[TEXAS] these are the people sitting on the Board of Education

Hmm, after listening to the video and hearing her request, it didn't really mention creationism and definitely not that Texas was 6000 years old...dont' know what this blogger's agenda is but he's completely making some of that up if this is all that was said and voted on...

 

Wow. Good catch and great investigation. I glanced at it and thought this was from Discover Magazine -- not a blog. In other words, SWTsig fooled us all with a smelly red herring. I feel really embarrassed for not looking at the source more carefully. That said, I still stand by what I posted. Now back to halftime.

 

Resurrecting an old thread since I don't think this deserves it's own thread.

http://usnews.nbcnews.com/_news/201...-erupts-before-texas-board-of-education?lite=

Evolution debate again erupts before Texas Board of Education

AUSTIN, Texas — The Texas Board of Education used a late-night meeting to give preliminary approval to new science textbooks for classrooms across the state late Thursday night, but it blocked signing off on a major new biology text until alleged "errors" in lessons over the theory of evolution are checked by outside experts.

The vote just before midnight did not reject the biology book by Pearson, one of the country's largest publishers. But it delayed approval until three board members appoint a trio of outside experts to check concerns.

Textbook and classroom curriculum battles have long raged in Texas pitting creationists — those who see God's hand in the creation of the universe — against academics who worry about religious and political ideology trumping scientific fact. At issue this time are proposed high school biology books that could be used across the state at least through 2022.

State law approved two years ago means school districts can now choose their own books and don't have to adhere to a list recommended by the Board of Education — but most have continued to use approved books.

The issue is important nationally since Texas is so large that many books prepared for publication in the state also are marketed elsewhere around the country.

Publishers from around the country submitted proposed textbooks this summer, but committees of Texas volunteer reviewers — some nominated by socially conservative current and former Board of Education members — raised objections. One argued that creationism based on biblical texts should be taught in science classes, while others objected that climate change wasn't as settled a scientific matter as some of the proposed books said.

Pearson and many other major publishers weren't willing to make suggested major edits and changes, however.

That prompted some of the board's socially conservative members to call for delaying approval of the book because of concerns including how long it took Earth to cool and objection to lessons about natural selection because "selection operates as a selective but not a creative force."

Members outside the socially conservative bloc claimed their colleagues waited until the dead of night to try to impose ideological edits.

"To ask me — a business degree major from Texas Tech University — to distinguish whether the Earth cooled 4 billion years ago or 4.2 billion years ago for purposes of approving a textbook at 10:15 on a Thursday night is laughable," said Thomas Ratliff, a Republican from Mount Pleasant.

He added: "I believe this process is being hijacked, this book is being held hostage to make political changes."

 

Because creationism isn't really a theory. It doesn't meet the requirements of scientific theory.

Look at all the misconception in the general populace about what a theory actually is in regards to science. That needs to be clarified to students not muddled with creationism and treating it as if it's a theory when it isn't a theory.

 

creationism is by definition, religion

but it's not like school kids won't get the best information on their own. what the board is really doing is teaching kids not to trust authority and to do their own research, so I guess there are some positives.

 

This struck me as a pretty important development since the thread was first started. It's up to school districts to pick their books now, so parents should be leaning on them to make wise choices and not worry so much about the department of education.

 

I found a picture of the outside experts...

 

Oh Texas

Texas Board Of Ed Votes To Drop Algebra II Mandate

 

In a statement from the board,

"We know'd they ain't no need for no algie bras in Texas. Especially since'n I reckon no algie I know'd of is needin' no two bras."

 

repped..that's freaking hilarious :grin:

 

"Algebra sounds kinda arabic ta me"

 

Well, the word "Algebra" is Arabic in origin.

 

They probable meant to remove Al Jazeera but really did not know the difference

 

all the problems in Public School this what the OP decides to address? Trust me no one is laughing at Texas we are the one bring spot in this so called union.

 

Hilarity overload.

 

Oh, the irony.

 

This is the most ludicrous thing I have ever heard. At a time when schools across the nation are doing a poor job of equipping kids to compete, they decide to lower the bar in Texas. Geez.

One thing that remains to be seen is whether Algebra II will still be a required course for most college admissions. It is one thing to require a course to graduate from high school. It is another thing to drop the requirement for that course to be admitted to a university.

The last thing our colleges and universities need is to have kids that are less prepared. I can't even begin to imagine enrolling kids in an engineering program if they haven't had trigonometry, which would first require algebra 2.

 

If you want to be technical all theory in the scientific community is wrong. It's the everyday goal to be less wrong than the day before.

Take for instance the theory of gravity. For hundreds of years we thought Newton's theory of gravity was complete until one day when using Newton's formula for gravity, a couple of cosmologist discovered that where Mercury was supposed to be in rotation to the sun was predicted wrong. This meant that our understanding of the way gravity worked was wrong. Not entirely wrong mind you. I mean for most problems for hundreds of years Newton's formula for gravity worked until it didn't.

Did gravity change at all? No. But our human understanding of it did and we adjusted our current understanding of the universe around how the universe works. NOT HOW WE WANT IT TO WORK or how some people think it should work. Our current understanding of a fundamental force like gravity is incomplete still but that still doesn't change our current understanding of it and how it affects the universe. We can't explain its properties on a sub atomic level and there are still mysteries about is on a macroscopic scale.

If there were legitimate intelligent design theories that worked with how our understanding of the universe worked, it would be accepted universally regardless of whether some uppity close minded physicist agreed or disagreed with you. But there's not. It's a failure of a theory that doesn't improve our understanding of the universe in any way. It can't make accurate predictions. So it's not used. End of story.

 

Well a couple of things about what you said regarding dragging their tales or using them to balance. I'm not sure those are really scientific theories. I don't think they've reached that far in process yet.

I also don't think teachers need to blow it off when students ask about religion, but I also don't think teachers need to answer students religious questions. I certainly wouldn't want a science teacher telling my children about religion. Nor would most right wing conservatives or evangelical Christians. I think a science teacher should say, "Those are interesting questions. Perhaps you should explore them further with your family or someone at your religious institution. What we need to focus on here... right now, is actual science."

 

To my knowledge, most universities don't specifically require particular courses in high school, there is too much variance between the courses across the country for their names to be an apples to apples comparison. Virtually all universities and colleges require placement exams to determine what courses the student should begin with. In math, students who score well would go to College Algebra directly while other students take remedial classes to build this skill to the point that they can be successful at the higher levels.