Creationism Versus Darwinism in Public Schools
Creationism v. Darwinism (Evolution) in Public Schools
Raquel Cade
Walden University
October 4, 2010
Creationism v. Darwinism (Evolution) in Public Schools
Should evolution be taught in public schools? This question has raised intense discussions since the 1925 trial of Scopes v. The State of Tennessee. As Tungate (2006) stated “The Tennessee Supreme Court upheld the constitutionality of a law prohibiting the teaching of human evolution in a split decision despite noting it was not drafted with as much care as could have been drafted (para1). Teacher John Scopes’ misdemeanor conviction for teaching human evolution was later overturned on technical grounds, but teaching human evolution remained illegal in Tennessee until 1967” (para1). This trial is sometimes referred to as the scopes monkey trial.
Should the controversial question about “teaching evolution in public schools” be expanded to include; which theory should the public school teachers teach to their students about how humans came to be in existence, creationism or evolution? Numerous religious leaders, parents, and even some educators would like to have the creationism theory taught in public schools in place of the evolution theory or at best along side of evolution. Another question we need to consider, should religious matters be taught in public school? Statistics according to Lac, Hemovich, and Himelfarb (2010) showed that the “Gallup poll in 2005 found that although 63% of respondents felt it was acceptable to teach evolution, an even greater majority (76%) of this very same sample responded that they would not be upset if creationism were taught in schools”(p.253). This paper will examine both sides of the argument of creationism and evolution in public schools.
Religious views of Creationism and Darwinism in Public Schools
Almost since the time that public school education came to be in existence; religious leaders, parents, and society have been debating whether or not God has a
Raquel Cade
Walden University
October 4, 2010
Creationism v. Darwinism (Evolution) in Public Schools
Should evolution be taught in public schools? This question has raised intense discussions since the 1925 trial of Scopes v. The State of Tennessee. As Tungate (2006) stated “The Tennessee Supreme Court upheld the constitutionality of a law prohibiting the teaching of human evolution in a split decision despite noting it was not drafted with as much care as could have been drafted (para1). Teacher John Scopes’ misdemeanor conviction for teaching human evolution was later overturned on technical grounds, but teaching human evolution remained illegal in Tennessee until 1967” (para1). This trial is sometimes referred to as the scopes monkey trial.
Should the controversial question about “teaching evolution in public schools” be expanded to include; which theory should the public school teachers teach to their students about how humans came to be in existence, creationism or evolution? Numerous religious leaders, parents, and even some educators would like to have the creationism theory taught in public schools in place of the evolution theory or at best along side of evolution. Another question we need to consider, should religious matters be taught in public school? Statistics according to Lac, Hemovich, and Himelfarb (2010) showed that the “Gallup poll in 2005 found that although 63% of respondents felt it was acceptable to teach evolution, an even greater majority (76%) of this very same sample responded that they would not be upset if creationism were taught in schools”(p.253). This paper will examine both sides of the argument of creationism and evolution in public schools.
Religious views of Creationism and Darwinism in Public Schools
Almost since the time that public school education came to be in existence; religious leaders, parents, and society have been debating whether or not God has a
References: Antolin, M., & Herbers, J. (2001). Perspective: evolution 's struggle for existence in america 's public schools Armenta, T., & Lane, K. (2010). Tennessee to Texas: Tracing the Evolution Controversy in Public Education Lac, A., Hemovich, V., & Himelfarb, I. (2010). Predicting Position on Teaching Creationism (Instead of Evolution) in Public Schools Le Beau, B. (2007). Science and Religion: A Historical Perspective on the Conflict over Teaching Evolution in the Schools Logue, Melissa (2010) Biology Graduate from Old Dominion Univeristy Merriam-Webster, http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/creationism Stolberg, T. L. (2010) Teaching Darwinian Evolution: Learning from Religious Education, Science & Education, v19, 679-692 Tungate, M. (2006) Evolution Court Cases. http://www.tungate.com/evolution_court_cases.htm