Teaching Evolution in Kansas Schools

[James Beach]

Evolutionary biologists in Kansas lobbied hard against the alternative
science curriculum standards proposal which was adopted by the Kansas State
Board of Education this week.  As I understand it,  the primary consequence
of the vote will be that local school districts will be free to include or
omit evolution studies in their science curricula as they wish.  Also, the
State, in standardized tests, will not test primary or secondary students
on their knowledge of evolution.  The Governor of Kansas and large numbers
of science educators and university faculty have expressed their dismay at
the School Board's decision.


____________________________________________________

James H. Beach
Assistant Director for Informatics
Natural History Museum and Biodiversity Research Center
Dyche Hall, University of Kansas, Lawrence, KS 66045
E-mail: jbeach at ukans.edu
Tel: (785) 864-4645, Fax: (785) 864-5335
NetMeeting: http://beachnt.nhm.ukans.edu