The number of U.S. teachers working for nonprofit education providers is set to reach its highest level since the recession, as teachers and advocates are pushing for more Bible-based curricula for schools.
The percentage of American teachers working in education for religious, spiritual or philosophical purposes increased from 15% in 2010 to 22% in 2019, according to the latest data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics.
The number of public school teachers who report working for such entities has increased from about 6,000 in 2015 to more than 7,000 today, according the American Association of School Administrators, which represents more than 1,400 school districts.
In some districts, the number of teachers working on such initiatives has jumped even higher.
Boys are getting their first lessons on how to read the Bible from a Bible teacher at a charter school in Florida.
A school in Alabama has taught Bible lessons for three days.
In Washington, D.C., a Christian school taught its first Bible class to its first class of kindergarteners.
A Christian school in Georgia has taught lessons on the Bible to kindergarteners and preschoolers.
And a Christian-run charter school, which operates in New Jersey, teaches lessons on biblical principles to kindergarten children.
All of these efforts are part of a growing movement by secular educators to help teach the Bible and other Christian scriptures in the public schools.
This is a trend that is growing as more students are taking the Bible in schools.
The push to make Bible lessons mandatory began in the 1990s, when the U.K. banned textbooks containing religious or philosophical messages in schools and public libraries, and the U,S.
banned teaching children about God and Jesus.
But the trend has not waned, with the number and variety of such programs in place, according, to the American Council of Trustees and Alumni.
The trend has spread to the United States.
In the first half of 2019, there were nearly 2.3 million religious-based teachers working at or around public schools, up from 1.7 million in 2015, according a report released by the American Public Education Association in January.
The American Academy of Religion has been advocating for a return to traditional biblical curriculum for years.
But a new push is gaining momentum, led by a new nonprofit, the National Christian Education Association, which has been pushing for mandatory Bible classes for teachers.
The group, which includes more than 250 religious leaders, has been working with state education boards to push for mandatory classes in public schools since at least 2020, according its website.
The new push for Bible classes began in 2017, when a group of state education agencies and the National Association of Secondary School Principals filed a complaint against the Alliance for Public Education, a national organization that supports Bible-centered education, in federal court.
The Alliance for Common Core, which advocates for traditional classroom methods, had been pushing to require Bible classes in schools in New York, Massachusetts and Connecticut.
The Alliance for the Common Core has since filed suit in the courts.
A hearing is set for May on whether to dismiss the lawsuit.
The alliance’s case hinges on the claim that the Alliance is violating federal law, which bars schools from requiring Bible classes unless the state can demonstrate that the Bible is relevant to the curriculum.
The organization has argued that schools are free to make their own choices about what content is taught, and that schools can decide to teach what they want.
The federal case has generated interest and support among secular educators, who say they have had success in schools where the curriculum is based on traditional teaching methods and have not had any issues with Christian Bible classes.
The National Christian Educators Association, in a statement, called the lawsuit “a desperate attempt by a fringe group to undermine public schools.”
The organization is not opposed to Bible classes at all, it said, and supports the efforts of states to promote and protect the rights of teachers.
But it does not support mandatory Bible class requirements, the association said.
Baptist and other non-denominational teachers in public school systems across the country have been fighting to get Bible lessons in schools for years, according an analysis of state curriculum data by the Pew Research Center.
But this is the first time that a major federal lawsuit has led to the implementation of a Bible-related curriculum, said Paul Miller, a spokesman for the National Center for Science Education, an organization that advocates for secular education.
In its complaint, the Alliance argued that it is entitled to religious freedom under the First Amendment to teach the bible.
The Justice Department declined to comment.
In California, for example, the state’s superintendent of public instruction, Linda Kelly, said the state has no plans to require students to read a book about Jesus, or the Bible.
“I don’t believe we need to mandate that,” she said.
“The question is whether we’re giving students the right to read it.”
But in a letter sent to the state Supreme Court last month, the ACLU of California argued that the