Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Bible Literature Elective topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Committee revises Bible-as-literature elective; adds non-sectarian guidance under Tennessee law
Summary
The SRC reworked the Bible-as-literature elective to emphasize literary forms, genres and non‑doctrinal study, and the committee added course-language clarifying that instruction must be objective and non‑devotional under Tennessee Code Annotated §49‑6‑1026.
The Tennessee State Board of Education Standards Review Committee substantially revised the proposed "Bible as literature" elective on Oct. 7, clarifying the course focus on literary forms and non‑doctrinal study and adding language to make compliance with state statute explicit.
Committee members reviewed multiple course standards and moved to: keep analysis and application language for literary elements; add "figures" alongside "characters"; explicitly list literary forms (narratives, poetry, law codes and historical writing) as examples; and change a previously used term "genre" to clearer wording such as "story or account across multiple biblical texts." Dr. Stout, a committee member with theological training, urged inclusion of law codes and historical accounts so students could study nonfiction literacy within the course.
The committee also discussed how to treat the course in relation to other religious texts. Staff reported that the course description and supporting language will explicitly reference Tennessee Code Annotated §49‑6‑1026, which requires instruction to be "objective and non‑devotional" and prohibits teaching religious doctrine or a sectarian interpretation. General counsel Rachel Soupey joined the meeting and clarified that the statute allows inclusion of texts from other religious or cultural traditions only if they are taught in a non‑sectarian manner.
Committee members agreed to remove one proposed art-related standard the group deemed redundant, move another standard to a later spot in the literature strand, and place several draft items on a parking lot for later clarification. The committee voted by consensus on the revisions and directed staff to add statutory language to the course description and to flag glossary items and cross-course alignment for further review.
Ending: Staff will draft a clean, annotated version of the Bible-as-literature elective reflecting the committee's non‑doctrinal guidance and bring it back for review; several technical glossary items and sequence questions were placed in the parking lot for later resolution.
