Conservatives have been actively suppressing the teaching of Critical Thinking Skills for decades:

The 2012 Texas Republican Party Platform, adopted June 9 at the state convention in Forth Worth, seems to take a stand against, well, the teaching of critical thinking skills. Read it for yourself:

We oppose the teaching of Higher Order Thinking Skills (HOTS) (values clarification), critical thinking skills and similar programs that are simply a relabeling of Outcome-Based Education (OBE) (mastery learning) which focus on behavior modification and have the purpose of challenging the student’s fixed beliefs and undermining parental authority.

https://www.edweek.org/teaching-learning/texas-gop-no-more-critical-thinking-in-schools/2012/06

Critical Thinking Skills undermine parental authority. Can't have your kids getting smarter than you, right?