Saturday, February 16, 2008

Mandating Global Warming Instruction In California's Classrooms

As the evidence continues to mount that solar activity is the driver of "climate change" here on earth, and not man's activity, a dim bulb in the California legislature wants to mandate that climate change "be among the science topics that all California public school students are taught."

"You can't have a science curriculum that is relevant and current if it doesn't deal with the science behind climate change," (State Senator) Simitian said. "This is a phenomenon of global importance and our kids ought to understand the science behind that phenomenon."


Others disagree.

Some say the science on global warming isn't clear, while others worry the bill would inject environmental propaganda into classrooms.

"I find it disturbing that this mandate to teach this theory is not accompanied by a requirement that the discussion be science-based and include a critical analysis of all sides of the subject," said Sen. Tom McClintock, R-Thousand Oaks, during the Senate debate.

Mandating propaganda is a bad idea. A science teacher at my school once showed Gore's movie in class and then said, "Now you have the facts. You can choose to believe them, or not." I can't see any good coming from this bill.

6 comments:

KauaiMark said...

"I can't see any good coming from this bill."

Neither can I

Anonymous said...

Actually, I would be fine if Al Gores movie was shown and then the class read "The Cooling", a 1970s book on global cooling. This, I think, would teach a valuable lesson. I don't think it is the lesson that the people pushing this want to teach, though ....

-Mark Roulo

Anonymous said...

I can't see any good coming from the bill because if California is anything like Boulder (CO), and I suspect it is, most of the teachers (Darren excluded!) are already brainwashing their students regarding global warming.

Around here global warming is all Man's fault, and to suggest differently makes you lower than the lowest life form on the planet (and probably the solar system).

On a slightly more serious vein, the problem is if California requires global warming to be taught in their science textbooks, it will propagate through the whole US educational system in a few years.

Chris A

Dan Pangburn said...

There is all this talk about the rise in carbon dioxide level causing global warming. To conclude this, one must ignore that the planet plunged in to the Andean-Saharan ice age 440 million years ago when the atmospheric carbon dioxide level was over ten times what it is now.

Ellen K said...

All it takes is having a scientist who thinks Global Warming is theoretical to push a lawsuit, perhaps through the ACLU. Hey they did it with every issue from creationism to sex ed so why not this? Plus, this has been successful in mandating a disclaimer be read before Gore's movie due to deliberate misinformation passed along as fact.BTW, how come people believe in Global Warming when this is the same guy who claimed that he invented the Internet?

Dr Pezz said...

He never said that.

It's like claiming Bush said "Strategery" when it was actually Will Ferrell on SNL. People aught onto a spinned talking point and ran with it.

I absolutely abhor legislators who try to mandate what specific units of curriculum is taught in schools. I hope this fails miserably.