Writing for Scientific American's Observations blog (September 27, 2019), NCSE's deputy director Glenn Branch reviewed the spate of legislative measures in 2019 that threatened the integrity of science education.
In his column, "Science Education Is Under Legislative Attack," Branch observed that these measures would "frustrate the purpose of public science education," adding, "Students deserve to learn about scientific topics in accordance with the understanding of the scientific community. With the level of acceptance of evolution among biomedical scientists at 99 percent, and the level of acceptance of climate change among climate scientists not far behind at 97 percent, it is a disservice to students to misrepresent these theoretically and practically important topics as scientifically controversial."
Legislators are responsible for supporting rather than thwarting science education, Branch concluded: "It is up to us, their constituents, to ensure that they do — and to reproach them when they introduce their half-baked ideas to the contrary."
