The Texas legislature is under pressure to correct errors on climate change in new textbooks the state is proposing to buy, with more than 24,000 residents signing a petition to the Texas Board of Education and publishing executives.
Last month, Valentine writes, the National Center for Science Education reported on “multiple misleading statements” in the books, including a passage in a sixth-grade geography text that claims scientists “do not agree” on the cause of climate change. With the largest public school system in the U.S., Texas often has an outsized influence on book publishers’ decisions across the country.
- Concise headlines. Original content. Timely news and views from a select group of opinion leaders. Special extras.
- Everything you need, nothing you don’t.
- The Weekender: The climate news you need.
“Teachers and school boards want textbooks that handle climate change accurately, and they are watching to see which publishers fix these errors,” said Josh Rosenau, the NCSE’s Programs and Policy Director. “These petitions show that parents, teachers, students, and voters across Texas will make sure the board doesn’t let these errors slip into their classrooms.”
