The Grantsburg School Board has revised its science curriculum to allow the teaching of creationism in their high school biology classrooms, leading to an outcry from more than 300 educators who urged the decision to be reversed.

School board members believed that a state law governing the teaching of evolution was too restrictive.

Joni Burgin, superintendent of a district of 1,000 students in northwest Wisconsin said the science curriculum “should not be totally inclusive of one scientific theory.”

Last month, the board reviewed the current science curriculum; language was added calling for “various models/theories” of origin to be incorporated.

Since that time, the decision provoked more than 300 biology and religious studies faculty members to voice their opinion about the issue and urge the Grantsburg school board to reverse the policy.

Their outcry was preceded by 43 letters from deans at Wisconsin public universities.

The new policy has provoked class discussions at UW-Eau Claire as well.

Sophomore Joe Kaminski, a biology major, said the topic was discussed in his Animal Form and Function course.

Kaminski participated in the class discussion and said it was only discussed briefly due to the emotions behind the decision.

The discussion centered on whether evolution and creationism should be taught separately, or together.

Kaminski said many people in his class were not affected by the decision.

“I just take both for what they are,” he said.

Whether they are taught together or separately does not bother Kaminski, he said.

Biology professor Wilson Taylor, who teaches an upper-level evolution course every spring, says his class discusses the topic of creationism for a week or two during the semester.

However, his lectures focus on the most scientific aspect of the topic because Taylor is “dead set against” adding creationism to the curriculum.

“This is not a viable alternative to theory additions,” he said. “Science is based on earth-found material data.”

Taylor said he feels the Bible is a source of truth, but should be kept separate from the curriculum because it is not science.

Wisconsin law mandates that evolution be taught, but school districts are free to create their own curricular standards.

This means local communities have the right to decide what is taught and what isn’t taught.

Taylor said this could create confusion when students reach college-level courses.

“This revision is giving a movement to science and a movement to how the topic should be taught,” he said. “People will be misinformed in that regard.”

– The Associated Press
contributed to this report.