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Christian conservatives on the Texas State Textbook Review Panel want the Texas State Board of Education to reject any high school biology textbook that does not include "disclaimers” with Charles Darwin’s theory of evolution.
“I understand the National Academy of Science’s strong support of the theory of evolution. At the same time, this is a theory. As an educator, parent and grandparent, I feel very firmly that creation science based on Biblical principles should be incorporated into every biology book that is up for adoption," said Texas A&M University nutritionist Karen Beathard.
However, including “creation science" in textbooks would violate a 1987 U.S. Supreme Court ruling that banned the teaching of creationism in public schools, noted The Dallas Morning News.
Texas Freedom Network President Kathy Miller opposes religious changes to the textbooks.
"What our kids learn in their public schools should be based on mainstream, established science, not the personal views of ideologues, especially those who are grossly unqualified to evaluate a biology textbook in the first place. What we see in these documents makes it imperative that the board finally establish genuine qualifications for those entrusted with reviewing textbooks or curriculum standards for our kids," said Miller.
Because Texas is the largest textbook market, whatever appears in those textbooks is replicated through much of the U.S.
Sources: Texas Freedom Network and The Dallas Morning News
1 Reported by Opposing Views 3 hours ago.