TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (AP) — Florida has become the latest state to ban “critical race theory” from its public schools.

The state Board of Education adopted new rules Thursday to shield schoolchildren from curricula that it says could “distort historical events.”

The action was widely expected since Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis appointed many of the board’s members. A national debate is intensifying over how the role of race and racism should be examined in classroom history discussions.

Critics say a national effort by conservatives to decide what can be taught in schools risks politicizing essential education.