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Evolution Debate in Minnesota (6/2/04)

   

The Minnesota State Senate voted 35-31 to fire former Education Commissioner Cheri Pierson Yecke. The vote was cast at 3:40 a.m. on the last day of the state's legislative session, and was followed by the passage of new education standards for the state. Yecke was a public advocate of the teaching of creationism and was controversial throughout her stint in the position, which lasted 15 months. Minnesota governor Tim Pawlenty says he will appoint a conservative to the open office of Education Commissioner. Non-evolutionary language originally included in the House education standards was not included in the language of the new standards. (6/2/04)

The Minnesota Senate Education Committee held an open hearing on January 23rd about new state science and social studies standards. The new standards include the teaching of scientific evolution, but there was some criticism about the lack of alternatives to scientific evolution in the curriculum. A chapter in the high school curriculum discusses how new evidence can challenge previously held theories, such as the big-bang or plate tectonics. However, some members of the community do not believe that this teaches the controversy over evolution specifically enough and they would prefer that the disagreement be explicitly stated in the evolution curriculum.

In addition, a minority report has been co-written by a Minnetonka school board member to change the standards to reflect the controversy over evolution. The writers of the report say they do not want to teach religion in the classroom, just "the strengths and weaknesses of the theory of evolution". The Minnesota State Legislature convened on February 2nd and lawmakers are expected to act on the new standards this spring. (2/3/04)

On July 17, 2003, the State of Minnesota's Education Commissioner, Cheri Pierson Yecke, released the names of the 41 people chosen to draft the state's new science standards. The committee has been charged with designating specific facts and concepts that public high school students will be expected to know at the end of each grade, beginning in Kindergarten and continuing through 12th grade. These new benchmarks will replace the Profile of Learning graduation requirements that were abandoned amidst debate earlier this spring. English, math, and visual arts standards have already been adopted, and the science standards will be presented to the state legislature at the end of next year. Yecke will reportedly ask the committee to consider Sen. Rick Santorum's (R-PA) failed amendment to the No Child Left Behind Act, which sought to allocate room in states' curriculum for the discussion of "alternatives" to evolution, namely Intelligent Design (ID). Minneapolis television station WCCO reported on July 18th that Yecke said she is not looking for creationism to be included in the standards as a state requirement, but would like its inclusion to be left to the discretion of local districts. Yecke has made clear her personal beliefs regarding the origins of life, telling WCCO, "I believe that God created the heavens and the earth… I don't know how he did it, but that's my personal belief." Concerns have been raised as to whether or not Yecke's personal beliefs played a part in determining who would serve on the standards committee. (8/5/03)

The state's Department of Education released draft science education standards developed by a "citizens committee" this summer. According to a Sep. 9 news story in the St. Paul (MN) Pioneer Press, the draft standards make no mention of teaching alternative theories despite the urging of Education Commissioner Yecke to do so. The following day, the Pioneer Press reported that the department initially posted a different version of the standards that included language casting doubt on the certainty of evolutionary theory but quickly replaced it with the committee draft.

Currently, members of the Academic Standards Committee and Yenke are touring the state, presenting the first draft of the science standards and inviting the public to comment on them. The Committee is also accepting comments submitted via the Minnesota State Board of Education's website. To access a list of Committee members, the proposed standards or to submit a comment, click here.

One of the proposed standards for Grades 9-12 is that "Student[s] will understand the nature of scientific ways of thinking and that scientific knowledge changes and accumulates over time, some scientific ideas are incomplete, and opportunity exists in these areas for new advances." There are four benchmarks to determine if students meet this standard. They are:

• Students will be able to distinguish among hypothesis, theory, and law as scientific terms and how they are used to answer a specific question.
• Students will be able to explain how scientific innovations and new evidence can challenge accepted theories and models, including cell theory, atomic theory, theory of evolution, plate tectonic theory, germ theory of disease, Big Bang theory.
• Students will know that scientific explanations must meet criteria to be considered valid, including that they must be consistent with experimental and observational evidence about nature, local, respect the rules of evidence, be open to criticism, and report methods and procedures.
• Students will recognize how traditions govern the conduct of science, including ethics, peer review, conflict and consensus."

The schedule for public hearings is below:

(9/26/2003)

Sources: American Association for the Advancement of Science, American Geophysical Union, Associated Press, Association for Women Geoscientists, Atlanta Journal-Constitution, Cleveland Plain Dealer, Duluth News Tribune, Kansas Geological Survey, Library of Congress, Maryville Tennessee Daily Times, Minneapolis Star-Tribune, Minnesota Public Radio, National Academies, National Center for Science Education, National Science Teachers Association, Pioneer Press, Rocky Mountain News, Santa Fe New Mexican, WCCO-TV, The Dallas Morning News, The Austin American-Statesman, The Houston Chronicle.

Previous Action section includes material from AGI's Update on State Challenges to the Teaching of Evolution for the 106th Congress.

Contributed by David Applegate and Emily Lehr, AGI Government Affairs Program, 2003 AGI/AAPG Spring Semester Intern Charna Meth; 2003 AGI/AIPG Summer Intern Emily Scott; 2004 AGI/AAPG Spring Semester Intern Gayle Levy; and Bridget Martin, AGI/AIPG 2004 Summer Intern..

Please send any comments or requests for information to AGI Government Affairs Program.

Last updated on June 2, 2004

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