Creationism vs. Evolutionism

Should Evolution be taught in high schools? Honostly yes, it should school is a place for learning not a place of religion. No one makes you believe what you hear in school. If you choose not to believe in evolutionism that is your choice, but it is not your right to take the education that others might believe in away from them. If you find that creationism suits your tastes more than go to church. Each branch has their designated place in society and each those that believe in them. Who is really to decide what our children are taught, i believe that it is up to the individual teachers. If they choose not to teach evolution that is their choice, if they do they should still remain that liberty. If Sandra truelly believes in evolution she should teach it and if she gets fired because of it she could sue for discrimination of beliefs. It is the same as if a Muslim was fired because he or she wasnt christian. An article i read said "A teacher was fired simply for acting in ways that the Catholic Church does not approve of. It had absolutely nothing to do with her teaching ability, which was never mentioned" ("8 Infuriatingly", N.D).

"Evolutionism, by broad definition, is the idea that this universe is the result of random cosmic accidents. Life arose spontaneously via chance chemical processes, and all life-forms are related and share a common ancestor - from bananas to birds, from fishes to flowers, apes to Adam, etc" ("Evolutionism", N.D). Another fact of the matter is you notice no wars are faught on the basis of evolution, but hundreds of people die almost every day because of a difference of opinions. "809 million people have died in religious wars. That’s nearly a billion people. Where some 62 million died during World War II, civilian and military, on all sides" ("Deaths Over History", N.D.). If she truely has three options they are teach it anyway, teach but take out the evolution and deny her own rights to her beliefs, or quit in protest. They are not great options but theyre all she has. I do not condone either side as right or wrong just a matter of beliefs. I would not vote either way other than to uphold every teachers right to teach what they see fit. If i was a textbook company to avoid any controversy i would either include neither and let the teacher decide what to do and make the materials themselves or include both and still LET THE TEACHERS CHOOSE. Parents do have the right to influence their beliefs but then again isnt that what teachers are paid to do. If the parents dont agree with what the teacher is doing dont wine and complain about it, and maybe cost a hardworking person who did nothing but what they are paid to do their jobs, and just take your children to church and tell them that this is what you believe and let them make the choice.



All About Philosophy.com. Retrieved 1/24/13, from http://www.allaboutphilosophy.org/evolutionism.htm

Bookrate.com. (July 22, 2006). Retrieved 1/24/13, from http://www.bookrateblog.com/2006/07/22/deaths-over-history-religious-vs-nonreligous/

Degree Scout.com. Retrieved 1/24/13, from http://www.degreescout.com/education-degrees/8-infuriatingly-outrageous-teacher-firings#comments

Matt, you made some good arguments in your post. To go along with what you said about education (first 2 lines of the first paragraph), students are expected to learn and understand the theories, processes, etc. of the curricula, not compelled to agree or believe its contents. Teaching opposing theories allows students to implement logical and critical thinking to establish their own system of beliefs and opinions. One thing to consider regarding educators including creation in their class curriculum is the following statement by Dr. Henry Morris, founding of the Institute for Creation Research: "The only effective way to get creationism taught properly is to have it taught by teachers who are both willing to do it and adequately prepared to do it. Since most teachers now are neither willing nor able, they must first be persuaded and instructed themselves" (Morris, 1975). Having a topic instructed by teachers who are biased towards one belief or unwilling to instruct opposing theories will only hinder the students ability to make informed decisions that affect their beliefs and opinions.

One thing that will hinder a teachers choice to educate students on the topic of creation is the Establishment Clause of the US Constitution which "prohibits the government from making any law 'respecting an establishment of religion' . . . and government actions that unduly favor one religion over another" ("Cornell University Law", 2010). This separation of church and state has been repeatedly recognized in Supreme Court Cases, including McLean v. Arkansas Board of Education (1982) and Edwards v. Aguillard (1987). In both situations, statutes implemented in the states of Arkansas and Louisiana were ruled unconstitutional, as they "impermissibly endorsed a particular religious viewpoint" regarding the teaching of creation in a public school setting (NCSE, 2008).



Cornell University Law School Legal Information Institute. (2010, August 19). Retrieved from http://www.law.cornell.edu/wex/establishment_clause

Morris, H. (1975). Introducing creationism into public schools. Retrieved from http://www.icr.org/article/66

National Center for Science Education. (2008, October 17). Creationism and the Law. Retrieved from http://ncse.com/legal

I agree with you Matt on the fact that it is the teacher's and students choice to do and believe in whatever they want. But, when talking about school being a place of learning, well you can learn religion as well as evolution. People have just chosen to have religion taught in their own meeting place, being churches and cathedral's primarily, but why can't people who believe in evolutionism teach it somewhere other than school too? I feel that both beliefs should have the same opportunities, either both have them taught in school or neither of them taught in a school setting. Yes, evolution has to do with the sciences but still. It doesn't seem right to just leave one of the major beliefs out of the loop.