NCSE Evolution and Climate Education Update for 2015/05/29
Submitted by Peter Burns on Fri, 2015-05-29 14:00.
National Center for Science Education
(by NCSE Deputy Director Glenn Branch)
Dear friends of NCSE, A "clear statement" from the Scottish government on teaching creationism as science. And a lawsuit challenging the constitutionality of teaching evolution in West Virginia.
UPDATE FROM SCOTLAND "Campaigners who called for an official ban on teaching creationism in schools have welcomed a 'clear statement' from a Scottish Government minister it should not be taught in science classes," reports the Glasgow Herald (May 24, 2015). The proposed ban would have barred "the presentation in Scottish publicly funded schools of separate creation and of Young Earth doctrines as viable alternatives to the established science of evolution, common descent, and deep time." As NCSE previously reported, the Scottish Secular Society, prompted by recent creationist incursions, lodged the petition with the Public Petitions Committee of the Scottish parliament in 2014. The committee agreed to write to the government about the petition, but the government rejected the proposed ban as unnecessary. Subsequently, the committee decided to forward the petition to the Education and Culture Committee, which also agreed to write to the government about the petition. The government again declined to act on the petition, but a letter sent to the committee by the minister of learning and science explained, "Guidance provided by Education Scotland ... does not identify Creationism as a scientific principle. It should therefore not be taught as part of science lessons." Paul Braterman, the scientific advisor to the SSS, welcomed the statement, telling the Herald, "Now we have, at least, a clear statement from the responsible minister that creationism should not be taught as science." In the meantime, the dueling motions introduced in the Scottish Parliament in January 2015 -- S4M-12148, calling for a "Crackdown on Creationism" and supporting the SSS's position on teaching creationism in the Scottish public schools, and S4M-12149, entitled "Creationism and Evolution" and describing a variety of positions, including young-earth creationism, as "valid beliefs for people to hold" -- are both listed on the parliament's website as having "fallen" on May 12, 2015. For the story in the Glasgow Herald, visit: http://www.heraldscotland.com/news/home-news/scottish-government-creationism-banned-from-science-class.126976076 For information about the petition, visit: http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/gettinginvolved/petitions/creationismguidance For information on the dueling motions, visit: http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/parliamentarybusiness/28877.aspx?SearchType=Advance&ReferenceNumbers=S4M-12148 http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/parliamentarybusiness/28877.aspx?SearchType=Advance&ReferenceNumbers=S4M-12149 And for NCSE's previous coverage of events outside the United States, visit: http://ncse.com/news/international ANTIEVOLUTION LAWSUIT FILED IN WEST VIRGINIA "A parent of a Jefferson County student has filed a federal lawsuit against local, state and federal education officials claiming the teaching of evolution, which he says is a religion, violates his child’s Constitutional rights," reports the Charleston, West Virginia, Daily Mail (May 21, 2015). In a complaint filed with the United States District Court for the Northern District of West Virginia on May 12, 2015, Kenneth Smith contends that teaching evolution in West Virginia's public school constitutes "the propagation of religious faith" and that it hinders his daughter's ability to enter college and to become a veterinarian. Listed as defendants are the Jefferson County School Board; Michael Martirano, the West Virginia state superintendent of schools; Francis Collins, the director of the National Institutes of Health; Arne Duncan, the Secretary of Education; and the Department of Education itself. Smith is representing himself. In his complaint, Smith contends that the defendants "wrongfully violated established clauses" -- presumably a reference to the Establishment Clause -- in continuing to allow evolution to be taught "[w]hile denying the Plaintiff's accurate scientific mathematical system of genetic variations that proves evolution is a religion." Smith is apparently the author of The True Origin of Man (iUniverse, 2013), which "represents the truth of mans [sic] origins confirmed by DNA mathematical and scientific facts." The about-the-author line explains, "Kenneth Smith after gaining his science degree has spent many years thereafter studying theology and made the ultimate discovery." The complaint concludes by asking the court to "declare the policy of evolution, as to be violating of United States Constitutional Amendments" (presumably the First, prohibiting any government establishment of religion, and the Fourteenth, requiring state governments to abide by the restrictions of the Bill of Rights). Absent from the complaint is any mention of the relevant case law. In McLean v. Arkansas (1982), for example, the court commented, "it is clearly established in the case law, and perhaps also in common sense, that evolution is not a religion and that teaching evolution does not violate the Establishment Clause." Similarly, in Peloza v. Capistrano School District (1994), the court characterized the Supreme Court's decision in Edwards v. Aguillard (1987) as holding "unequivocally that while the belief in a divine creator of the universe is a religious belief, the scientific theory that higher forms of life evolved from lower forms is not." For the story in the Charleston Daily Mail, visit: http://www.charlestondailymail.com/article/20150521/DM02/150529767 For NCSE's collection of documents from the case, visit: http://ncse.com/legal/smith-v-jefferson-county-school-board-et-al 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: * Minda Berbeco wondering whether the "greenhouse" terminology is misleading: http://ncse.com/blog/2015/05/misconception-monday-is-greenhouse-misleading-0016378 * Stephanie Keep finding infelicities in the signage at a natural history museum: http://ncse.com/blog/2015/05/which-stephanie-visits-nhm-london-gets-little-grumpy-0016363 * Glenn Branch identifying the source of the phrase "arrival of the fittest": http://ncse.com/blog/2015/05/whence-arrival-fittest-0016357 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 x303 fax: 510-601-7204 800-290-6006 branch@ncse.com http://ncse.com Check out NCSE's new blog, Science League of America: http://ncse.com/blog Read Reports of the NCSE on-line: http://reports.ncse.com Subscribe to NCSE's free weekly e-newsletter: http://groups.google.com/group/ncse-news NCSE is on Facebook, YouTube, and Twitter: http://www.facebook.com/evolution.ncse http://www.youtube.com/NatCen4ScienceEd http://twitter.com/ncse NCSE's work is supported by its members. Join today! http://ncse.com/join
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