Texas Board of Education (Re)Writes History.

It's a long hard battle. The Washington Post weight in. You can read other sources at my prior post here and here. And don't miss the new joint statement from religious leaders and public policy experts on religion and public life here.

Early quibbles over how much prominence to give civil rights leaders such as Cesar Chavez and Thurgood Marshall, and the inclusion of Christmas seem to have been smoothed over in the draft now being considered. But board members are crafting dozens of amendments to be raised for consideration before the tentative vote, expected Thursday. The 15-member board won't adopt final standards until March.

The curriculum it chooses will be the guideposts for teaching history and social studies to some 4.8 million K-12 students for 10 years. The standards will be used to develop state tests and by textbook publishers who develop material for the nation based on Texas, one of the largest markets.

Much of the conversation ahead of the hearing has turned to how much emphasis will be given to the religious beliefs of the nation's founding fathers, with some activists lobbying to promote and highlight their Christianity. Others who promote the separation of church and state are prepared for battle.