Valentine Pontifex

I once knew someone with a master's degree who did not know how to calculate the area of a rectangle.

(Okay, the masters was not a science masters. But still....)

j-ogenes

Would that be, add all the sides? MFA, creative writing. Haven't
had a math class in 11 years, and I learned rectangles in 82.

Worldtraveller

Doh!!! :banghead:

Makes me want to go into real estate and start selling you 2000 sq. ft. closets.... hehehe

But if it's any consolation, I graduated (BS in Aerospace Engineering) with a guy that could barely put a sentence together on paper. :banghead: I remember asking how he thought he was going to do in the 'real world' and his reply:" I'm an engineer, I won't have to write." :banghead:

I pity the poor fool who has to read/edit his reports.

Lane

openeyes

Hey fellow Minnesotans: I received excerpts from a letter from the National Center for Science Education within an email from an atheist acquaintance who wanted me to apply for the citizens committee to decide on the science curriculum for Minnesota public schools. I applied, but don't think I'll have much a chance. I think some of you should also try--we can't let the YEC's dominate.

"The State of Minnesota is in the process of setting new standards for the
teaching of science courses in all public schools. During the next
legislative session, the Dept. of Education will conduct a program
beginning with a citizens' panel that will produce an exploratory document
setting the new standards. Any citizen wishing to serve on this panel can
apply beginning June 16 through the department's web site at
http://www.education.state.mn.us/

"Supporters of quality science education in Minnesota have two reasons to
be concerned. First, the Republican Party platform contains the following
language: '. . . we support . . . Protecting educators from persecution for
teaching Creation Science.' Second, the Commissioner of Education, Dr.
Cheri Pierson Yecke, commented in a radio interview on Minnesota Public
Radio, June 9, 2003, that she believes 'every local district should have
the freedom to teach creationism if that is what they choose.' This is
consistent with her past association with Phyllis Schlafly and her Eagle
Forum organization, which has been at the forefront of efforts to have
disclaimers stating evolution to be 'only a theory' in biology textbooks in
several states."

Godless Dave

*Ahem*

Calling pz. Please? Our state needs you.

missus_gumby

This gentleman reckons that a third of all Americans are infected with the 6000-year-old virus. Mind you, he doesn't reveal his sources.

Martin

Postcard73

Wow! My first Infidels post...

I have several things to mention in this thread:

1) If the term "American" is insulting to people who live in the Americas but don't live in the USA, then I'll gladly start calling myself a "Statesnik."

2) In Virginia, you need a bachelors degree to teach a subject in high school. You don't need as much training in a subject to teach in middle school.

3) My 9th grade (about 1987) Earth science teacher gave examples in the fossil record to show why evolution was such an obviously correct theory. Also, Roanoke had experienced a terrible flood in 1985, and my teacher did some simple math to show how hard it would have to rain in 40 days to cover Mt. Everest and deposit fossils 29,000 feet above sea level. I seriously doubt that I'm the only person who found this convincing. Bad teachers may suck, but good teachers rule...

4) I think a lot of Statesniks don't care about the truth, be it evolution or creation or anything else. I really get the idea that if it isn't going to help them make money, then why should they waste time thinking about it. The people who do care don't think about it either- they go to church. I constantly try to talk with people about evolution. Here in Roanoke, I don't even get the common arguments to "dispute" evolution. About 90% of the time, I get completely oblivious ignorance, usually presaged with the statement, "I don't believe we came from monkey's"

Scott

Roland98

Last summer, I taught a vert. zoology course at a local college. About half the students were bio majors; the other half were ed. majors who had to take it as a requirement. I had 2 flaming YECs in the class (out of 11 students)--both were in there for the education requirement. Everytime I mentioned "evolution" or anything of the like, they'd roll their eyes (and in a vertebrate zoology course, you can imagine how many times that kind of terminology came up). They learned enough to pass the class, but I shudder to think they might be somewhere, referring to evolution as an "unprovable theory" and worshipping at the temple of AIG.

Kimpatsu

So Roland, when these YECs passed the course, does that mean they were writing answers in which they don't believe on the exam paper? Sounds wacky to me...

Roland98

Precisely. I could test them on the facts, but I couldn't make them write what they actually thought. Plus, although a fair amount of the test were, "explain how X evolved from Y ancestor," there were also many questions just on basic A & P, general concepts, etc. that would be accepted by YECs as well.

But no, they certainly didn't take the moral high ground and answer the questions according to their beliefs. Not surprisingly, neither did very well on questions about which they actually had to apply evolutionary principles to arrive at an answer.