VOA慢速英语--气候变化怀疑论者质疑学校的科学课程

School Science Lessons Targeted by Climate Change Doubters

As climate change becomes more widely taught in American classrooms, some politicians are fighting for lessons to include information outside of usual scientific theories.

A lawmaker from Connecticut wants to remove climate change from state science lessons. A legislator in Virginia worries that teachers are passing on their opinions, not facts, on global warming to their students. And an Oklahoma state senator¹ wants educators to be able to put forward other differing ideas on climate change without fearing job loss.

Such efforts are becoming more and more common. The California-based nonprofit National Center for Science Education says more than 10 such bills have been proposed² so far this year. That is more than the organization usually sees in a full year. It says the bills threaten the quality of science education in America.

Many of the measures proposed so far in 2019 were designed by two advocacy groups: the Discovery Institute and the Heartland Institute.

David Bullard, a Republican³ state senator from Oklahoma, is a former high school teacher. He proposed a bill based on suggested legislation⁴ from the Discovery Institute. Science teachers objected, however, and the bill did not move forward.

Bullard told the Associated Press, “You have to present two sides of the argument and allow the kids to deliberate⁵.”

Scientists and science education organizations, however, reject the idea that there are “two sides” to the issue.

“You can’t talk about two sides when the other side doesn’t have a foot in reality,” said University of Illinois climate scientist Donald Wuebbles.

More than 90 percent of the peer⁶-reviewed studies and the scientists who write them say climate change is a human-caused problem.

An international group of Nobel-winning scientists has repeatedly⁷ published reports describing the science behind climate change. The scientists explain how the world is likely to pass a level of warming that an international agreement calls dangerous.

Last year, the U.S. government issued a detailed⁸ report saying that “climate-related threats to Americans’ physical, social and economic well-being⁹ are rising.”

Classroom teachings¹⁰ on global warming differ widely from state to state. However, climate change and the ways humans are changing the planet¹¹ are central subjects in the Next Generation Science Standards. Nineteen American states and the District of Columbia use the standards. Twenty-one other states use some of the materials.

Some people who reject widely accepted climate science have called the debate an issue of academic freedom.

James Taylor is with Heartland, a group that dismisses climate change. He said Heartland supports inclusive¹² classroom discussions¹³ on the issue.

In 2017, the group sent thousands of science teachers copies of a book called “Why Scientists Disagree About Global Warming.”

Now, Heartland is more directly targeting its message to students. It is planning to publish a guide this year that says arguments linking climate change to extreme weather events such as hurricanes and tornadoes¹⁴ are not correct.

Taylor said, “We’re very concerned the global warming propaganda¹⁵ efforts have encouraged students to not engage in research and critical thinking.”

The Discovery Institute has offered model legislation. It says teachers should be permitted to discuss the strengths and weaknesses of evidence connected to global warming as well as evolution. Some states have passed similarly¹⁶ written measures in the past, including Tennessee in 2012 and Louisiana in 2008.

In other states, Discovery has urged legislators to consider unofficial resolutions in support of giving teachers freedom to “show support for critical thinking” on dividing issues. Lawmakers in Alabama and Indiana passed such resolutions in 2017.

Discovery officials did not answer a request for comment from the Associated Press.

Florida state senator Dennis Baxley, a Republican, is supporting legislation that would permit schools to teach alternatives to disputed¹⁷ theories.

“There is really no established science on most things, you’ll find,” Baxley said.

Although many details about climate science are hotly debated among scientists, it is well established that global warming is real, human-caused and a problem, said scientist Chris Field. He is director of the Stanford Woods Institute for the Environment.

Field said, “When people say we ought to present two sides, they’re saying we ought to present a side that’s totally been disproven along with a side that has been fundamentally supported by the evidence.”

I'm Caty Weaver¹⁸.

And I'm Ashley Thompson.

Words in This Story

allow - v. to permit

deliberate - v. done or said in a way that is planned or intended : done or said on purpose

peer review - n. a process by which a scholarly work (such as a paper or a research proposal) is checked by a group of experts in the same field to make sure it meets the necessary standards before it is published or accepted

academic - adj. of or relating to schools and education

engage in - phrasal verb. to do (something)

encourage - v. to make (someone) more likely to do something

evolution - n. a theory that the differences between modern plants and animals are because of changes that happened by a natural process over a very long time

fundamentally - adv. at the most basic level

alternative - n. not usual or traditional

1 senator   

n.参议员，评议员

参考例句：

• The senator urged against the adoption of the measure.那参议员极力反对采取这项措施。
• The senator's speech hit at government spending.参议员的讲话批评了政府的开支。

2 proposed   

被提议的

参考例句：

• There is widespread discontent among the staff at the proposed changes to pay and conditions. 员工对改变工资和工作环境的建议普遍不满。
• an outcry over the proposed change 对拟议的改革所发出的强烈抗议

3 republican   

n.拥护共和政体的人； adj.共和政体的，（Republican）共和党人，（Republican）共和党的

参考例句：

• Some families have been republican for generations.有些家庭世代都支持共和党。
• A third candidate has entered the contest for the Republican nomination.第三个候选人已经加入角逐共和党提名的行列。

4 legislation   

n.立法，法律的制定；法规，法律

参考例句：

• They began to draft legislation.他们开始起草法规。
• The liberals band together against the new legislation.自由党员联合一致反对新的立法。

5 deliberate   

adj.故意的，深思熟虑的；v.仔细考虑

参考例句：

• You should deliberate over the question before you respond to it.回答问题之前你应该慎重考虑。
• His actions were clearly the result of deliberate calculation.他的行动显然是精心策划过的。

6 peer   

n.同辈，同等地位的人，伙伴，贵族；vi.仔细看，费力地看

参考例句：

• Children are easily influenced by their peer.孩子很容易受同辈影响。
• He is a peer.他是一个贵族。

7 repeatedly   

adv.重复地，再三地

参考例句：

• The loudspeakers blared the speech repeatedly.扬声器里反复大声地播送那篇演讲。
• He repeatedly beat his foot upon the floor.他反复用脚敲着地板。

8 detailed   

adj.详细的，详尽的，极注意细节的，完全的

参考例句：

• He had made a detailed study of the terrain.他对地形作了缜密的研究。
• A detailed list of our publications is available on request.我们的出版物有一份详细的目录备索。

9 well-being   

n.安康，安乐，幸福

参考例句：

• He always has the well-being of the masses at heart.他总是把群众的疾苦挂在心上。
• My concern for their well-being was misunderstood as interference.我关心他们的幸福，却被误解为多管闲事。

10 teachings   

n.教学( teaching的名词复数 )；教学工作；教诲；学说

参考例句：

• We must never be unworthy of our teachers' untiring and sincere teachings. 我们决不要辜负老师的谆谆教导。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
• The Party's teachings were ringing in her ears. 党的教导在她耳边回响。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

11 planet   

n.行星

参考例句：

• Neptune is the furthest planet from the sun. 海王星是离太阳最远的行星。
• Rubbish, however, is only part of the problem of polluting our planet. 然而, 垃圾只是我们这个星球的污染问题的一个方面。

12 inclusive   

adj.(of)包括的，包含的；范围广的

参考例句：

• The bill is inclusive of the food and lodging.账单包括吃、住费用。
• It's an all inclusive price;there is nothing extra to pay.这是一个包罗一切的价格，不需再额外付款了。

13 discussions   

n.讨论( discussion的名词复数 )；商讨；详述；论述

参考例句：

• Discussions are held on an informal basis within the department. 讨论限于在本部门内非正式地进行。
• Her specialist input to the discussions has been very useful. 她在这些讨论中提供的专家建议很有助益。

14 tornadoes   

n.龙卷风，旋风( tornado的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Tornadoes, severe earthquakes, and plagues create wide spread havoc. 龙卷风、大地震和瘟疫成普遍的毁坏。 来自互联网
• Meteorologists are at odds over the working of tornadoes. 气象学者对龙卷风的运动方式看法不一。 来自互联网

15 propaganda   

n.宣传，宣传机构

参考例句：

• A lot of propaganda has painted him as bad.大量宣传把他说得很坏。
• Art may be used as a vehicle for propaganda.艺术可以用作为宣传的媒介。

16 similarly   

adv.类似地，相似地

参考例句：

• He was late and I similarly was delayed.他迟到了，我也晚了。
• These two pages are similarly glued together.这两页好像粘在一起了。

17 disputed   

v.辩论，争论( dispute的过去式和过去分词 )；争夺；阻止；就…进行辩论adj.有争议的

参考例句：

• They disputed over how to get the best results. 他们争论着如何能得到最好的结果。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The soldiers disputed every inch of ground when the enemy attacked. 敌人进犯，战士们寸土必争。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》

18 weaver   

n.织布工；编织者

参考例句：

• She was a fast weaver and the cloth was very good.她织布织得很快，而且布的质量很好。
• The eager weaver did not notice my confusion.热心的纺织工人没有注意到我的狼狈相。