Kansas science standards likely to challenge evolution.State education officials in Kansas are considering changes to its science standards that would allow students to hear challenges to Charles Darwin's theory of evolution, a move that opponents say could set a precedent about the actual definition of science itself. Opponents say the move is an effort by conservatives interested in pushing a religious agenda. Proponents say students should be aware of other explanations about how life began, including a supernatural Supernatural Twilight Zone, The tales of weird events involving ordinary people. [Am. Radio, TV, & Cinema: The Twilight Zone in Terrace] creator's intelligent design. The standards came under scrutiny in May by a subcommittee sub·com·mit·tee n. A subordinate committee composed of members appointed from a main committee. subcommittee Noun of the Kansas State Board of Education Kansas State Board of Education is Kansas' Board of Education. The board is a constitutional body established in Article 6 of the Kansas Constitution. The ten members of the Board of Education are each elected to four-year terms. , which held several courtroom style hearings, which were boycotted by many scientific organizations. Subcommittee members are expected to recommend the proposed changes to the full board this summer. The hearings, critics say, were reminiscent of the 1925 Scopes trial Scopes trial, Tennessee legal case involving the teaching of evolution in public schools. A statute was passed (Mar., 1925) in Tennessee that prohibited the teaching in public schools of theories contrary to accepted interpretation of the biblical account of human in Dayton, Ohio Dayton is a city in southwestern Ohio, United States. It is the county seat and largest city of Montgomery County. As of the 2005 census estimate, the population of Dayton was 158,873. . where a high school science teacher was convicted of violating state law forbidding teaching evolution. It is the latest in an ongoing battle in Kansas between conservative and moderate members of the state Board of Education. Conservative members, who regained a majority in November, are also calling for a new definition of science, which would expand it from only natural explanations to what occurs to the unseen. This opens science to the possibility that some form of intelligence plays a role in what happens on Earth, they say. "The problem we have in public schools is there is a significant scientific controversy over the origins of life and it is being improperly denied so that the side that is taught supports the non-theistic belief system," says John Calvert John Calvert may refer to:
But others say there is no legitimate controversy about evolution and introducing theories that can't be proven is simply bad science. "To teach that this is a valid scientific controversy would be misleading students." says Jack Krebs, a teacher and vice president of Kansas Citizens for Science Kansas Citizens for Science (KCFS) is a science advocacy organization, incorporated as a not-for-profit 501(c)(3), that "promotes a better understanding of what science is, and does, by: advocating for science education, educating the public about the nature and value of science, . |
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