In case you haven’t heard, Texas science education is taking a beating. The Texas Freedom Network (a Citizens for Science type of organization … sorry, got that wrong … see the comments for clarification) announced that the Texas board of education padded a curriculum review panel with a few well known creationists. That panel will be reviewing the new proposed state science curriculum.
Texas Freedom Network President Kathy Miller today sharply criticized the inclusion of three strident evolution opponents, including two authors of an anti-evolution textbook, on a panel that will review proposed new science curriculum standards for Texas public schools. The inclusion of the two textbook authors raises serious questions about conflicts of interest and whether political agendas took priority over giving Texas students a 21st-century science education, Miller said.
Want to help out? Sign the Texas Freedom Network Stand up for Science petition. I already did.
There’s an obvious conflict of interest, since Stephen Meyer and Ralph Seelke are both authors of the Discovery Institute-sponsored textbook Explore Evolution, a piece of truly shoddy scholarship. It’s interesting that they are also the only two members of the panel not based in Texas.
Meyer was also party to a breach of editorial policy, i.e., academic misconduct, and this alone should disqualify him. This formally repudiated paper – a review, not a research paper – is the only thing Meyer ever published in a scientific journal.
This is a correction to your post. The Texas Freedom Network is NOT a Citizens for Science type of organization. It defends mainstream politics, science, and religion from the radical religious right. Texas has a “Citizens for Science type of organization.” It is named Texas Citizens for Science and has existed since 1980. Its website is at http://www.texscience.org. TCS defends the accuracy and reliability of science education in Texas and has been doing this very successfully for 28 years. TCS is the foremost organization in Texas that opposes the Creationists on the Texas State Board of Education. TCS also was the only pro-science organization to oppose the Institute for Creation Research on its quest for state certification to grant a Master of Science degree in Science Education. TFN opposes Creationists in state government and many more things in addition; it is a very valuable organization, much like People for the American Way, and TCS and TFN (and NCSE) cooperate on some projects.
When Florida needed a “Citizens for Science type of organization,” I wrote my many friends in Florida and helped to get your organization started.
The October 15 TCS news release and report on the nomination of three Creationists to the six-person science standards review panel is at
http://www.texscience.org/releases/creationists-science-review-panel.htm
Steven Schafersman
Sorry about that Steven. I’ve edited the post.