Evolution Debate in Oklahoma (4/5/12) 
The Oklahoma State Senate will not take up H.B. 1551 after it passed in the State House of Representatives on March 15, 2012. The bill that would have encouraged teachers to present the “scientific strengths and weaknesses” of “controversial” topics was sent to the Senate Education Committee in the present legislative session but the Senate will not meet again before the deadline for house bills to be reported from their senate committees. Oklahomans for Excellence in Science Education (OESE) credited a “major response” against the bill by science societies and individual Oklahomans as the reason the Senate Education Committee did not hold a vote on it before the deadline. (4/5/12) On December 7th, Oklahoman's for Excellence in Science Education
(OESE) launched an organizational website providing information about
evolution education in the state of Oklahoma. The site is located
at http://www.biosurvey.ou.edu/oese
and contains a lot of information about teaching evolution, Oklahoma's
evolution debate and instructions on how to sign up for the Oklahoma
list serve. (12/8/04) The University of Central Oklahoma College of Math & Science
is sponsoring a lecture entitled "After The Scopes Trial: Creationism
versus Evolution Today." This is the last lecture in a six-week
film and discussion series exploring scientific themes of the 21st
Century and the ethics and issues surrounding them. The lecture takes
place on November 11th at the University of Central Oklahoma's Crittenden
Auditorium in Howell Hall. Professor Emeritus Dr. Victor H. Hutchison
of the University of Oklahoma will preside over the event. Also, The
PBS Film on "The Monkey Trial" will be shown with an update
of creationist movements today and audience discussion. For additional
information contact Beverly Endicott at University of central Oklahoma
at (405)-974-3496 or email BEndicott@ucok.edu.
(10/29/04)
On February 24th the Oklahoma House of Representatives passed a bill (HB 2194) that would require all textbooks that contain content on evolution to have a disclaimer that starts off by stating: "This textbook discusses evolution, a controversial theory which [sic] some scientists present as scientific explanation for the origin of living things such as plants and humans. No one was present when life first appeared on earth [sic]. Therefore, any statement about life's origins should be considered as theory, not fact." The bill was originally introduced on February 2nd to require textbook publishers to provide electronic files for the production of Braille versions of the textbooks according to U.S. Department of Education standards. The bill was amended on February 23rd, one day before the House voted on it, to contain the new section about the evolution disclaimer. In addition, HB 2194 contains language from SB 894, which allows
school districts to purchase textbooks not on the approved list of
the State Textbook Committee. SB 894 only allows for 20 percent of
state funds to go to alternate books, but HB 2194 does not have that
limitation. (2/26/04)
On May 12, 2003, Senate Bill 346, the Oklahoma Educator Protection Act, was finally put to rest for the session. After the State House of Representatives attached an amendment requiring a disclaimer in all public school science textbooks that discusses evolution, they quickly approved the bill and sent it back to the State Senate. After the Senate approved the amendment, a vote on the entire bill failed 23-17 because it lacked the 25 votes required for a simple majority of the entire 48 member Senate. Senator Scott Pruitt (R), author of the legislation, quickly moved for the vote to be reconsidered, which narrowly failed 24-20. (5/16/03)
In April 2003, an amendment was added to the House version of Senate Bill 346, the Oklahoma Educator Protection Act, which would require a disclaimer in all public school science textbooks mentioning evolution. The primary purpose of the bill is to extend protection to school districts and teachers against "meritless lawsuits." An article dissecting a previously attempted Oklahoma textbook disclaimer can be found on the National Center for Science Education web site. SB 346 now goes back to the Senate for further consideration. Similar efforts to include such a disclaimer as a stand-alone bill had failed. (5/5/03)
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 Wallace, AGI Government Affairs Program, 2003 AGI/AAPG Spring Semester Intern Charna Meth, 2003 AGI/AIPG Summer Intern Emily Scott and 2004 AGI/AAPG Spring Semester Intern Gayle Levy; David Millar 2004 AGI/AAPG Fall Semester Intern. Please send any comments or requests for information to AGI Geoscience Policy. Last updated on April 5, 2012 |
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