one ever said there are geniuses running this place. And now, thanks to PragerU and Ryan Walters, we just proved it.
9-1-25
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