Wednesday, September 19, 2012

Science standards that are under development get high marks from Kansas state school board members for pushing hands-on instruction over textbook learning.

Even State Board of Education members worried that the standards will be too evolution-friendly said Wednesday that they like their general direction.

Kansas and 25 other states and the National Research Council are working on common science standards for public schools. A first draft was released in May and another is expected in November.

Kansas school board members get monthly updates on the work. The new standards are designed to push teachers to have students at all grade levels design and conduct their own investigations and experiments.

In the past, debates over how evolution should be taught have overshadowed work on science standards in Kansas.