Science v. Politics in Kansas
by TChris
The teaching of science in Kansas is no longer dictated by science. Responding to demands that science classes reflect religious belief in addition to conclusions drawn from scientific evidence, the Kansas Board of Education voted to require science teachers to tell high school students "that aspects of widely accepted evolutionary theory are controversial." That the controversy was created by religious groups, not from any debate raging within the scientific community, doesn't seem to matter. The first fact that teachers impart to students in compliance with the directive should be this: the "controvery" is grounded in politics, not science.
Some Board members were realistic about the image the Board created of Kansas:
"This is a sad day, not only for Kansas kids, but for Kansas," said Janet Waugh, who voted against the new standards. "We're becoming a laughingstock, not only of the nation, but of the world."
After the Board pandered to religious groups in 1999, voters elected candidates who promised to be rational. Mainstream voters were less vigilant four years later, when religious conservatives again seized control of the Board. Control may shift back to a rational view of education after next year's elections.
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