evolution in kansas
Again, unfortunately, I am not referring to myself or my site: Don’t ignore evolution issue, crowd told at KU. From the Kansas City Star:
Kansas residents should become involved in the evolution debate immediately, a high school math teacher said at a forum Tuesday night.
Otherwise, Jack Krebs said, the state could experience another round of humiliation like that it endured in 1999, when the theory was de-emphasized in Kansas schools.
“Last time around all the discussion was after the fact. … Now we have the chance not to make it a done deal,” he said.
Krebs told the audience at the University of Kansas that he believes the Kansas Board of Education may try to change science standards back to the way they were in 1999, when the teaching of evolution was de-emphasized. That change was thrown out in 2003.
John Calvert, managing director of the Intelligent Design Network in Kansas City, said he was unaware of any proposal to teach intelligent design — the theory that the universe was created by some sort of intelligent being — within the Kansas public school system.
“There is no proposal on the table to teach or test intelligent design,” said Calvert, who attended Tuesday’s forum but was not a speaker. He said he simply wanted evolution to be considered a theory that could be tested or challenged.
In 1999, the move against evolution was from primarily “young-Earth creationists,” who believe that God created the universe in six days and that Earth is only a few thousand years old.
This time, Krebs believes, the movement would be led by a group within the intelligent design movement, which accepts many tenets of evolution but believes that a designer was responsible for the origin of the universe.
“Intelligent design had virtually no impact on the science community,” Krebs said. “There are no testable hypotheses. … There is no science there.”
Calvert said Krebs inaccurately described the theory.
“This is an event that is designed to suppress criticisms of the evolution theory,” Calvert said. “Every single bit of it was name-calling. This was a sermon. This was a political event.”
University of Kansas Chancellor Robert Hemenway opened the program, telling the audience: “If evolution is to be challenged, let the debate begin here and let it be a civil debate.”
Calvert and other intelligent-design proponents criticized Krebs, who spoke alone, for not allowing both sides to participate in the presentation.
“It’s curious you have a public debate, but no opposition was included in this,” Brian Sandefur told Krebs after the speech.
Jeremy Whetstone, building manager at the Kansas Union, where the event was held, estimated that 450 people attended.
A committee appointed by the state board is working on an update of the science standards but will not present the draft to the public until December.
Calvert and his group miss the point. It’s not “name-calling” to label “intelligent design” as not being science — it isn’t! I don’t claim that it’s loony far-right nonsense or even that it’s not worth consideration — it certainly is, and one of the most interesting exercises I undertook in college was a review of philosophers who argued for and against it. It’s not even that “intelligent design” can never be considered science. But right now it isn’t science, and shouldn’t be passed off as such.
The solution — Governor Sebelius (or some brave future governor) should dissolve the Board of Education if she is constitutionally able to do so, and replace it with a proper Department of Education headed by a Secretary of Education. The SecEd would be subject to confirmation by the Legislature. Then, the Department of Education will be accountable to Governor Sebelius directly, and by extension, the voters: Think about how many Kansans know and follow the Board members versus how many Kansans know and follow the Governor’s office. It makes sense, and should be done sooner rather than later.
09.30.2004 @ 12:16
Great looking site JD, reciprocal link forthcoming….hope you like the sidebar at mine….