Rebuking creationists and climate change deniers, Kentucky Board of Education approves new science standards

In a stark rebuke of creationists and climate change deniers this Thursday, the Kentucky Board of Education voted to approve new science standards that enforce the teaching of evolution and climate science in the state’s schools.

For a lengthy period, opponents of the standards fought hard against the recent rulings, calling them “fascist” and “atheistic,” and that they promoted a “socialistic” way of thinking that leads to “genocide” and “murder.” But the board rejected those characterizations and argued that the standards are essential in ensuring that Kentuckians can compete with the rest of the nation.

According to a report from WFPL, the Board addressed the controversy over evolution and said that there is nothing more to discuss since it is already included in the current set of science standards. In addition, the Board clarified that evolution is a “fundamental, unifying theory that underlies all life sciences,” and that there is no “significant ongoing debate within the scientific community” about its legitimacy. The Board also rejected appeals to include creationism as an “alternative” theory in the curriculum.

Board members also supported the idea of including climate change studies within the new standards.

The Board’s go-ahead of the standards must now be approved by the state’s Administrative Regulation Review Subcommittee and House and Senate education committees. There is still uncertainty as to whether the standards will meet further opposition.

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