Florida Citizens for Science

Today the House PreK-12 Appropriations Subcommittee considered the Instructional Materials bill that we know will open the door to creationists and climate change deniers wanting to challenge how science is taught in Florida schools. The bill was approved on a 12 to 2 vote. It has one more committee stop to make in the House, which hasn’t been scheduled yet.

The bill was considered last in the nearly two hour meeting. That might have been a factor in the truly frustrating aspect of this vote: there was no debate. Only one citizen came forward to speak (she had some valid concerns about the timing of the challenge process and the qualifications of the unbiased hearing officer as currently described in the bill). After she finished, the committee chair opened the floor to any debate and there was none. Then the votes were cast.

We have some very serious and valid concerns about this bill and those concerns are being ignored. Coincidentally, there was a story published in today’s Florida Today: ‘Pro-Islam’ textbook stirs debate in Brevard — again.  It’s not related to science education, but all you have to do is replace ‘Pro-Islam’ with ‘Pro-Evolution’ and I think you can see why this story is deeply concerning, especially in light of this horrible Instructional Materials bill.

If you’re feeling as frustrated as I am, I implore you not to give up. Instead, get louder. It won’t hurt to start calling, emailing and visiting lawmakers now in the House Education Committee, which will be bill’s next stop. In the Senate, their version of the bill will be heard next in the Senate Appropriations Committee. That meeting has not been scheduled yet.

Don’t give up.

Just a reminder, folks. We could use your help burying a bad legislative idea.

The House version of the Instructional Materials bills that are very likely to be used and abused by anti-evolutionists and climate change deniers if they become law is scheduled for its second of three committee stops. HB 989 is on the calendar for tomorrow (Monday, April 3) at 11:30 in the PreK-12 Appropriations Subcommittee.

Daytona Beach News-Journal columnist Mark Lane agrees that this bill isn’t a good idea: At halfway point, no lack of bad ideas before Legislature.

Bad idea: Why not encourage litigation against school boards and county-by-county fights over school textbooks that teach evolution?

Collier County is having a school textbook and censorship fight. Some legislators want to bring that statewide by handing conservative activists new legal tools for challenging state-approved textbooks and assigned readings on the local level. Just what you want to see your school district spending time and money on.

Send emails to the committee members. Make phone calls. Show up at the meeting if you can. Keep your correspondence short and to the point. Make it clear you oppose the bill due to its potential negative impact on science education. Implore the lawmakers to do their homework by actually reading the supporting documents our opponents are giving them. Point out that those documents make it clear they are ready and eager to fight their local school boards over evolution and climate change. Explain that we want experienced experts determining what materials are used in the classroom, not amateurs on an ideological crusade. If you need ideas, read through the posts in the ‘Instructional Materials bills ’17’ blog category.

The last committee vote was unanimous in favor on the bill. We need to put the brakes on this bill and we need some of these lawmakers to speak up for science during the meeting.

And note that the bill’s House sponsor is Byron Donalds, who is also on this committee.

Committee members:

Diaz, Jr., Manny [R] Manny.Diaz@myfloridahouse.gov (850) 717-5103
Raburn, Jake [R] Jake.Raburn@myfloridahouse.gov (850) 717-5057
Lee, Jr., Larry [D] Larry.Lee@myfloridahouse.gov (850) 717-5084
Antone, Bruce [D] bruce.antone@myfloridahouse.gov (850) 717-5046
Brown, Kamia L. [D] Kamia.Brown@myfloridahouse.gov (850) 717-5045
Donalds, Byron [R] Byron.Donalds@myfloridahouse.gov (850) 717-5080
Fine, Randy [R] Randy.Fine@myfloridahouse.gov (850) 717-5053
Fischer, Jason [R] Jason.Fischer@myfloridahouse.gov (850) 717-5016
Hardemon, Roy [D] Roy.Hardemon@myfloridahouse.gov (850) 717-5108
Latvala, Chris [R] Chris.Latvala@myfloridahouse.gov (850) 717-5067
Massullo, MD, Ralph E. [R] Ralph.Massullo@myfloridahouse.gov (850) 717-5034
McClain, Stan [R] Stan.McClain@myfloridahouse.gov (850) 717-5023
Newton, Sr., Wengay M. “Newt” [D] Newt.Newton@myfloridahouse.gov (850) 717-5070
Renner, Paul [R] Paul.Renner@myfloridahouse.gov (850) 717-5024
Sullivan, Jennifer Mae [R] Jennifer.Sullivan@myfloridahouse.gov (850) 717-5031

The House version of the Instructional Materials bills that are very likely to be used and abused by anti-evolutionists and climate change deniers if they become law is scheduled for its second of three committee stops. HB 989 is on the calendar for Monday, April 3 at 11:30 in the PreK-12 Appropriations Subcommittee.

Send emails to the committee members. Make phone calls. Show up at the meeting if you can. Keep your correspondence short and to the point. Make it clear you oppose the bill due to its potential negative impact on science education. Implore the lawmakers to do their homework by actually reading the supporting documents our opponents are giving them. Point out that those documents make it clear they are ready and eager to fight their local school boards over evolution and climate change. Explain that we want experienced experts determining what materials are used in the classroom, not amateurs on an ideological crusade. If you need ideas, read through the posts in the ‘Instructional Materials bills ’17’ blog category.

The last committee vote was unanimous in favor on the bill. We need to put the brakes on this bill and we need some of these lawmakers to speak up for science during the meeting.

And note that the bill’s House sponsor is Byron Donalds, who is also on this committee.

Committee members:

Diaz, Jr., Manny [R] Manny.Diaz@myfloridahouse.gov (850) 717-5103
Raburn, Jake [R] Jake.Raburn@myfloridahouse.gov (850) 717-5057
Lee, Jr., Larry [D] Larry.Lee@myfloridahouse.gov (850) 717-5084
Antone, Bruce [D] bruce.antone@myfloridahouse.gov (850) 717-5046
Brown, Kamia L. [D] Kamia.Brown@myfloridahouse.gov (850) 717-5045
Donalds, Byron [R] Byron.Donalds@myfloridahouse.gov (850) 717-5080
Fine, Randy [R] Randy.Fine@myfloridahouse.gov (850) 717-5053
Fischer, Jason [R] Jason.Fischer@myfloridahouse.gov (850) 717-5016
Hardemon, Roy [D] Roy.Hardemon@myfloridahouse.gov (850) 717-5108
Latvala, Chris [R] Chris.Latvala@myfloridahouse.gov (850) 717-5067
Massullo, MD, Ralph E. [R] Ralph.Massullo@myfloridahouse.gov (850) 717-5034
McClain, Stan [R] Stan.McClain@myfloridahouse.gov (850) 717-5023
Newton, Sr., Wengay M. “Newt” [D] Newt.Newton@myfloridahouse.gov (850) 717-5070
Renner, Paul [R] Paul.Renner@myfloridahouse.gov (850) 717-5024
Sullivan, Jennifer Mae [R] Jennifer.Sullivan@myfloridahouse.gov (850) 717-5031

An op-ed I wrote was published in today’s Daytona Beach News Journal: Bills threaten science education

Of concern to science advocates like us is the Collier group’s vociferous opposition to established, accurate science concepts. Among their targeted objectionable materials are lessons about evolution and climate change. The single most alarming statement from the bills’ supporters is this analysis of a textbook passage about evolution: “Nowhere in the material is a balanced discussion of the biblical explanation.” This week, the bill’s supporters offered affidavits from parents who said their complaints about textbooks were “ignored.” Among those affidavits, I found complaints about evolution and climate change.

…

Giving these grossly unscientific views a voice equal to education and science experts in the choosing of instructional materials is irresponsible and does a disservice to our children. Confusing and inaccurate science lessons based on bad instructional materials could discourage students from seeking out science careers or immediately put students academically behind their peers in college.

Please share widely. Our opposition is crowing about their success so far, saying: “Senators’ aides told us they were flooded with calls.” We can only counter that if you help us. Drown out their calls with ours. If you sit idly by, our schools and our students lose.

I believe we can defeat the bad Instructional Materials bills making their way through the Florida Senate and House (see our Instructional Materials bills ’17 blog category for information about these bills). I believe we can offer substantial resistance to these bills by simply emphasizing our opponent’s own materials. They’re handing us a treasure trove of evidence of their true motivations. We just have to spotlight how blatantly anti-science the bills’ supporters are and how the Florida education system could once again be the butt of national jokes over anti-evolution and climate change denial in our schools.

The bill’s supporters have been waving their very own “Objectionable Materials” list in everyone’s faces as evidence for the need for these awful bills (see my previous post “Nowhere in the material is a balanced discussion of the biblical explanation” for a breakdown of anti-science tomfoolery that’s in there).

Now we have an even richer supply of evidence. Besides the Objectionable Materials list, I’ve learned that our opposition has also been emphatically imploring lawmakers to read through a stack of 31 sworn affidavits from citizens who are upset about what’s being taught in their local schools. I took the time to read them and guess what I found? Several complaints about evolution and climate change. Here’s just a sample:

From 17-02-02 Cash_Mary_Ellen_Collier.pdf:

b. I have witnessed students being taught evolution as a fact of creation rather than a theory. Parental objections are ignored.
c. I have witnessed children being taught that Global Warming is a reality. Now that it is colder and the country is experiencing repeated Cold Waves, the new term is Climate Change. When parents question these theories, they are ignored.

From 17-02-10_Daniel_Lynda_Martin.pdf:

Presentation of evolution as fact and romanticizing and fantasizing Paleolithic human life: P. 3-4 Again, a one-sided, slanted, secular world view OPINION presented as fact. The vast majority of Americans believe that the world and the beings living on it were created by God as revealed in the Bible.

…

The text includes 9 pages on creation myths from Australia (‘Dreamtime’), as well as repeated referrals to the big bang and evolution as facts; however, there is only passing reference to, and no explanation of the Biblical version of creation.

From David_Bolduc_Collier.pdf:

High School Honors Biology textbooks teach that Charles Darwin’s Theory of Evolution is the greatest scientific discovery in the last 200 years. This is ridiculous when you research Charles Darwin, and find he was the largest promoter of Eugenics, a race-based pseudoscience which espoused using the force of government to sterilize or separate the “unfit” from society.

From Deirde_Clemons_1_Collier.pdf:

The majority of Science material revolves around climate change, earth-first issues, and evolution. Evolution is now taught as fact. You will not find the words ‘theory’ or ‘evolution’ in the 6th grade World History book in Collier County, however, you will learn that you were preceded by four hominids in your ancestry.

There’s quite a few more examples at their affidavits page. Don’t let the bill’s supporters get away with this. School boards across the state will be buried under complaints like the ones above. And these Instructional Materials bills will force the school boards to hire a hearing officer to take these complaints seriously. The process will be a massive waste of time, money and resources. Not only that, but any school board that gives in could then face unwinnable lawsuits that will be financial and publicity nightmares.

Call lawmakers. Tell them to please go ahead a read the materials our opposition is giving them. Point out to them that the anti-science complaints alone will be a bottomless pit of quicksand for school boards across the state. I’m not qualified to analyze all of the other complaints listed in the affidavits and the objectionable materials list, but if these science whoopers are any indication, I imagine there are many other incredible claims that will cause just as many headaches.

If lawmakers refuse to hear us, then take our case to the public. Talk to reporters. Write letters to the editor. Write op-eds. Share this information with friends, family, and other groups you belong to. Spread it like wildfire on social media.

In other words, do something. Our schools and students lose if you don’t.