NCSE Evolution and Climate Education Update for 2014/01/24

(by NCSE Deputy Director Glenn Branch)

Dear friends of NCSE,

Allegations that creationism is taught in charter schools in Texas.
The third antiscience bill of the year, from Missouri. The Steveometer
passes the 1300 mark. And a reminder about Darwin Day.

CREATIONISM IN TEXAS CHARTER SCHOOLS?

"When public-school students enrolled in Texas'[s] largest charter
program open their biology workbooks, they will read that the fossil
record is 'sketchy.' That evolution is 'dogma' and an 'unproved
theory' with no experimental basis. They will be told that leading
scientists dispute the mechanisms of evolution and the age of the
Earth," according to Zack Kopplin, writing in Slate (January 16,
2014). "These are all lies."

Kopplin's article reports on his investigation into Responsive Ed,
which operates more than sixty-five charter schools in Texas,
Arkansas, and Indiana, and receives more than $82 million in public
funds to do so. Examining workbooks used in Responsive Ed's schools,
Kopplin concluded, "These workbooks both overtly and underhandedly
discredit evidence-based science and allow creationism into
public-school classrooms."

Among the claims that he cited as problematic: that there is no
"single source for all the rock layers"; that "[s]ome scientists"
question the established age of the earth; that evolution cannot be
tested; that there is a "lack of transitional fossils," which is a
"problem for evolutionists who hold a view of uninterrupted evolution
over long periods of time." The section on the origin of life quotes
Genesis 1:1.

Responsive Ed's vice president of academic affairs was quoted as
saying that the curriculum "teaches evolution, noting, but not
exploring, the existence of competing theories." Unreassured, Kopplin
commented, "Bringing creationism into a classroom by undermining
evolution and 'noting … competing theories' is still
unconstitutional," citing the Supreme Court's 1987 decision in Edwards
v. Aguillard.

Asked for his appraisal of the situation, NCSE's Joshua Rosenau
commented, "Some people don't realize that the First Amendment applies
to charter schools just as much as to any other public school.
Teaching creationism or other sectarian religious claims as if they
were science is wrong anywhere, but it's especially bad to use tax
dollars to force one person's religion onto school kids."

Dan Quinn of the Texas Freedom Network told Kopplin, "These materials
lie to students about science, and using them puts the school -- and
the taxpayers who fund it -- at risk of a lawsuit it would almost
certainly lose." But Kopplin suggested that a lawsuit could be avoided
if legislators "take the appropriate actions to regulate these schools
and improve Texas charter policy," explicitly calling for the
revocation of Responsive Ed's charter.

In the wake of Kopplin's article, the Texas Freedom Network called on
the Texas education commissioner to investigate the allegations. In a
January 16, 2013, press release, TFN's president Kathy Miller said,
"It's imperative that the education commissioner investigate whether
this charter school operator is undermining the education of thousands
of students and putting the state and taxpayers at risk of expensive
lawsuits."

The Texas Education Agency subsequently replied that Responsive Ed and
the TEA were independently reviewing the materials, adding, "It should
also be noted that complaints and allegations regarding instruction at
the campus level are a local matter in Texas to be addressed by the
governing boards of local education agencies. As a result, TEA has
limited jurisdiction over day-to-day operations."

Meanwhile, the CEO of Responsive Ed responded to the allegations,
saying that the company "strongly disagrees with Slate’s implication
that the Texas state standards requiring schools to critique and
examine all sides of scientific theories -- including the theory of
evolution -- is unconstitutional. We also disagree that any reference
to creationism in our science curriculum violates any state or federal
law, including the United States Constitution."

A recipient of NCSE's Friend of Darwin award, Kopplin is famous for
organizing the effort to repeal the so-called Louisiana Science
Education Act. In 2012, he criticized Louisiana's school voucher
program for funding private Christian schools that teach creationism
and dismiss evolution; the voucher program was subsequently found to
violate the Louisiana state constitution on unrelated grounds.

For Kopplin's article in Slate, visit:
http://www.slate.com/articles/health_and_science/science/2014/01/creationism_in_texas_public_schools_undermining_the_charter_movement.html 

For TFN's call for Responsive Ed to be investigated, visit:
http://tfninsider.org/2014/01/16/tfn-calls-for-investigation-of-texas-charter-school-system-amid-allegations-of-politicized-curriculum-materials/ 

For the TEA's response to the allegations about Responsive Ed, visit:
http://tfninsider.org/2014/01/17/texas-education-agency-looking-at-troubling-charter-school-curriculum/ 

For the response from the CEO of Responsive Ed, visit:
http://www.arktimes.com/ArkansasBlog/archives/2014/01/19/charter-school-leader-defends-creationism-in-schools-curriculum 

And for NCSE's previous coverage of events in Texas and Louisiana, visit:
http://ncse.com/news/texas 
http://ncse.com/news/louisiana 

ANTIEVOLUTION LEGISLATION IN MISSOURI

Missouri's House Bill 1472, introduced in the House of Representatives
on January 16, 2013, is the third antiscience bill of the year,
following Virginia's HB 207 and Oklahoma's SB 1765. If enacted, the
bill would require "[a]ny school district or charter school which
provides instruction relating to the theory of evolution by natural
selection" to have "a policy on parental notification and a mechanism
where a parent can choose to remove the student from any part of the
district's or school's instruction on evolution." Parents and
guardians would receive a notification containing "[t]he basic content
of the district's or school's evolution instruction to be provided to
the student" and "[t]he parent's right to remove the student from any
part of the district's or school's evolution instruction."

NCSE's deputy director Glenn Branch commented, "House Bill 1472 would
eviscerate the teaching of biology in Missouri." Quoting "The OOPSIE
Compromise -- A Big Mistake," which Eugenie C. Scott and he wrote for
Evolution: Education and Outreach in 2008, he added, "Evolution
inextricably pervades the biological sciences; it therefore pervades,
or at any rate ought to pervade, biology education at the K–12 level.
There simply is no alternative to learning about it; there is no
substitute activity. A teacher who tries to present biology without
mentioning evolution is like a director trying to produce Hamlet
without casting the prince." Teachers, schools, and districts would
suffer as well, Branch observed. "The value of a high school education
in Missouri would be degraded."

The sponsors of HB 1472 are Rick Brattin (R-District 55) and Andy
Koenig (R-District 99). Both have a history of sponsoring
antievolution legislation in Missouri. In 2012, Koenig sponsored and
Brattin cosponsored House Bill 1276, a "strengths and weaknesses"
bill, and Brattin sponsored and Koenig cosponsored House Bill 1227,
which would have required equal time for "intelligent design" in
public schools, including introductory courses at colleges and
universities. In 2013, Koenig sponsored and Brattin cosponsored House
Bill 179, a "strengths and weaknesses" bill, and Brattin sponsored and
Koenig cosponsored House Bill 291, which would have required equal
time for "intelligent design" in public schools, including
introductory courses at colleges and universities. All died.

For the text of Missouri's House Bill 1472 as introduced, visit:
http://www.house.mo.gov/billtracking/bills141/biltxt/intro/HB1472I.htm 

For "The OOPSIE Compromise -- A Big Mistake," visit:
http://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s12052-008-0038-7 

And for NCSE's previous coverage of events in Missouri, visit:
http://ncse.com/news/missouri 

PROJECT STEVE: N > 1300

With the addition of Stefan Roitsch on January 15, 2014, NCSE's
Project Steve attained its 1300th signatory. A tongue-in-cheek parody
of the long-standing creationist tradition of amassing lists of
"scientists who doubt evolution" or "scientists who dissent from
Darwinism," Project Steve mocks such lists by restricting its
signatories to scientists with PhDs whose first name is Steve.
(Cognates are also accepted, such as Stephanie, Esteban, Istvan,
Stefano, or even Tapani -- the Finnish equivalent.) About 1% of the
United States population possesses such a first name, so each
signatory represents about 100 potential signatories. ("Steve" was
selected in honor of the late Stephen Jay Gould, a Supporter of NCSE
and a dauntless defender of evolution education.)

Although the idea of Project Steve is frivolous, the statement is
serious. It reads, "Evolution is a vital, well-supported, unifying
principle of the biological sciences, and the scientific evidence is
overwhelmingly in favor of the idea that all living things share a
common ancestry. Although there are legitimate debates about the
patterns and processes of evolution, there is no serious scientific
doubt that evolution occurred or that natural selection is a major
mechanism in its occurrence. It is scientifically inappropriate and
pedagogically irresponsible for creationist pseudoscience, including
but not limited to 'intelligent design,' to be introduced into the
science curricula of our nation's public schools."

Among the 1308 current signatories to Project Steve are 100% of
eligible Nobel laureates (Steven Weinberg and Steven Chu), at least
ten members of the National Academy of Sciences, and the authors of
popular science books such as A Brief History of Time, How the Mind
Works, and Darwin's Archipelago. When counted by David H. Bailey in
April 2012, almost 60% of the signatories were found to have a Ph.D.
degree and/or professional posiition in a core field closely related
to evolution. Of the most recent dozen or so Steves, most are Austrian
or German, apparently owing to the recent publication of
"Wissenschafter namens Stefan(ie) gesucht!" ("Scientists named
Stefan(ie) wanted!") in the Austrian newspaper Der Standard (January
12, 2014).

For information about Project Steve, visit:
http://ncse.com/taking-action/project-steve 

For "Wissenschafter namens Stefan(ie) gesucht!" visit:
http://derstandard.at/1388650528933/Wissenschafter-namens-Stefanie-gesucht 

DARWIN DAY APPROACHES

It's time to dust off your Darwin costume again: less than three weeks
remain before Darwin Day 2014! Colleges and universities, schools,
libraries, museums, churches, civic groups, and just plain folks
across the country -- and the world -- are preparing to celebrate
Darwin Day, on or around February 12, in honor of the life and work of
Charles Darwin. These events provide a marvelous opportunity not only
to celebrate Darwin's birthday but also to engage in public outreach
about science, evolution, and the importance of evolution education --
which is especially needed with assaults on evolution education
already under way in state legislatures. NCSE encourages its members
and friends to attend, participate in, and even organize Darwin Day
events in their own communities. To find a local event, check the
websites of local universities and museums and the registry of Darwin
Day events maintained by the Darwin Day Celebration website. (And
don't forget to register your own event with the Darwin Day
Celebration website!)

And with Darwin Day comes the return of Evolution Weekend! Hundreds of
congregations all over the country and around the world are taking
part in Evolution Weekend, February 7-9, 2014, by presenting sermons
and discussion groups on the compatibility of faith and science.
Michael Zimmerman, the initiator of the project, writes, "Evolution
Weekend is an opportunity for serious discussion and reflection on the
relationship between religion and science. One important goal is to
elevate the quality of the discussion on this critical topic -- to
move beyond sound bites. A second critical goal is to demonstrate that
religious people from many faiths and locations understand that
evolution is sound science and poses no problems for their faith.
Finally, as with The Clergy Letter itself, Evolution Weekend makes it
clear that those claiming that people must choose between religion and
science are creating a false dichotomy." At last count, 450
congregations in forty-four states (and twelve foreign countries) were
scheduled to hold Evolution Weekend events.

For the Darwin Day registry, visit:
http://darwinday.org/events/ 
http://darwinday.org/wp-login.php?action=register 

For information about Evolution Weekend, visit:
http://www.evolutionweekend.org/ 

WHAT'S NEW FROM THE SCIENCE LEAGUE OF AMERICA

Have you been visiting NCSE's blog, The Science League of America,
recently? If not, then you've missed:

* Mark McCaffrey warning of "The Return of the Uncertainty Monster":
http://ncse.com/blog/2014/01/return-uncertainty-monster-0015303 

* Glenn Branch criticizing William A. Dembski's claims about falsifiability:
http://ncse.com/blog/2014/01/falsifiability-dembski-style-part-1-0015286 
http://ncse.com/blog/2014/01/falsifiability-dembski-style-part-2-0015301 

And much more besides!

For The Science League of America, visit:
http://ncse.com/blog 

Thanks for reading. And don't forget to visit NCSE's website --
http://ncse.com -- where you can always find the latest news on 
evolution and climate education and threats to them.

--
Sincerely,

Glenn Branch
Deputy Director
National Center for Science Education, Inc.
420 40th Street, Suite 2
Oakland, CA 94609-2509
510-601-7203 x305
fax: 510-601-7204
800-290-6006
branch@ncse.com 
http://ncse.com 

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http://ncse.com/blog 

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