Social Studies

This page provides information on curriculum, assessment, and rules. We welcome any suggestions that will improve this page for individuals working to provide high quality social studies programs for students. Join the Social Studies mailing list to receive updates.

The Curriculum Division social studies team provides direction and leadership to the social studies program, Kindergarten through grade 12.

The social studies team does the following:

Assists districts statewide with implementation of the Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills (TEKS) for social studies
Collaborates with the Division of Student Assessment to develop state social studies assessments
Assists the Instructional Materials and Educational Technology Division (IMET) in overseeing the textbook adoption process for K-12 social studies
Reviews state certifications related to Social Studies with the State Board for Educator Certification (SBEC)
Provides on-going communication with the field about current issues in social studies curriculum and policy interpretations related to graduation requirements in 19 TAC Chapter 74.

Social Studies TEKS

The following web page provides access to the current state standards for social studies.

Social Studies Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills (TEKS)

Streamlined Social Studies TEKS Adopted by State Board of Education

The State Board of Education (SBOE) gave final approval on November 16, 2018, to the streamlined social studies TEKS for K-8 and five high school social studies courses.

Secondary (Grades 6-8 and High School)
The streamlined social studies TEKS for middle school and high school are effective beginning August 1, 2019, and implemented in classrooms beginning with the 2019-2020 school year.

Elementary (Kindergarten-Grade 5)
The streamlined social studies TEKS for kindergarten-grade 5 will be effective on August 1, 2020, and implemented in classrooms beginning with the 2020-2021 school year.

New Ethnic Studies: African American Studies TEKS

On April 17, 2020, the State Board of Education gave final approval to Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills (TEKS) for a new Ethnic Studies: African American Studies course. The new course will be implemented beginning with the 2020-2021 school year. The approved TEKS will be added to the Texas Administrative Code beginning August 1. The text of the final, approved Ethnic Studies: African American Studies TEKS is available here.

Ethnic Studies: African American Studies (PDF document)

Streamlined Social Studies TEKS Resources

The Resources for the Streamlined Social Studies TEKS web page has been created to assist educators and parents in the transition to the streamlined social studies TEKS. Resources include draft documents that contain the streamlined TEKS and “crosswalk” documents that show the correlation between the 2010 adopted TEKS currently in use and the 2018 adopted streamlined TEKS that are being implemented beginning in the 2019-2020 school year.

Senate Bill 30, Community Safety Education Act

Senate Bill (SB) 30, also known as The Community Safety Education Act, requires the State Board of Education (SBOE) to adopt rules to include the instruction developed under TEC, §28.012, in one or more courses in the required curriculum for students in grades 9-12. The SBOE adopted a new rule in Title 19 of the Texas Administrative Code (TAC), §74.39, Requirements for Instruction on Proper Interaction with Peace Officers , that became effective August 27, 2018. This rule requires school districts and charter schools to provide instruction to students in grades 9-12 on proper interaction with peace officers during traffic stops and other in-person encounters.

Senate Bill (SB) 30, Community Safety Education Act Frequently Asked Questions