Arguments for and against Creationism in American schools

[Philippus Flavius Homovallumus]

The various flavours of selection in evolution are probably too subtle for high schoolers to understand. Better to teach them the basics, which is the Darwinian explanation of evolution, then those who want to specialise can learn about its inadequacies in college or university. Darwinian theory gets one through life quite adequately, without the need to go into detailed genetics, sexual selection, and other explorations of his ideas. Similarly, Newtonian physics is inadequate once one gets past a certain point, but his basic theories will get one through everyday life, and those who want to specialise can learn about Einsteinian physics and others at higher levels.

I don't buy into this form of educational practice for contentious subjects, some admission of holes is necessary at least. If you use this approach with religion you invariably get an atheistic backlash from the student. I submit that papering over the cracks in Darwinism is behind the rise in Creationism.

[Lord Winter]

I don't buy into this form of educational practice for contentious subjects, some admission of holes is necessary at least. If you use this approach with religion you invariably get an atheistic backlash from the student. I submit that papering over the cracks in Darwinism is behind the rise in Creationism.

Its interesting, as a society we've been valuing less concrete, more personal ideas, the whole post modernist, the interpretation is inside you, everyone's different kind of things. Yet at the same time we still have the rigid logic of the enlightenment drilled into us, look at some of threads we had about religon or even global warming. People demand hard facts and logic to back up everything. Its an interesting contrast, and weird to think that two opposites exist at the same time. That kind of double standard may be the reason why there doesn't seem to be much of a middle ground. It seems that you either have to be a hardcore atheist or a complete religious fanatic these days.

[tibilicus]

Creationism in my opinion has a place in schools but not in science lessons. Due to the fact it's religion it should be touched on in some sort of religious class. I'm not sure how the USA school system works but I guess if it's like ours over here you should have some form of religious education. Simply bring up the subject of creationism in these classes.

[Cronos Impera]

The problem with Evolutionism taught individually is that you oversimplify the evolution of the genome and its role.
It's just like saying "Put a couple of dead branches and some mortar in space and let them assamble into a skyscraper".
Science teaches you the rules, Theology explains the meaning of these rules.
You can't survive without knowing the rules, nor without knowing the meaning of these rules.
No matter how much people would try, you can't mess with the genome like with a string of beads.Many functions of the DNA and ARN have been mapped but try building one out of simple aminoacids and you start getting headaches.
They coul'n't reconstruct the DNA of a Thylocene let alone build an entire chain of moleculesas complex as nuclear acids.
So by working through Evolution one can only grasp the silouetthe of a Creator behind all.

[Tribesman]

But I had to acknowledge Darwinist views when I was at school, otherwise I would have failed my exams.

Wow thats shocking , you mean that in a science exam you had to write about science not religion .
Whatever next , I suppose the cruel teachers would have failed you if you had answered a question on Shakespear with a piece about the ming dynasty

[Askthepizzaguy]

Tribesman's bluntness nonwithstanding, I agree with him.

If I had to take an exam on world religions, I would have to learn about them and answer most of the questions correctly.

If I had to take an exam on science, I might have to learn about Darwinism, because Darwin's Theory of Evolution is science, and creationism is not. The only way you can possibly believe otherwise is if you are woefully uninformed, unfamiliar with the definitions of science and of faith, or you know it's true and are too stubborn to admit it.

[HoreTore]

Sure. If course, only when and if it's accepted as a plausible explanation by the majority of the scientific community, just like evolution is.

That's how science works; we teach what know now, and when something better comes along, we swap instantly(relatively) for the improved shiny thing. It's flowing, not set in stone.

That day isn't going to come, however.