Pf Board To Rewrite Evolution Proposal Plan Had Drawn Criticism From Aclu, Science Group
Post Falls school trustees decided Monday to rewrite a proposed policy on teaching evolution after criticism from national science and civil liberties organizations.
One month after the board unanimously rejected teaching creationism, the American Civil Liberties Union and the National Center for Science Education weighed in against a proposed position statement on how to teach students about the origins of life. The district also received a letter of criticism from Boise geologist Terry S. Maley.
The trustees had planned to vote on the statement at Monday night’s meeting, but postponed the action because of the criticism. The position, written by district officials after eight months of debate on creationism, stresses that no scientific theory be presented as fact.
“Instructors should not be dogmatic or divisive in the interpretation of various theories and should demonstrate an equal level of respect for students, regardless of their beliefs or views,” the statement says. “Each student shall arrive at his/her own decision on the subject of origins.”
But Jack Van Valkenburgh, executive director of the ACLU of Idaho, called the statement “confused and internally contradictory.”
“I was a bit alarmed to read some of what was included in that statement, particularly a reference to intelligent design theory, which is a euphemism for creation science, which isn’t a science,” Van Valkenburgh said. “There’s no place for that kind of a theory in a public school.
“A position statement has no greater business talking about religion than does a classroom teacher,” he said. “Neither are appropriate in a public school.”
The California-based National Center for Science Education, a not-for-profit organization concerned about the teaching of evolution in public schools, sent district officials a revised copy of the position statement late last month.
In it, NCSE Executive Director Eugenie C. Scott criticizes the statement for pointing out that not all scientists support evolution.
“It is as unnecessary to include them in a policy statement on science as it would be to include Holocaust revisionists in a policy statement on history,” Scott writes.
Post Falls Superintendent Dick Harris agreed with some of the organizations’ concerns, but said others are extreme.
“I almost think they go too far when they throw out all the bathwater and the baby, too,” Harris told the board.
Board member Charles Eberle agreed that the statement’s wording was not as clear as it could be, and volunteered to help the district clarify the language.
Despite wanting to put an end to the divisive issue, Harris said he would take the criticism seriously in drafting a new proposal.
“Based on that kind of reaction, we’re going to take our time with it,” Harris said. “My feeling is that our position statement is one that says we’re going to be more sensitive to the different points of view children have as they come into the classroom. We’re only going to teach the theory of evolution and recognize there are other theories.”
The school board is expected to vote on the position statement next month.