If you want to apply to be a teacher in Oklahoma, prepare a resume, references — and to take a 34-question test about civics. Here, Marissa Streit, the CEO of PragerU, which developed the test, and Ryan Walters, the superintendent of education for Oklahoma, explain the reason behind the test and respond to the backlash.
Oklahoma and PragerU have introduced a Teacher Qualification Test: a straightforward assessment to ensure educators know American civics, constitutional values, parental rights, and the basics of history and literacy.
Before the questions were even published, national media outlets launched a coordinated smear campaign. That isn’t fair-minded criticism. It’s sabotage.
When Oklahoma asked PragerU to assist, it was not to impose ideology, but to restore competence and ensure that new teachers understand what Oklahoma’s families expect in their classrooms.
Parents expect teachers to be able to identify the three branches of government, understand Supreme Court precedents that affect education, protect children’s innocence, and recognize why freedom of religion matters.
That is not “extremism” — it is the bare minimum.
Instead of waiting for facts, the press pounced. That tells you everything about their motives. As Ronald Reagan warned, “Freedom is never more than one generation away from extinction.”
If our teachers don’t understand the basics, how can they prepare the next generation to defend their rights?
Americans have awakened to the problem: students are falling behind, parents feel ignored, and classrooms too often replace fundamentals with politics.
Families want teachers who teach — not activists.
So why the outrage? Because this test challenges the left’s monopoly on classrooms. They want to control all teacher training and credentialing — and they know the way to maintain that control is by keeping parents shut out and students uninformed. Calling Oklahoma “extreme” for requiring teachers to pass the most basic of tests says far more about them than it does about us.
And let’s clear up another smear: PragerU does not “whitewash” history. Critics often attack our content without watching the videos — or worse, by pulling clips out of context to intentionally mislead viewers. Take our episode on Frederick Douglass. We quote Douglass directly: “The Constitution is a glorious liberty document.” Douglass despised slavery but worked within the system to abolish it, a powerful and inspiring lesson for children. Or consider our Columbus episode: We make clear that slavery was evil, while also expressing his attitude toward it within its historical context for accuracy. These aren’t distortions — they’re age-appropriate ways to teach truth.
The same critics who distort children’s videos are now attacking a test they haven’t seen. Why? To create a false narrative ahead of its publication because they know people remember the alarming headlines and rarely see the corrective information.
This isn’t just about Oklahoma. It’s about whether schools serve families or bureaucrats and activists. It’s about accountability over ideology, parents over politics, and truth over lies.
Here’s our challenge: Take the Teacher Qualification Test yourself and see firsthand how clear and straightforward it really is. Then ask: why are so many on the left so desperate to paint it as sinister before anybody had the chance to look at it?
THE TEST
1. According to the Supreme Court cases Meyer v. Nebraska (1923) and Pierce v. Society of Sisters (1925), who has the ultimate right to direct a child’s education?
- A. The Superintendent of Schools
- B. The parents
- C. The Board of Education
- D. The federal Department of Education
2. What is the fundamental biological distinction between males and females?
- A. Height and weight
- B. Blood type
- C. Personal preference
- D. Chromosomes and reproductive anatomy
3. How is a child’s biological sex typically identified?
- A. Parental affirmation of child’s preference
- B. Personal feelings
- C. Visual anatomical observation and chromosomes
- D. Online registration
4. Which chromosome pair determines biological sex in humans?
- A. AA/BB
- B. XX/XY
- C. RH/AB
- D. XE/XQ
5. Why is the distinction between male and female considered important in areas like sports and privacy?
- A. For equity in minority communities
- B. To preserve fairness, safety and integrity for both sexes
- C. To increase participation in sports
- D. To enhance the self-esteem of transgender children
6. Should teachers be allowed to express their own political viewpoints in the classroom in order to persuade the students to adopt their point of view?
- A. Yes, teachers have freedom of speech, too, which does not stop at the classroom door
- B. No, once you become a teacher, your freedom of speech in and out of the classroom is restricted
- C. Yes, sometimes — when the issue involves civil rights or social justice
- D. No, the classroom is not an appropriate venue for political activism
7. What did the Supreme Court rule in the 2025 case Mahmoud v. Taylor?
- A. Gender-affirming medical procedures are allowed in America
- B. Students must recite the Pledge of Allegiance in schools
- C. Religious schools must hire non-religious staff
- D. Public schools cannot require participation in LGBTQ-themed instruction without parental opt-out
8. What are the first three words of the Constitution?
- A. In God We Trust
- B. We the People
- C. Life, Liberty, Happiness
- D. The United States
9. Why is freedom of religion important to America’s identity?
- A. It protects religious choice from government control
- IB. t makes Christianity the national religion
- C. It bans all forms of public worship
- D. It limits religious teaching in the public square
10. What are the two parts of the U.S. Congress?
- A. The House of Lords and the House of Commons
- B. The Judiciary and the Senate
- C. The Executive and the Legislative
- D. The Senate and the House of Representatives
11. How many total U.S. senators are there?
- A. 435
- B. 535
- C. 100
- D. 50
12. Why do some states have more Representatives than others?
- A. Representation is allocated by population
- B. They cover a larger geographic area
- C. They have held statehood for a longer period
- D. The number is determined by Congress
13. What is the primary responsibility of the president’s Cabinet?
- A. Approve Supreme Court justices
- B. Pass legislation
- C. Sign executive orders
- D. Advise the president
14. Who signs bills into law?
- A. The vice president
- B. The chief justice
- C. The president
- D. The speaker of the House
15. What is the highest court in the United States?
- A. The Federal Court
- B. The Court of Appeals
- C. The District Court
- D. The Supreme Court
16. In the United States, which of the following is a responsibility reserved only for citizens?
- A. Serve on a jury
- B. Own a home
- C. Pay taxes
- D. Possess a driver’s license
17. Which of the following are explicitly listed in the Bill of Rights?
- A. Freedom of speech and religion
- B. Voting and public education
- C. Reproductive rights and healthcare
- D. Freedom from data collection and surveillance
18. What right does the Second Amendment protect?
- A. The right to hunt and fish
- B. The right to arm the military
- C. The right to restrict certain kinds of speech
- D. The right to keep and bear arms
19. What is the supreme law of the United States?
- A. Presidential Executive Orders
- B. Laws passed by Congress and signed by the president
- C. Laws passed by state legislatures and signed by state governors
- D. The Constitution
20. Who wrote the first draft of the Declaration of Independence?
- A. John Adams
- B. Thomas Jefferson
- C. John Hancock
- D. Thomas Paine
21. When was the Declaration of Independence adopted?
- A. July 4, 1778
- B. July 4, 1787
- C. July 4, 1776
- D. July 4, 1619
22. What was the primary reason the colonists fought the British?
- A. To resist the expansion of the British Empire
- B. To main slavery
- C. To resist taxation without representation
- D. To resist forced military service
23. Who were the first three U.S. presidents?
- A. George Washington, Benjamin Franklin, Alexander Hamilton
- B. George Washington, John Adams, Thomas Jefferson
- C. George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, James Madison
- D. George Washington, John Adams, Abraham Lincoln
24. Who is called the “Father of Our Country”?
- A. Benjamin Franklin
- B. Abraham Lincoln
- C. Martin Luther King Jr.
- D. George Washington
25. What did the Emancipation Proclamation do?
- A. Ended Prohibition
- B.Freed Confederate Generals
- C. Freed the slaves in the North
- D. Ended slavery in the rebelling Confederate states
26. What was Abraham Lincoln’s primary reason for waging the Civil War?
- A. To preserve states’ right
- B. To abolish slavery
- C. To preserve the union
- D. To end the union
27. What cause is Martin Luther King Jr. best known for?
- A. Advocating for segregation
- B. Advocating for the abolition of slavery
- C. Advocating for diversity, equity and inclusion
- D. Advocating for racial equality under the law
28. How did the Cold War end?
- A. The US prevailed in the Cuban Missile Crisis
- B. Russia invaded and occupied Ukraine
- C. The Soviet Union collapsed
- D. The US, the European Union and the Soviet Union signed a peace treaty
29. Who was President during the Great Depression and WWII?
- A. Woodrow Wilson
- B. Harry S. Truman
- C. Franklin D. Roosevelt
- D. Theodore Roosevelt
30. What is the name of the national anthem?
- A. “The Star-Spangled Banner”
- B. “America the Beautiful”
- C. “This Land is Your Land”
- D. “God Bless America”
31. Why are there thirteen stripes on the American flag?
- A. One for each signer of the Declaration of Independence
- B. To honor the Thirteenth Amendment
- C. To commemorate America’s fallen soldiers
- D. To symbolize the original colonies
32. Which national holiday honors those who died while serving in the U.S. military?
- A. Armistice Day
- B. Memorial Day
- C. Veterans Day
- D. Flag Day
33. Which of the following is a phrase from the Pledge of Allegiance?
- A. Life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness
- B. Of, by, and for the people
- C. One nation, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all
- D. One Nation, under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all
34. From whom does the United States government derive its power?
- A. The Supreme Court
- B. The people
- C. The president
- D. The military
ANSWERS
1. B
2. D
3. C
4. B
5. B
6. D
7. D
8. B
9. A
10. D
11. C
12. A
13. D
14. C
15. D
16. A
17. A
18. D
19. D
20. B
21. C
22. C
23. B
24. D
25. D
26. C
27. D
28. C
29. C
30. A
31. D
32. B
33. D
34. B
This story originally appeared on NYPost
