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AN EVOLVING DEBATE
Can Evolution and Creationism Coexist in the Science Classroom? May 8, 1998 |
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Questions asked
in this forum:
Why is the faith of one group given prominence over the other? Can science and religion coexist in people's minds? How does teaching creation or evolution help people? Why should a high school science class be burdened with teaching creationism? Which version of creation should be taught, if any? What academic credentials would qualify one to teach an unbiased Evolution vs. Creationism class in public school? Additional Comments... 
Additional Comments:
Carolyn Meehan of Albuquerque, NM:
Since we have separation of church and state in this country let's keep creationism out of the public school classroom since it is a religious issue.
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Andrew Mannion of Melbourne, Australia:
It's a pity that indeed this debate has become just that a debate between two apparent opposing sides - or creationists vs. naturalists.
It's obvious that creationists have other motives than simply 'equal time' for their ideas in science classrooms. As a science teacher it seems outrageous to me that creationism could even be considered an alternative to evolution.
Not that evolution doesn't have problems - but that's the whole point. It's subject to question and criticism. We can argue about different aspects of a scientific theory. We can force it to undergo scrutiny in tests and experiments.
No such scrutiny is allowed for creationism - it's 'the word of God'. That's fine - if you're teaching about religion.
Unacceptable for science.
Australia has until recently kept itself out of these debates which seemed to stem from fundamentalists in the southern U.S. states. Just those crazy Americans again.
Please, America, work towards ending this. We do what we can here, but it must be the educators, and scientists, and rational theologians, and any concerned citizens in the U.S. who play their part.
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Claudia McFadden of Springfield, IL:
I'm a very moderate Republican who attends a fundamentalist Christian church. I believe that creationism and evolution can co-exist. I truly believe that God created the heavens and the earth, as written in the Book of Genesis, but I don't think we can interpret God's 7 days to be the equivalent of 7 of our 24-hour days. I also believe that God has allowed the various species of animals, plants, etc. to evolve over time.
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James Hatfield of New Carlisle, OH:
"In the beginning, God, created the heavens and the earth."
End of discussion.
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Kwesi Sekou Odinga Troutman of Detroit, MI:
In my opinion, evolution and creationism should be taught in a course concurrently. By teaching them in this manner the students' can illuminate and understand both points of view.
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Guy Edwards of Portland, OR:
Why can't evolution be taught as a process instead of a means for discovering origins. A fine example is the peppered moth in Europe. When factories began to leave soot on trees and buildings while the lighter ones were picked off by predators the mutated darker moths were naturally selected to dominate the species. They were better camoufloged against the soot and were able to live longer and pass on their genes. This was a scientific observable, documented fact. Science has no role in the philosophical questions it may raise, that is for poets and artist. Science is a series of planned, controlled observations. Nothing more, it is a great tool to understand what we are capable of comprehending, not what we wish to comprehend. The scientific process is just that a process, not a philosophy, myth or religeon. You can teach evolution without going into depth about the first man, therefor you dont have to give equal time to creationism. If philosophical questions don't belong in the teaching of science, neither does creationism.
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Mike DiMuzio of Youngstown, OH:
Evolution is the only verifiable theory that explains how and why all the diversity of life that exists on Earth right now. Creationism is not a valid theory since it can not be disproven: it is only a statement of belief which cannot be proven like evolution.
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Michael Mays of Boise, ID:
Evolution is commonly acknowledged to be a theory, with many questions which remain unanswered, as conceded by some of the world's foremost evolutionary proponents. Why teach this theory then in deference to any other theory of man's origin?
Examination of the evidence against the theory of evolution is considered to be academic "heresy" in nearly all institutions of higher learning. Students are expected to blindly accept the tenets of evolutionary teaching.
If evolution is true then why are there no intermediary forms found in fossils showing transition from lower to higher forms of life? Nowhere on earth is there evidence of such evolution currently taking place, and certainly not from one species to another. But in fact this is exactly what evolution teaches and expects one to unquestioningly believe.
Evolutionary teaching presupposes the age of the earth to be billions of years, but there is scientific evidence the age of the earth is not billions of years old, as Darwin's theory requires. The evolutionists pass over such topics lightly, expecting the unwary to just have "faith" in their teachings.
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Dan Richards of Yuma, AZ:
I have been in the academic arena for many years. Being taught, my children being taught(K-16), my wife with a Masters in Education, and my wife teaching elementary school. I firmly believe that Evolution is a theory and should be taught as such. It must be balanced, at the same time and place setting(classroom), with the other views that exist. I was taught in high school about 8 different world/religious views on the subject. The teacher did it with great balance and respect for peoples views. So, I know it can be done.
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Nora Shaughnessy of Saugus, MA:
Teaching creationism as fact and not theory or opinion is contrary to the study and disemination of science, which is based on provable fact and/or reasoned hypotheses.
I agree that creationism should be available to students whose religious background requires such beliefs, but this leaves out nearly any religion not based on the Western ones most familiar to us.
Creationism does not belong in a science classroom, any more than the teaching of racial or ethnic superiority/inferiority.
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Stuart Greene of Roanoke, VA:
I believe there is no place in schools for the teaching of creation as it pertains to religion. Creation is purely based on myth and has no scientific basis what so ever.
I do believe that the teaching of creation is a subversive way of teaching or brainwashing children to accept the doctrine of Christ as it is taught today by modern Christians.
Let's keep religion in church and out of schools.
Children should be taught reality and not fantasy; No more than we would teach science fiction as fact.
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Corey Bruce of Roy, UT:
Of course evolution should not be taught as scientific fact. It should be presented as the theory that it is. It has not yet been proven any more than "creationism" has been disproven. Certainly, though, saying such would bring a person such as myself under fire by the scientific community. Cases such as Darwin's Finches and others show that animals posses the ability to change and adapt to different environments. This, adaptability, should be taught as fact. Evolution as a source of all life, however, has not been proven, as much as many scientists wish it could be, and thus should not be presented as fact. As educators, we should not lie to our students, presenting theory for fact.
I also believe that so far a s creationism is involved, it should be taught in the home, by the parents or religious leaders, being based on Bible writings.
So, in my opinion, evolution should be taught in science classes as a theory, not scientific fact, and creationism should be taught by those most expert on the subject, the religion teachers and/or leaders.
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Fr. Pat Mullen of Berkeley CA:
This Catholic priest, currently working on his dissertation in Biblical Studies at the Graduate Theological Union in Berkeley, doesn't see any tension between believing in an evolutionary process or the belief in an all powerful God.
They are not mutually exclusive ideas, and the former doesn't in any way mitigate against the latter.
If the fundamentalists could only let go of the need to make the Bible into a history text (a purpose that would have utterly mistified its original authors) we could all relax.
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Paul Singer of Washington DC:
Despite the power of the theory of evolution as an explanation of how life forms adapt and change, it can say virtually nothing definitive about the creation of life, and some scientists have raised questions about whether evolution alone can explain the complexity of biochemical systems in the body. Shouldn't we tell students about these limitations as well, when teaching about evolution?
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Larry Tonzi of Houlton, ME:
Can the two ideas exist together in the science classroom? Creationism is a spiritual concept and evolution is a scientific concept. It would and is folly to think that the two belong in the same classroom.
Creationism should be talk in the Sunday school classroom because by its nature it is a Spiritual concept and is best served there. Science has supported the concept of the evolution of man in God's world. Christianity is constantly being discovered and rediscovered since the first followers of Jesus in a manner that is guided by the Holy Spirit. To try to put these two concepts together is not only Spiritually uncorrect it is scientifically incorrect.
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