Texas wrapup: Yup. Doomed.

[n2doc]

Blogs / Bad Astronomy

snip:


Do I sound unhappy? Yeah, damn straight I am. These creationists are trying to destroy science in Texas. And they’re succeeding. They are imposing their narrow religious and ideological views on reality, and it’s the schoolchildren in the state who will suffer.

And they’re not alone. Think you’re safe from creationist nonsense because you live in Vermont, or Illinois, or Oregon? Think again. Texas is so big and has so many students in it that they have a huge amount of leverage on the textbook industry. This means that the creationists will put their weaselly language into the textbooks, and those will get sold all over the country.

A couple of months ago I took a look at my daughter’s Earth Science book, and it has a decent chapter about evolution in it, hitting all the right notes: descent with modification, common ancestors, the fossil record, and so on. But how long will that last? I wouldn’t be at all surprised if her next textbook says that scientists disagree about evolution (they don’t disagree at all that it happens, just on some details of how it happens), that some people disagree that the Universe is billions of years old, and that the environment is just hunky-dory, so let’s go drill some more, mmmmkay?

It seems incredible that here we are, in the 21st century, and a group of less than a dozen religious zealots has the kind of power to affect millions of children across the country, but there you have it. One problem with a democracy — and it’s a doozy — is that it’s possible to game the system, and give far too much power to people who are far too unqualified for it.

And it’s brought us here.

link:

http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/badastronomy/2009/03/28/texas-wrapup-yup-doomed/

[tbyg52]

1. Oh @#$%

Edited again to say that I see now - they came down on the right side in getting "strengths and weaknesses" out, and then amended it up. I hate most of the SBOE. Especially mine, that scary Dunbar.

[Bolo Boffin]

3. The main thing was stopped, yes.

But then they flanked with all these other gobblety-gook amendments.

I just watched some YouTubes of our state chairman of the Board of Education ranting about evolution. He knew just enough to be dangerous, and our students here in Texas are the ones that will suffer.

[cosmik debris]

2. Here is an update

http://www.statesman.com/search/content/news/stories/local/03/28/0328sboe.html

"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."

[tbyg52]

4. So it's worse than before. And done in a typical Repug way -

at the last minute and as much in the dark as possible.

Edited to ask: Did one or more of the good guys flip from that tie vote on "strengths and weaknesses"?

[cosmik debris]

5. It was presented as a compromise position

And some of them felt that compromise would preserve the peace.

But it doesn't preserve the integrity of the science or the school system.

On the up-side, it is now fair game to poke a lot of holes in the creationist/ID "theory". A clever teacher can show just how ridiculous that is and leave no doubts.

[Mister Ed]

6. Biblical stories presented as history

Last year, I was over at a friend's house when he was helping his sixth-grade daughter with her history homework. The textbook she worked from was a brand spankin'-new book titled "Outline of World History", or something similar. It was generally a pretty good book - except that a whole chapter of it - 1/12th of the book - was devoted to presenting Biblical stories as if they were established history. David and Goliath, Joshua and the horns at Jericho, etc.

The weasel tactic employed by the authors was to begin the chapter by writing, "The ancient Hebrews believed that..." blah blah blah. That disclaimer was thereafter dropped, and they went on for page after page after page describing the popular Bible stories as if they were actual historical occurrences.

This is in a fine middle school in suburban Minnesota, where the students are offered such meaty curricula as Pre-Engineering or Introductory Chinese. The school didn't write that history book, they just bought it. And, from what I have read elsewhere, they had very little choice. Although I don't have links to provide, I have seen articles explaining that during the Bush years, the federal government mandated that school systems receiving federal support must provide textbooks that have been vetted and approved by the Texas state board. If I have my facts straight, then that would be one means by which "a group of less than a dozen religious zealots has the kind of power to affect millions of children across the country", as the OP describes.

[mike_c]

7. religion = insanity...

...and the inmates have been in charge of the asylum forever. Welcome to the 13th century. Can we at least burn some witches for entertainment?

[pscot]

8. Look on the bright side

At least they're not demanding that women be kept in purdah, veiled from eyes to ankles.

[n2doc]

10. yet.

[caraher]

9. Does Texas still have an outsized influence on textbook publishing?

It used to, and if publishers still kowtow to Texas this could have national implications...

[callous taoboy]

11. Not so fast: I found a different take on it from the Dallas Morning News:

Texas vote moves evolution to the top of the class
Katherine Harmon

The Texas Board of Education voted today by a 13-to-2 margin to change controversial language in the state's curriculum, making it harder for creationism to creep into public classrooms. For the past 20 years, the state's curriculum has instructed teachers to present the "strengths and weaknesses" of scientific theories, opening the door to nonscientific, faith-based alternatives.

Today's vote strikes the old language and replaces it with instruction to "analyze, evaluate, and critique scientific explanations by using empirical evidence, logical reasoning and experimental and observational testing," according to Joshua Rosenau of the National Center for Science Education (NCSE), a pro-evolution non–profit based on Oakland, Calif. Other curriculum amendments proposed by social conservatives failed today, according to the Dallas Morning News, including two that called for biology classes to dissect the "sufficiency or insufficiency" of evidence for aspects of evolutionary theory.

Texas' curriculum can have a major impact on what's taught nationwide because it's such a big buyer of textbooks. "It's kind of like the Wal-Mart effect," says NCSE spokesperson Steven Newton. "If they won't carry your product, you modify your product so they will buy it." The Texas changes are set to take effect next year and remain in place until 2020.
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"by using empirical evidence" is what strikes me. The vote ultimately said that science will be kept whole, that pseudo-scinece has been shown the door.

PLUS- They did throw out two of McLeroy's pet attacks on evolution in the process.

I think the fundies are trying hard to spin this their way.

[callous taoboy]

12. There is also this:

Conservatives lose another battle over evolution

08:26 AM CDT on Saturday, March 28, 2009
By TERRENCE STUTZ / The Dallas Morning News
[e-mail]

AUSTIN – Social conservatives lost another skirmish over evolution Friday when the State Board of Education stripped two provisions from proposed science standards that would have raised questions about key principles of the theory of evolution.

In identical 8-7 votes, board members removed two sections written by Chairman Don McLeroy that would have required students in high school biology classes to study the "sufficiency or insufficiency" of common ancestry and natural selection of species. Both are key principles of Charles Darwin's theory of evolution.

Five Democrats and three Republicans joined to narrowly outvote the seven Republicans on the board aligned with social conservative groups.

The science standards were ultimately adopted 13-2, setting the state's curriculum in the subject for the next decade. The standards will determine what students are taught in class and what must be covered in science textbooks.

Afterward, a disappointed McLeroy, R-College Station, called the board's decisions a blow to science education in Texas.

"Science loses. Texas loses, and the kids lose because of this," he said.
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MORE:
http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/dws/news/texassouthwest/stories/DN-evolution_28tex.ART.State.Edition1.4a87415.html

[callous taoboy]

13. Doesn't anyone want to comment on these two takes? n/t

[Nihil]

14. Two comments ...

> Five Democrats and three Republicans joined to narrowly outvote
> the seven Republicans on the board aligned with social conservative groups.

1) It's good to see that there are at least three smart Republicans around.

2) It's sad to see that "ignorant evangelical morons" is being euphemised
as "social conservative groups".

[caraher]

16. just read these

It looks like, while it could have been worse, but it's not a clear win for science either. From your Dallas Morning News article:

Those groups also questioned board decisions Friday to adopt compromise language in other areas – on the study of fossil records and the complexity of cells. Those compromises were supported by McLeroy and most other board members.

The Texas Freedom Network, which has battled social conservative groups on education issues, warned that the compromise language could still be used to water down coverage of evolution in textbooks.

"This document still has plenty of potential footholds for creationist attacks on evolution to make their way into Texas classrooms," said the group's president, Kathy Miller, who predicted heated battles over the content of biology textbooks in two years.

McLeroy promised as much on Friday, saying that publishers heard the debate and know that "they'll have to get their textbooks approved by us in a few years."

[SlingBlade]

15. Yep. American Taliban Never Sleeps

[caraher]

17. A Scientific American blog scores it as a win for science

Texas vote moves evolution to the top of the class