CREATIONISM IN TEXAS' 2009 EARTH AND SPACE SCIENCE STANDARDS

In March 2009, the Texas State Board of Education adopted new K-12 science standards and approved a new Earth and Space Science (ESS) course. Although the ESS course was crafted by an expert writing team and mandated robust earth science instruction, a series of amendments by creationist board members weakened these standards and inserted alleged scientific controversies. The specific age of the universe was deleted, while supposed problems with the fossil record and global warming were added. These actions opened the door for creationist teachers to bring non-scientific ideas into the science classroom. Because Texas is one of the nation’s largest purchasers of K-12 textbooks, these flawed standards will also have a major influence on national textbook content, and therefore on science education throughout the country.