By Steve Fair Oklahoma is a politically conservative state. Voters in the Sooner State have voted for the Republican candidate for president since 1968 — 15 straight elections! Republicans have supermajorities in both Oklahoma state legislative chambers. The entire federal delegation is Republican. All statewide elected officials are Republican. Republicans dominate elected county offices. To describe Oklahoma a ‘red state’ is an understatement.
But that could be changing.
Oklahoma is experiencing significant inbound domestic migration, attracting over 25,000 new residents each year. Many are coming from California and other ‘blue’ states, bringing their politics with them. A conservative in a blue state is very often a liberal in Oklahoma. These new Okies scare conservatives in the Sooner State.
One elected official has announced a way to screen these new immigrants. Superintendent of Public Instruction Ryan Walters has announced a plan to test teachers coming to Oklahoma from liberal states. Using an assessment developed by the conservative media company PragerU, out-of-state teachers will have to pass a 50-question test that appears to be along the lines of a basic civics quiz. The move has sparked controversy, with opponents of Walters labeling the test a “MAGA loyalty test.” “As long as I am superintendent, Oklahoma classrooms will be safeguarded from the radical leftist ideology fostered in places like California and New York.
Any teacher coming from these states will be required to pass our new PragerU assessment before receiving certification, because we refuse to let Gavin Newsom’s (governor of California) woke, Marxist agenda turn Oklahoma into the same dumpster fire California has become,” Walters says.
Three observations: First, what is PragerU? Started by Dennis Prager, a Jewish talk show host, and screenwriter Allen Estrin (Touched by an Angel, The Practice) in 2009 to promote conservative and capitalist viewpoints using videos, PragerU doesn’t confer degrees.
It is privately funded with the initial seed money coming from conservative Texas oil tycoon Dan Wilks.
Prager, 77, has been called “the Jewish Billy Graham,” speaks four languages and has hosted a nationally syndicated conservative talk show for over 25 years. Prager is a secularist in theology but has supporters at both ends of the conservative political spectrum.
Second, no test will weed out ‘the woke.’ All teachers should know basic civics, and not just teachers from blue states.
Every Oklahoman (teacher or otherwise) should know the number of members in the U.S. House of Representatives (435). They should know the first three words of the U.S. Constitution. (We the People). But administering a test to separate the sheep from the goats won’t work. Nothing prevents a ‘liberal’ teacher from marking the ‘conservative’ answer? Nothing!
For years, conservative college students played toady game.
They passed tests by telling the prof what the teacher wanted to hear. They hid their true values in order to pass a course. They pandered/sucked up for a grade. The ‘woke’ will do the same on the PragerU test.
Third, local control of education is a mark of conservativism. Republicans have advocated for the federal Department of Education to be disbanded for decades. Every GOP — national and state — platform touts the importance of education decisions being the responsibility of parents and local school boards. Local school boards are elected by the patrons of the local school districts and have the power and authority to hire and fire administrators and teachers.
Because they are on the front lines, local school leadership is in a better position to protect Oklahoma students from the radical left agenda. Parents, administrators and school board members should pay close attention to what is being taught in the classroom. If a ‘woke’ teacher is promoting a worldview inconsistent with local values, they should be held accountable. If local leadership is unwilling to deal with it, vote them out.
The woke are educating our children because the American family is disintegrating.
When coupled with unengaged citizens in local education, the radical left has a perfect storm.
No test can fix that.
Steve Fair is vice chairman of the Fourth District of the Oklahoma Republican Party. He can be reached at steve.fair@ymail.com.
Blog is stevefair.blogspot.com.