Evolution Debate in New Mexico (9/26/03) 
On August 28, 2003, the New Mexico State Board of Education unanimously adopted science education standards that were developed through an inclusive process and were strongly endorsed by scientific and educational organizations. The 13-0 vote defeated a campaign by proponents of Intelligent Design creationism to insert alternate language into the standards that weakened the treatment of evolution. The previous day, the board's Instructional Services Committee passed the standards by a 4-2 vote. Numerous organizations sent letters to the board urging support of the draft standards, including the American Institute of Physics, the National Science Teachers Association and the American Geological Institute. (9/11/03) Science education standards have been a hot topic in New Mexico since
1997, when the state Board of Education adopted standards that downplayed
biological evolution. According to Marshall Berman, a former nuclear
physicist at Sandia National Laboratories who led the scientific community
in a counteroffensive, "They removed all references to the age
of the Earth. They removed almost all references to evolution."
In 1998 Berman was elected to the Board. Shortly after, the Board
adopted a new set of standards that restored evolution's place in
the public schools. More than a year ago, the New Mexico Department
of Education organized writing teams to revise the state's science
standards for public schools. Once instituted, the standards will
guide science teachers in public schools statewide by creating annual
performance requirements for students as they graduate from kindergarten
all the way through high school. The final draft, which went out for
public comment in July, endorses biological evolution as a pillar
of scientific knowledge. This draft has been highly praised for the
content of the standards as well as the way in which they were formed.
The process was inclusive, allowing proponents of "intelligent
design" to contribute and critique, while at the same time maintaining
its firm entrenchment in peer-reviewed science. 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, 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, and 2003 AGI/AIPG Summer Intern Emily Scott. Please send any comments or requests for information to AGI Government Affairs Program. Last updated on September 26, 2003 |
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