Dallas, USA - Science teachers are not allowed to teach creationism alongside evolution in Texas public schools, the courts have ruled. But that's exactly what the Dallas-based Institute for Creation Research wants them to do.
The institute is seeking state approval to grant an online master's degree in science education to prepare teachers to "understand the universe within the integrating framework of Biblical creationism," according to the school's mission statement.
Last week, an advisory council made up of university educators voted to recommend the program for approval by the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board, sparking an outcry among science advocates who have fended off attempts by religious groups to insert creationism into Texas classrooms.
"It's just the latest trick," said James Bower, a neurobiologist at the University of Texas at San Antonio who has publicly debated creationists. "They have no interest in teaching science. They are hostile to science and fundamentally have a religious objective."
Critics of evolution — the theory that life forms morphed slowly over time into their present forms — have ignited heated debates over the teaching of science in K-12 public schools.
The Institute for Creation Research, which recently moved to Dallas from Santee, Calif., says it teaches its graduate students "more typical secular perspectives" alongside creationism.
But students and faculty must profess faith in a literal translation of Biblical creation — that God created the world in six days and made humans and animals in their current life forms; that the Earth is only thousands of years old; and the fossil record is the result of a global flood described in the Bible, according to the Web site.
Careful consideration
The majority of the school's 54 students are teachers at private Christian schools or homeschoolers, but some are public school teachers looking to advance their careers or pass the Texas teacher licensing examination in science.
In a statement released Tuesday, institute officials said their goal is to turn out "scientifically literate graduates." They use current scientific literature, and professors have doctoral degrees from well-regarded universities, as noted by a team of experts who conducted a site visit in November.
Commissioner of Higher Education Raymund Paredes, who must study the degree application and give his opinion to the board next month, said he plans to treat the issue with care.
"Because this controversy is so potentially hot, we owe it to both sides to be absolutely fair in evaluating it," Paredes said. "Maybe the real issue here is to put this proposal in the right category. Maybe it's not a program in science education. Maybe it's a program in creation studies. Then we have to decide whether that is a legitimate field or not," Paredes said.
Seeking accreditation
Henry M. Morris, a Dallas native who taught hydraulic engineering at Virginia Tech University in Blacksburg, founded the Institute for Creation Research in 1970. He died last year. His son, John D. Morris, holds a doctorate in geological engineering and is president of the institute. Another son, Henry Morris III, sits on the board of trustees.
The institute has been offering master's degrees in California since 1981 and was accredited by the Transnational Association of Christian Colleges and Schools, an agency co-founded by the senior Morris.
In 1988, California's education department tried to revoke the school's ability to grant degrees. The institute sued and won.
In Texas, ICR plans to seek accreditation through the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools, a regional agency that accredits the University of Houston and all of the University of Texas campuses.
In November, a team of three independent experts visited the Dallas campus and issued a report calling the degree program "generally comparable to an initial master's degree in science education from one of the smaller, regional universities in the state."
The trio consisted of two scholars at Texas A&M University-Commerce, reference librarian David Rankin and educational leadership professor Lee "Rusty" Waller; and Gloria White, managing director of the Dana Research Center for Mathematics and Science Education at the University of Texas at Austin.
Waller declined to comment, and Rankin and White did not return calls for comment. The trio forwarded their report to the larger Certification Advisory Council, which approved the report Friday and sent it to Paredes.
According to the institute's Web site, the degree requires some standard classes such as educational psychology and instructional design. But course descriptions are peppered with references to Biblical creation. Bower, the UTSA scientist, balked at the mix of science and religion.
'A plausible program'
"The difference between science and religion is that in religion you already know the truth, and in science you are trying to discover the truth. If you believe you already know the truth, there is no role for science," Bower said.
The advisory team seemed comfortable with the combination.
"It is fair to say that the proposed master's degree in science education, while carrying an embedded component of creationist perspectives/views, is nevertheless a plausible program," they wrote in a report.