New Louisiana Guidelines Implement Science Education Act

A committee of Louisiana's Board of Elementary and Secondary Education (BESE) yesterday voted 10-0 to adopt new science guidelines, according to KATC News. The guidelines implement the Louisiana Science Education Act passed last June. The statute allows teachers to use supplemental materials, so long as they do not promote or discriminate against religion. (See prior posting.) The new BESE guidelines do not contain a specific ban on teaching creationism or intelligent design. However they do bar supplemental materials used by teachers from promoting of any religious doctrine and require that the information be "scientifically sound and supported by empirical evidence." Approval of the guidelines by the full Board is a foregone conclusion since the committee's unanimous vote included ten of BESE's eleven members.