Written by Don Byrd
The Texas Board of Education is under scrutiny yet again for attempting to insert creationism into the Biology curriculum in public schools. A review of current texts by a committee appointed by the Board is yielding concerns that there is not enough religion in the curriculum.
The Texas Freedom Network has more:
The documents show that reviewers made ideological objections to coverage related to evolution and climate change in textbooks from at least seven publishers, including several of the nation’s biggest publishing houses. Failing to obtain a review panel’s top rating makes it harder for publishers to sell their textbooks to school districts or can even lead the State Board of Education (SBOE) to reject the textbook altogether.
“Once again culture warriors on the state board are putting Texas at risk of becoming a national laughingstock on science education,” TFN President Kathy Miller said. “What our kids learn in their public schools should be based on mainstream, established science, not the personal views of ideologues, especially those who are grossly unqualified to evaluate a biology textbook in the first place. What we see in these documents makes it imperative that the board finally establish genuine qualifications for those entrusted with reviewing textbooks or curriculum standards for our kids.”
Of course, it’s not just Texas at stake. The size of their market means many textbook publishers across the country will want to meet Texas’ standards, such that they are. While Texas continues to tinker with the role of religion in the science curriculum, courts have not wavered. Instruction in creationism is prohibited by the separation of church and state, guaranteed by the First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution.
That baseline should be the starting point of every such discussion and textbook review process. Why does the Texas Education Board have to keep learning this lesson every year or two?
You can view the reviewers’ objections here.
