Basically, what's happening is all political. Teaching the politically popular curriculum does not always benefit children, he points out. In some cases it can be detrimental. Science is learning about our world, and there are many advantages to learning how our world works. It makes us well-rounded.
Understanding enhances our quality of life and enjoyment of things.
And when you have a scientifically literate populace, people can make intelligent choices about things, such as how to take care of the planet. People who are ignorant about how the world works may not make intelligent decisions. And, of course, there is the issue of employment opportunities related to science, although I don't think the main purpose of teaching science is to help students get a job. Recently, when we were studying the inner workings of a snail, a student said, 'That's yucky. There will be a knee-jerk reaction to the fact that kids are not learning science when there is not a system in place to help them learn science.