Homework Assignment: Understanding Evolution

A Florida Citizens for Science "Call to Action" project

We need to let the Florida Board of Education know that evolution is an important scientific concept that our children need to know, and that other supposed "theories," such as intelligent design, are not. The focus of this Call to Action project is to politely encourage the members of the state board of education to do a little homework concerning the theory of evolution. It's obvious from public statements made by various influential people -- state board of education members, local school board members, state legislators, etc. -- that many of these people don't have even a basic understanding of science. We have until Feb. 19 to provide them factual background information so that they can make an informed decision.

We want you to send a four-page fact sheet we've created along with a personal note from yourself to the BoE members and anyone else you feel needs to do some homework. Beside educating the decision makers, this project will demonstrate that there are as many, if not more, people in Florida who support good science education as there are people against it. We want to tell them that we don't want our state to become the laughingstock of the nation like other states were in past years when confronted with similar situations.

If you already know the recent history that has led up this project, then skip down to the "What to write" and "Addresses" links to get started. If you need a primer on the situation here in Florida, then we welcome you to read through the background information first.

• Background Information
• What to write
• Addresses