DISAPPOINTING NEWS FROM SCOTLAND
The Scottish government rejected the proposal to ban the teaching of creationism in publicly funded schools in Scotland, according to the Glasgow Herald (December 16, 2014). The head of Curriculum Unit at the Learning Directorate told the newspaper, “I can … confirm that there are no plans to issue guidance to schools or education authorities to prevent the presentation of creationism, intelligent design or similar doctrines by teachers or school visitors. The evidence available suggests that guidance on these matters is unnecessary.”
As NCSE previously reported, the Scottish Secular Society filed a petition with the Scottish parliament, calling for a ban on “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,” adding, “Nothing in this request precludes the discussion of such doctrines in their proper place, as part of the study of ideas, neither does it nor can it infringe on individual freedom of belief.”
Part of the impetus for the petition was recent creationist incursions into the Scottish classroom. In 2013, for example, as the Telegraph (September 13, 2013) reported, it was discovered that a school chaplain in East Kilbride distributed creationist literature calling evolution a myth. The petitioners fear that such incidents may have been just the tip of the iceberg. As the Reverend Michael Roberts told the parliament, “It is almost impossible to determine the extent to which such creationism has influenced classroom teaching.”
The petition received a hearing before a parliamentary committee on November 11, 2014; among the organizations submitting written testimony was NCSE, which in a November 7, 2014, letter expressed its support for the proposed ban. The committee agreed to write to the Scottish government as well as the Educational Institute of Scotland, the Scottish Secondary Teachers’ Association, and the Association of Headteachers and Deputes in Scotland, to receive their views on the matter.
The Scottish Secular Society expressed disappointment with the government’s response in a December 16, 2014, press release. “The government’s submission is not only disappointing but at the same time short sighted and evasive, and fails to recognise the issue,” Spencer Fildes commented. “It would seem they are willing to openly endorse the teaching and discussion of Creationism in what they call ‘context’; but are unwilling to explicitly state it is forbidden even in the science class.”
For the story in the Glasgow Herald, visit:
http://www.heraldscotland.com/news/home-news/schools-creationism-ban-rejected-by-scottish-government.114739893
For the petition (PDF) and related documents, visit:
http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/gettinginvolved/petitions/petitionPDF/PE01530.pdf
http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/gettinginvolved/petitions/creationismguidance
For the story in the Telegraph, visit:
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/education/educationnews/10307520/Head-teachers-removed-in-row-over-creationist-church.html
For Michael Roberts’s comments (PDF), visit:
http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/S4_PublicPetitionsCommittee/General%20Documents/PE1530_B_British_Centre_for_Science_Education_17.10.14.pdf
For NCSE’s letter (PDF), visit:
http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/S4_PublicPetitionsCommittee/General%20Documents/PE1530_L_National_Center_for_Science_Education_07.11.14.pdf
For the press release from the Scottish Secular Society, visit:
http://www.scottishsecularsociety.com/scottish-government-responds-to-request-for-guidance-on-how-creationism-is-taught-in-schools-scottish-secular-society-fears-it-validates-creationist-teaching/
And for NCSE’s previous coverage of events outside the United States, visit:
http://ncse.com/news/international
ANTISCIENCE BILL DIES IN OHIO
Ohio’s House Bill 597 — which if enacted would require students in the state’s public schools to “review, in an objective manner, the scientific strengths and weaknesses of existing scientific theories in the [state science] standards”—died in the legislature, according to the Cleveland Plain Dealer (December 15, 2014).
As NCSE previously reported, HB 597, aimed primarily at eliminating Common Core, also contained a provision requiring the state’s science standards to “prohibit political or religious interpretation of scientific facts in favor of another.” A sponsor of the bill, Andy Thompson (R-District 95), explained that local school districts would be allowed to teach creationism along with evolution and global warming denial alongside climate science.
In the House Rules and Reference Committee, the objectionable provision was removed, but it was replaced with the “strengths and weaknesses” language, familiar from antiscience bills across the country. The result was passed by the committee on November 5, 2014, but a member of the committee who voted against the bill told the Cleveland Plain Dealer (November 5, 2014) that she thought that it was unlikely to proceed further.
According to the Plain Dealer, Thompson’s subsequent attempts to bring HB 597 to a vote and to attach it to other bills were unsuccessful. Thompson told the newspaper, “Repeal will be high on the agenda next year,” but was not reported as commenting specifically on the issue of the state science standards.
For information about Ohio’s House Bill 597, visit:
http://www.legislature.state.oh.us/bills.cfm?ID=130_HB_597
For the stories in the Cleveland Plain Dealer, visit:
http://www.cleveland.com/metro/index.ssf/2014/12/bills_to_rein_in_testing_and_t.html
http://www.cleveland.com/metro/index.ssf/2014/11/bill_to_kill_the_common_core_w.html
And for NCSE’s previous coverage of events in Ohio, visit:
http://ncse.com/news/ohio
WYOMING TO UNBLOCK NGSS?
A bill to allow the Wyoming state board of education to adopt the Next Generation Science Standards will be introduced in the legislature, according to the Billings Gazette (December 15, 2014). John Patton (R-District 29) told the newspaper, “What the bill does is pretty straight forward and simple … It simply removes Footnote No. 3 in the appropriations bill. It means the State Board of Education can continue with its work uninterrupted by the Legislature.” He was optimistic about the prospect for the bill’s passage.
As NCSE previously reported, a footnote in Wyoming’s budget for 2014-2016 precluded the use of state funds “for any review or adoption” of the NGSS, and the treatment of climate change was cited as the reason for the prohibition. The Wyoming state board of education subsequently declined to develop a new set of science standards independent of the NGSS. Despite the legislature’s decision, local school districts are free to adopt the NGSS, and about fifteen (of forty-eight) have reportedly done so.
So far the NGSS have been adopted in thirteen states—California, Delaware, Kansas, Kentucky, Illinois, Maryland, Nevada, New Jersey, Oregon, Rhode Island, Vermont, Washington, and West Virginia—plus the District of Columbia. The treatment of evolution and climate science in the standards occasionally provokes controversy (including a recently dismissed lawsuit, COPE v. Kansas), but Wyoming is the only state where their adoption was derailed explicitly over evolution or climate science.
For the story in the Billings Gazette, visit:
http://billingsgazette.com/news/state-and-regional/wyoming/bill-would-repeal-controversial-science-standard-ban-in-wyoming/article_c8dcd019-2f02-59db-93fd-f8272b3d7f67.html
And for NCSE’s previous coverage of events in Wyoming, visit:
http://ncse.com/news/wyoming
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:
* Eugenie C. Scott expressing wistfulness about the Steve that got away: http://ncse.com/blog/2014/12/steve-that-got-away-0016057
* Stephanie Keep applauding a good explanation of phylogenetic trees:
http://ncse.com/blog/2014/12/well-said-understanding-evolution-gets-it-right-to-surprise-0016055
* Josh Rosenau reflecting on the most recent poll on attitudes toward evolution:
http://ncse.com/blog/2014/12/disentangling-evolution-religion-0016049
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.
—
With best wishes for the holiday season,
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
http://ncse.com