Science Curriculum Approved for State

Feb. 11–Amid protest and praise, the State Board of Education approved a revised science curriculum for Alabama schools with little mention of evolution at its monthly board meeting Thursday morning.

Wayne Ray, superintendent of Russellville City Schools and chairman of the science curriculum committee, said he was pleased with efforts of his committee and the board’s approval.

“I present to you a document that is developmentally sound, accurate in content, and, when mastered by students, promotes scientific literacy,” Ray told the state board.

Despite the committee’s efforts, though, opponents like John Schweinsberg, a Huntsville resident, said the curriculum is missing a key science theory — evolution.

“I believe (evolution was) left out for religious reasons,” said Schweinsberg, who said he holds a master’s degree in science.

“Evolution is the basis of modern principles of biology. It’s just as basic to biology as the periodic table is to chemistry. Teaching biology without evolution is like teaching chemistry without the periodic table.”

Evolution is Darwin’s theory on the origin of the human race through the progression of time.

Schweinsberg said he compared the 2005 science curriculum to previous years and he said it only mentions evolution once, whereas in other years, it was mentioned throughout the curriculum.

“In Alabama and the Bible Belt, there’s a lot of religious sensitivity on this issue,” Schweinsberg said. “I think basically it’s easiest to avoid it rather than confront it. The school cannot require someone to believe something that goes against their religious beliefs, but they should at least know (about evolution).

They still have the right to reject science for religious reasons.”

On the other hand, school officials spoke in favor of the revised curriculum. Terri Bowman, president-elect of the Alabama Science Teachers Association, praised the majority of the curriculum — the only exception stemmed from the sixth- through eighth- grades. That curriculum, she said, has some middle school teachers concerned that it may reduce the participation of women and minority students in the sciences.

“Change is like learning, it’s painful sometimes,” Ray said. “The decision of the committee was studied long and hard — it’s the right decision. I think it’s going to be better for students of Alabama.”

Ray said the committee’s challenge was to help Alabama students achieve scientific literacy.

Jim Methvin, a member of the prior two science curriculum committees and 2002 state science textbook committee, supported the curriculum changes. He said much of the curriculum in reference to evolution remained the same.

“Wording in content standards for evolution is just about all the same wording used in content standards from the 1994 and 2001 course of study,” said Methvin, a Homewood resident. “(The revised curriculum) does address its goals of scientific literacy and critical thinking skills.”

As far as classroom application of the new curriculum, Tamzen Williams, a science teacher at Sidney Lanier High School in Montgomery, said time — not evolution — will present a challenge to implementing the new curriculum. She favors longer class periods.

“The only negative aspect that would affect the new curriculum is the traditional schedule,” said Williams, who teaches human anatomy, college preparatory and general chemistry, and biology. “It needs to go back to block schedule. It benefits all science classes.”

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