Online Complaint
| On January 9, 2007, an ad hoc group of former members of a
committee disbanded by the Kansas State Board over a year ago proposed changes to current science standards that would cause Kansas to promote a materialistic explanation of the origin of life. The proposals would do this by adopting a materialistic definition of science containing a preconception that allows only material
causes to explain natural phenomena and by deleting standards that would encourage the teaching of chemical and biological evolution comprehensively.
On February 13, 2007, those
changes were adopted by a vote of
6 for and 4 against.
The issue in the Kansas Science Standards is about materialism. Many don't understand the concept, so we have added a helpful document to aid in understanding:
Around
4,000 members of the public were outraged by the
proposals and signed a petition to
the Board generally in the form
shown below.
If you would like to join those voices
to continue the dissent from the
February 13, 2007 action please complete the
complaint below. The only required fields are your email address, Name, City and State.
The documents on the left sidebar show the proposed changes to the current standards that the Petition rejects
but which were adopted on
February 13, and a letter of Dr. William S. Harris, PhD. The Harris letter and the remarks of John H. Calvert, J.D., BA (geology) explain why the changes should
ahve been rejected.
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Please support the petition by filling out the simple form below.
Complaint to
THE KANSAS STATE BOARD OF EDUCATION
The undersigned complain about the action
of the State Board of Education on February 13,
2007, that replaced objective origins science standards with ones that promote an exclusively materialistic theory of human origins.
Our world views about why we are here, the purpose of our lives, how we should live, and what happens when we die, all depend on how we answer the most basic question of all: Where do we come from? Given the importance of this question to student views about religion, ethics, morals and even government, the Kansas State Board adopted science standards
in 2005 that encouraged a more objective teaching and critical analysis of relevant scientific knowledge about biological origins. The changes include an introduction to major scientific controversies about materialistic explanations of the origin of life (chemical evolution) and major increases in bio- diversity through random mutation and natural selection (macro-evolution). The changes not only promote better science education, but also encourage public school teaching that is secular, neutral and non-ideological.
The scientific and educational propriety of the
objective standards were established through extensive oral and written public analysis, including four days of testimony from 23 expert witnesses at public hearings during May, 2005.
On February 13, 2007 a new State Board removed the objective standards and replaced them with standards that permit the teaching of only a materialistic theory of origins without any critical analysis of that theory.
Because the study of origins is a very subjective and controversial historical science that unavoidably impacts religion, systematic exclusion of relevant scientific views on the subject is not good science education and is offensive to many parents and students. Allowing only one scientific view of origins makes those whose religious beliefs are consistent with other scientific views to feel like outsiders in their own communities. Presenting only the case for a materialistic origin of life could establish a state ideology that supports Atheism, Humanism, and other non-theistic religions and belief systems while denigrating traditional theistic beliefs. It will discourage critical thinking and indoctrinate students rather than educate and inform them. For many there is no practical alternative to public education and we question the use of tax dollars to promote only one scientific view of our origins.
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