5 states trying to make their kids scientifically illiterate

[cbayer]

http://www.salon.com/2014/07/02/5_states_trying_to_make_their_kids_scientifically_illiterate_partner/

WEDNESDAY, JUL 2, 2014 01:15 PM CEST

Louisiana, Missouri and others are shamelessly pushing a creationist agenda to appease the Christian right
DAN AREL, ALTERNET


(Credit: 1971yes via Shutterstock)

This article originally appeared on AlterNet.

The British government dealt a strong blow to creationists last week when they clarified and extended their laws banning creationism in the classroom to not only free schools, but to academies as well.

Academies, including free schools, are the UK’s version of the charter schools in the US, and there were concerns that, since academies are often run by religious organizations who taught and endorsed creationism in the classroom, kids who attend them were not being taught actual science.

The scientific community put heavy pressure on the British government to extend a similar law passed in 2012, which did not apply to free schools nor all academies and allowed some older schools already teaching creationism to grandfather their questionable curriculum in.

With this new ruling, “[…] The Government has extended such an explicit rule to all new Academies and Free Schools and made it clear that it believes that existing rules mean that no Academy or Free School can teach pseudoscience,” said Pavan Dhaliwal, The British Humanist Association’s Head of Public Affairs explained in the press release.

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