October 10, 2006

LANSING - The State Board of Education approved today content expectations for the new high school graduation requirements in Science that will set a standard for what is taught throughout the state.

“Now, whether a student goes to school in Marquette or Monroe, they will be expected to be taught and learn the same concepts in Biology, Physics, Chemistry, and Earth Sciences,” said State Board of Education President Kathleen N. Straus.

“These statewide expectations are important as we want all students in Michigan to receive a high quality education,” Straus said.

In approving the Science content expectations, the State Board also solidified its strong support for Evolution.

After the State Board heard public testimony from a number of state and national science educators who explained that the use of the word “may” in two specific content expectations would cast doubt on the validity of Theory of Evolution, Straus moved to strike the word “may” from those two instances. The motion was unanimously approved by the State Board.

“We do not want to create any uncertainty in the Board’s support of Evolution,” said State Board of Education Vice President John C. Austin. “We need to send a clear statement that there is no ambiguity on the part of the Board that Evolution is good science.”

“Science supports Evolution in the way it’s set forth in the content expectations before us,” said State Board member Reginald Turner. “The word ‘may’ clouds the science of Evolution after decades of scientific evidence, and is inconsistent with what we know about Evolution today.”

The State Board approved the new standards after considering a number of recommendations from the state Legislature. State law allows the Legislature to review the content expectations and make recommendations to the State Board.

The Board concurred with two of the three recommendations offered by the Education Committee of the House of Representatives: to include language that encourages critical thinking by students; and to affirm that the Science content expectations are aligned with national standards.

The content expectations approved today cover Biology, Chemistry, Physics, and Earth Science. The common thread through all the disciplines is to create scientific thinkers, noted State Superintendent of Public Instruction Mike Flanagan.

“This is why the first standard in all four disciplines is a common listing of Inquiry and Reflection/Societal Implications expectations,” said Flanagan.

“Science instruction should not be so static that our students can’t learn the latest discoveries in science as we continue to learn more about the world around us,” said State Board member Eileen Lappin Weiser. “We want Science to be taught in a way that will excite and inspire Michigan students to go into scientific fields.”

The approval of these content expectations will help school districts in Michigan begin designing their curriculums to align with the rigorous state high school graduation requirements signed into law in April.

Earlier this year, the State Board of Education approved the high school content expectations for Math and English language arts. Content expectations for Social Studies and World Languages are expected to be ready for approval in 2007.

These high school content expectations underwent a strenuous review process by local educators and professional organizations, which measured them against national high school curriculum standards and course content that is assessed on large-scale national tests.

In Other Action: The State Board of Education also approved the guidelines for the new on-line experience high school graduation requirement.

This groundbreaking high school graduation requirement is the first of its kind in the nation. It calls for a structured learning activity that utilizes technology with Intranet/Internet-based tools and resources as the delivery method for instruction, research, assessment, and communication.

Completing a meaningful on-line learning experience in grades 6-12 with a specific emphasis at the high school level will allow students to become familiar with a key means of increasing their own learning skills and knowledge.

It also will prepare them for the demands that they will encounter in higher education, the workplace, and in personal life-long learning.

“This is the way the world learns now,” said State Board member Nancy Danhof. “This is the way the world works now, too.”

The on-line learning experience guidelines allow students to meet the graduation requirement with either an approved not-for-credit program, or take a for-credit on-line course that can satisfy other requirements of the Michigan Merit Curriculum.

And the State Board unanimously approved a Resolution supporting a proposed Merit Award program that is being discussed between Governor Jennifer M. Granholm and the state Legislature that would change the current Merit Award program.

The plan is to reward students for completion of some post-secondary education. Granholm had proposed a plan earlier this year and the Legislature currently is considering her plan with some possible adjustments.

“We need to strengthen our culture of education to have students achieve beyond high school,” Turner said. “This is one means to think about life-long learning that provides really meaningful incentives to post-secondary education.”