Phones down, prayers up Texas schools 2025–26 4 new policies

School is back in session in Texas, and this year, things look a little different. The Lone Star State has made several “aggressive” amendments to its educational policies going into the 2025-2026 school year.

“Pretty jaw dropping, frankly, when you look at the changes,” says Stu Burguiere, BlazeTV host of “Stu Does America.”

In this episode, Stu dives into four new Texas education laws that are certain to radically impact the school year.

Personal electronic devices: OUT

The use of personal electronic devices, including cell phones, smartwatches, tablets, and similar gadgets, during the school day has been banned statewide in all public K–12 schools.

“I am 100% behind this effort. I think it’s crazy that there’s another thought or option, frankly, when it comes to this. We all know how distracting phones are to adults, let alone kids, who are trying to get through a school day,” says Stu.

But it’s not just distraction from school work that House Bill 1481 will target. Stu, citing Jonathan Haidt’s must-read book “The Anxious Generation: How the Great Rewiring of Childhood Is Causing an Epidemic of Mental Illness,” reminds that smartphones, and the social media it gives kids access to, is directly linked to increased rates of anxiety and depression.

“It’s not gonna solve every problem at school, right? There’s problems at school that existed long before cell phones were there. I do think it’s going to make a major difference for a lot of people,” says Stu.

DEI and LGBTQ+ madness: OUT

Senate Bill 12 banned DEI programs in K–12 public schools, prohibiting schools from having DEI offices, trainings, or programs that consider or focus on race, gender identity, sexual orientation, or similar characteristics. It also restricts schools from incorporating DEI into hiring decisions, policies, or classroom instruction, and forbids DEI-based student clubs unless parentally consented.

“There’s a lot of things to do at school, lot of things to learn about,” says Stu.

“You don’t need to add in the fact that skin color is actually the most important thing in the world and actually you should hate everybody who’s white and whatever else they’re teaching in these schools.”

Ten Commandments: IN

Senate Bill 10 mandates that the Ten Commandments be displayed in all public elementary and secondary school classrooms. The poster must be durable or framed and at least 16 inches wide and 20 inches tall, featuring the specific version of the Ten Commandments outlined in the legislation.

“This goes back to the founding of the country. … Never was there a design by our founders to say religion can never be intertwined with any state institution. That’s not the way it worked,” says Stu, reminding people that during America’s founding, the Continental Congress regularly began its sessions with prayer.

“[Christianity] is something that was — is — very central to the founding of this country.”

Prayer in school: IN

Senate Bill 11 allows Texas school districts to adopt policies permitting a daily period for students and staff to pray or read religious texts, such as the Bible. Participation requires written consent from students or their parents, which can be revoked at any time. The law stipulates that prayer periods cannot replace instructional time and prohibits using loudspeakers, intercoms, or any official school-wide announcement system to broadcast prayers or other religious activities.

Stu warns that lefties will almost certainly spread the narrative that Texas is “forcing kids to pray,” but the truth is this new law merely “allows them to pray.”

To hear more changes coming to Texas schools, watch the episode above.

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