To Be Continued on Normal School Days

When did science class become Sunday school? Dave Mann’s blog entitled “And so it Ends” in the Texas Observer chronicles the recent defeat of pushing creationism into school science books. He retells the dysfunctional atmosphere within the State Board of Education during the finalization of the science standards. The air of incompetence he describes in his piece is brimming with napkins scrawled with various amendments fraught with misspellings. Dave Mann has been a writer for the Texas Observer since 2003 and is a senior editor. Mann’s article is intended for those people deeply afraid that an evangelical public school system, headed by a dentist from Bryan, will teach our children that the only phase in the scientific method is developing a hypothesis.

I agree with Mann’s belief that the defeat was a victory, but I do disagree with his thought of that the compromises made at that meeting were “harmless.” Lee Nichols’ article details many of the amendments passed and adds a counter to the severity of the situation. Amendments promoting differing “theories” on the creation of the universe, evaluation of the sudden appearance of fossil records, and even the existence of global warming undermine the teaching of science.

The formulation of scientific theory is not done on a whim or a feeling. They are tested not just by the original scientist, but be many others once the work is published. If after many years the work cannot be disproved, the work can be established as scientific theory. A scientific theory is the best conclusion one can ascertain with the evidence provided.


Why in the world would we then allow cynicism to broach upon that? There is no evidence that supports the belief that humans and dinosaurs coexisted. If evidence came to light, the theory would be disproved and that would be the end of it. The attacks on evolution are wildly erratic. The population explosion of dinosaurs does not prove evolution is wrong. The theory provides the process of natural selection, not population growth. The melting of the arctic and Antarctic sea ice, glacial disappearance, and the trend of warming temperatures are all evidence of global warming.

Even thought the books will not display the subtext regarding creationism, the teachers will endorse it and reinforce the belief that science is not a science at all. In the end, are we just shaping children’s minds to always be wholly skeptical even in the face of empirical evidence?