NCSE Evolution and Climate Education Update for 2016/01/29
Submitted by Peter Burns on Fri, 2016-01-29 15:42.
National Center for Science Education
(by NCSE Deputy Director Glenn Branch)
Dear friends of NCSE, NCSE is moving! A new antiscience bill in South Dakota. A bill in Iowa to undo the state's adoption of the NGSS. A second antiscience bill in Oklahoma. And a reminder about Darwin Day.
NCSE IS MOVING! After fifteen years in the same office, NCSE is relocating. Effective February 1, 2016, NCSE will be at 1904 Franklin Street, Suite 600, Oakland CA 94612-2922. Please update your address book. (Telephone and fax numbers are unchanged, although individual telephone extensions may be changing. Mail to NCSE's old office and to its post office box will be forwarded.) For full contact information for NCSE, visit: http://ncse.com/contact ANTISCIENCE BILL IN SOUTH DAKOTA Senate Bill 83, introduced in the South Dakota Senate and referred to the Senate Education Committee on January 25, 2016, would, if enacted, allow teachers to teach "the strengths and weaknesses of scientific information" presented in courses aligned with the state education standards. No areas of "scientific information" are specifically identified as abounding in weaknesses, but the legislative history of the lead sponsor, Jeff Monroe (R-24), is suggestive. In 2014, he sponsored Senate Bill 112, which would have allowed teachers to teach "intelligent design"; in 2015, he sponsored Senate Bill 114, which identified "biological evolution, the chemical origins of life, global warming, [and] human cloning" as scientifically controversial. Senate Bill 112 was killed in the Senate Education Committee at Monroe's request. Senate Bill 114 received a hearing in the Senate Education Committee, during which representatives of the state department of education, the South Dakota Education Association, and the Associated School Boards of South Dakota testified in opposition to the bill, and then died in committee when the legislative session ended. In sponsoring Senate Bill 83, Monroe is joined by Ried Holien (R-District 5), Phil Jensen (R-District 33), Betty Olson (R-District 28), and Bill Van Gerpen (R-District 19) in the Senate and by seven members of the House of Representatives, although there is no House equivalent of the bill. For the text of South Dakota's Senate Bill 83 as introduced, visit: http://legis.sd.gov/Legislative_Session/Bills/Bill.aspx?File=SB83P.htm&Session=2016 And for NCSE's previous coverage of events in South Dakota, visit: http://ncse.com/news/south-dakota ANTI-NGSS BILL IN IOWA House File 2054, introduced in the Iowa House of Representatives on January 19, 2016, and referred to the House Committee on Education, would, if enacted, reverse Iowa's decision to adopt the Next Generation Science Standards -- and there is reason to believe that part of the motivation is the NGSS's treatment of evolution and climate change. The lead sponsor of HF 2054 is Sandy Salmon (R-District 63), who in 2015 introduced House File 272, which would have prevented Iowa from adopting the NGSS. She told the Cedar Rapids Gazette (March 2, 2015) that she was "concerned that the standards miss some key math and science concepts, present evolution as scientific fact[,] and shine a negative light on human impacts on climate change." HF 272 died in committee. The Iowa Board of Education voted unanimously to adopt the Next Generation Science Standards at its August 6, 2015, meeting. HF 2054 would undo that decision, directing the board to adopt the same science standards used during the 2014-2015 school year and requiring further changes to be approved by the legislature and governor. For the text of Iowa's House File 2054 as introduced, visit: https://www.legis.iowa.gov/legislation/BillBook?ga=86&ba=hf2054 For the story in the Cedar Rapids Gazette, visit: http://www.thegazette.com/subject/news/educators-step-lightly-around-political-points-as-state-considers-new-science-standard-20150302 And for NCSE's previous coverage of events in Iowa, visit: http://ncse.com/news/iowa A SECOND ANTISCIENCE BILL IN OKLAHOMA House Bill 3045, styled the Scientific Education and Academic Freedom Act, is the second antiscience bill in the Oklahoma legislature for 2016, joining Senate Bill 1322. If enacted, the bill would require state and local educational authorities to "assist teachers to find more effective ways to present the science curriculum where it addresses scientific controversies" and permit teachers to "help students understand, analyze, critique, and review in an objective manner the scientific strengths and scientific weaknesses of existing scientific theories pertinent to the course being taught," prohibiting administrators from interfering. As introduced, the bill specifically mentions "biological evolution, the chemical origins of life, global warming, and human cloning" as subjects which "some teachers may be unsure" about how to teach. The sole sponsor of HB 3045 is Sally Kern (R-District 84), a persistent sponsor of antiscience legislation in the Sooner State. In 2011, Kern introduced House Bill 1551. The House Common Education Committee initially rejected the bill, but passed a revised version, which then passed the House of Representatives, but died in the Senate Education Committee. In 2013, House Bill 1674 -- identical to the revised version of HB 1551 passed by the House of Representatives -- was introduced with Kern as a cosponsor. Like its predecessor, it passed the House of Representatives, but died in the Senate Education Committee. HB 3045 is virtually identical. Kern's antiscience bills have elicited criticism from scientific and educational organizations within the state and across the country. Responding to a previous incarnation of the bill, HB 1551 in 2011, for example, the American Association for the Advancement of Science's chief executive officer Alan I. Leshner wrote, "There is virtually no scientific controversy among the overwhelming majority of researchers on the core facts of global warming and evolution," adding, "asserting that there are significant scientific controversies about the overall nature of these concepts when there are none will only confuse students, not enlighten them." As usual, the grassroots organization Oklahomans for Excellence in Science Education will be coordinating opposition to the antiscience bills in the state. For the text of Oklahoma's House Bill 3045 as introduced (PDF), visit: http://webserver1.lsb.state.ok.us/cf_pdf/2015-16%20INT/hB/HB3045%20INT.PDF For Oklahomans for Excellence in Science Education's website, visit: http://www.oklascience.org/ And for NCSE's previous coverage of events in Oklahoma, visit: http://ncse.com/news/oklahoma DARWIN DAY APPROACHES It's time to dust off your Darwin costume again: less than two weeks remains before Darwin Day 2016! 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 12-14, 2016, 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, 346 congregations in forty-eight states (and eleven foreign countries) were scheduled to hold Evolution Weekend events. For the Darwin Day registry, visit: http://darwinday.org/events/ http://darwinday.org/events/community/add 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: * Steven Newton discussing sea level rise in Florida: http://ncse.com/blog/2016/01/florida-drowning-0016884 * Josh Rosenau considering a rapper's geocentrism in context: http://ncse.com/blog/2016/01/flat-out-wrong-0016889 * Glenn Branch investigating the connection between two creationists named Patterson: http://ncse.com/blog/2016/01/two-pattersons-0016758 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. 1904 Franklin Street, Suite 600 Oakland CA 94612-2922 510-601-7203 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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