When a teacher in a Rio Grande Valley high school in Texas assigned students to stand and pledge allegiance to the Mexican flag and sing Mexico's national anthem, one student refused

The resulting controversy has one East Texas lawmaker wanting changes in the state's curriculum on how culture and patriotism are taught in schools. 15-year-old Brenda Brinsdon entered her sophomore year at McAllen ISD's Achieve Early College High School just wanting to do well in her classes. But in mid-September 2011 she got an unexpected lesson on personal conviction and taking on the system. Brinsdon stood her ground by staying seated when first-year Spanish 3 teacher Reyna Santos assigned her class to stand and recite Mexico's pledge of allegiance. Students stood with right arms straight out and palms down, which is how the school district says that Mexicans say their pledge. Calling the lesson un-American, Brinsdon recorded the class, which occurred the week of Mexico's Independence Day and also the 10th anniversary of 9/11. The teacher also told students to memorize and recite the the pledge individually. And when the time came for the part of the assignment to sing Mexico's national anthem, Brinsdon again refused. With that, Santos asked the class to stand and led the class in the anthem. Brinsdon's father, William, backs his daughter. He points out that reciting a pledge to any other nation has no place in U.S. public schools. The controversy got the attention of Republican State Representative Dan Flynn of Canton. "It was a shock to me," he said. The Texas Education Agency says that the state curriculum outlines what must be taught, but local districts decide how it's taught. Flynn said that since the state allows that much discretion, he'll file a bill again to require more mandatory studies on the U.S. Constitution. "I do have a problem if we're making that the assignment for young people to stand up and pledge to another country," Flynn said. "It lessens the value of the pledge to the United States flag." Brinsdon has been pulled from Santos' class and gets her lessons separately now. Despite the controversy, she has no regrets. "I really hope that I was an inspiration to a lot of youth in America to stand up for what's right," Brinsdon said.