TULSA, Okla. — In a controversial move, Oklahoma has officially approved new academic standards for public high schools that instruct teachers to highlight so-called "discrepancies" in the 2020 U.S. presidential election — a race widely recognized as secure and legitimate by courts, officials, and bipartisan experts alike. The decision has reignited national concern about the politicization of education and the dangers of institutionalizing conspiracy theories in classrooms.

At the heart of the debate is a U.S. history standard requiring students to analyze “discrepancies in 2020 election results,” citing claims like the abrupt halting of ballot counting, security risks tied to mail-in voting, and “batch dumps” of ballots — assertions that have been repeatedly debunked by independent audits and court rulings.

The directive was championed by Oklahoma State Superintendent Ryan Walters, a far-right conservative who has made headlines for inserting ideological content into school policy. “These new standards will ensure that kids have an accurate and comprehensive view of historical events,” Walters said in a February board meeting. But the truth, critics argue, is far from accurate.

Rushed, Revised, and Railroaded

The new standards were quietly introduced just hours before February’s Board of Education meeting. Walters falsely claimed they had to be approved immediately to meet legislative deadlines. Despite pushback from some board members and education professionals, the standards were fast-tracked. Republican lawmakers initially expressed concern over the rushed process, but in April, after a closed-door meeting with Walters, they ultimately declined to block the changes.

Educators were blindsided. After months of work by teachers and academic experts, Walters replaced the committee’s efforts with a new "Executive Review Committee" — one that included prominent conservative voices like Kevin Roberts of the Heritage Foundation and PragerU's Dennis Prager. Their involvement signaled a shift away from local, evidence-based curriculum development toward a national political agenda.

Critical Thinking or Indoctrination?

Supporters, like Oklahoma House Speaker Kyle Hilbert, claim the standards promote critical thinking: “Students should be challenged to think critically about that particular election,” Hilbert said. But experts disagree.

“This is not how you teach inquiry,” said Anton Schulzki of the National Council for the Social Studies. “You don’t start by assuming a conclusion and then work backwards. You let students ask their own questions.”

Tammy Patrick of the Election Center warned that terms like “batch dumps” — standard election procedures that have been spun into conspiracies — are being taught as red flags without context. “That’s not critical thinking. That’s misinformation,” she said.

Educators Push Back

Many Oklahoma teachers say they feel undermined, silenced, and used as political pawns. Aaron Baker, a government teacher in Oklahoma City, won’t be required to teach the U.S. History standard in his class. But if he had to, he says, he would speak the truth.

“I would have no problem telling my students — and I’ve said it for four years — that there was no widespread voter fraud in the 2020 election. The courts said so. Over and over,” Baker stated.

The deeper concern, he says, is the message being sent to educators. “We spent months building meaningful standards. Then they threw it all out and brought in people who don’t even live in Oklahoma to tell us what to teach our kids.”

A Growing Threat to Trust in Democracy

Experts fear that mandating false claims in schools will further erode public confidence in elections, especially among the next generation of voters. “If we keep repeating these debunked narratives as though they’re factual, we’re weakening the very foundation of our democracy,” said Patrick. “This isn’t like debating a historical interpretation. This is treating disinformation like it’s fact.”

While the new standards are scheduled to take effect in the next academic year, a lawsuit filed by former Republican Attorney General Drew Edmondson may delay implementation. However, even the lawsuit focuses on the process — not the dangerous content.

As schools prepare for the fall, one thing is clear: Oklahoma’s students may soon be learning about American democracy from a script that teaches them to distrust it.