Speaking of those living in the "dark ages," the Texas Taliban have struck again:
The State Board of Education on Friday passed science curriculum standards that members described as a compromise between those who are critical of teaching evolutionary theories without scrutiny and those who feared attacks on evolution would lead to the teaching of creationism in Texas schools.
After the 13-2 vote, it was social conservatives on the board who were doing most of the celebrating while scientists expressed concerns.
The new standards remove current requirements that students be taught the "strengths and weaknesses" of scientific theories. Instead, teachers will be required to have students scrutinize "all sides" of the theories.
Teaching "all sides" is just code, of course, for teaching schoolchildren lies about biological science cooked up by religious zealots. And, of course, the leading front for the Intelligent Design conmen was elated:
The Discovery [sic] Institute, which encourages teaching that the universe is the product of an intelligent designer, called the vote "a huge victory for those who favor teaching the scientific evidence for and against evolution."
By requiring students to evaluate the evidence for major evolutionary concepts such as common ancestry, natural selection and mutations, the institute said in a statement, "Texas today moved to the head of the class."
"Texas has sent a clear message that evolution should be taught as a scientific theory open to critical scrutiny, not as a sacred dogma that can't be questioned," said John West, a senior fellow at the institute.
Of course, there is no scientific evidence "against evolution," but this would not, of course, give a pathological liar like John West any pause. The creationist Board of Education Chairman Don McLeroy (with whom I discussed these issues many years ago---alas, to no avail) is also clear about the meaning of the new language:
[B]oard Chairman Don McLeroy, R-College Station, said the new wording...gets the point across...that it requires students to analyze and evaluate evolution's explanation for both the complexity of cells and the sudden appearance and lack of change in species in the fossil record....
Texas Freedom Network...President Kathy Miller said the standards are now "a road map that creationists will use to pressure publishers into putting phony arguments attacking established science into textbooks."
The curriculum "still has plenty of potential footholds for creationist attacks on evolution to make their way into Texas classrooms," Miller said.
What a disgrace and a tragedy for children in Texas (and probably elsewhere, given the leverage Texas has over the textbook market).
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