The Big Question: Why is creationism on the rise, and does it have a place in education? was, Re: One in 10 pupils believes in creationism

[Henk Elegeert]

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http://www.independent.co.uk/news/education/education-news/the-big-question-why-is-creationism-on-the-rise-and-does-it-have-a-place-in-education-927035.html
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The Big Question: Why is creationism on the rise, and does it have a
place in education?

By Archie Bland
Friday, 12 September 2008

Why are we asking this now?

The theory of evolution has held sway in British science curricula for
decades. But yesterday, Professor Michael Reiss, Director of Education
at the Royal Society, made the case for bringing creationism back into
the classroom. And a recent documentary found that there are a number
of schools where creationist ideas are taught as an alternative to the
mainstream evolutionary point of view.

How do these theories differ?

Proponents of evolution believe species change by a process of random
genetic mutations. They believe the world is 13-14 billion years old.
Creationists, in contrast, believe that the Earth is less than 10,000
years old, and that its existence is the result of one of the
processes described in religious texts like the Bible. They reject the
idea that one species could evolve into another. A related theory,
intelligent design – sometimes described as "creationism in a cheap
tuxedo" – attempts to strip the religious element out of the formal
theory, instead referring to an unknown intelligent force at the
beginning of the universe.

Why is teaching creationism controversial?

Many who oppose creationism in the science classroom are quite happy
for it to be discussed in Religious Education. But it is very hard to
make the case for creationism as a legitimate scientific theory.
Teaching creationism in the classroom, says Richard Dawkins, "would
hand creationism the only victory it realistically aspires to. Without
needing to make a single good point in any argument, it would have won
the right for a form of supernaturalism to be recognised as an
authentic part of science."

What does Professor Reiss argue?

Reiss is a priest as well as a scientist, but he is far from an
advocate of the intelligent design theory. But, he says, treating
intelligent design as too obviously simple-minded to merit discussion
is a mistake. Creationist beliefs, he argues, are much more likely to
be part of a complex set of related cultural ideas than a simple
misconception; a 50-minute science lesson that ignores them is more
likely to alienate a student than suddenly endow him with a new
worldview.

Instead, according to Reiss, the best a science teacher can hope for
is to lay out the evidence for evolution, and at least make sure that
they see that the word "theory" does not simply mean a hypothesis
about the way things might work, but a rigorously supported system of
ideas that fit with the available evidence. "While it is unlikely that
this will help students who have a conflict between science and their
religious beliefs to resolve the conflict," he concludes, "good
science teaching can help students to manage it – and to learn more
science."

Is creationism taught now?

According to a More 4 report earlier this year, there are at least 40
schools in Britain that teach creationism in science lessons. Of those
schools, five were part of the state system, but defied government
guidelines. The report was the result of enquiries to just 50 faith
schools, of almost 7,000 in the country (over 99 per cent of which are
Christian) – so there may be many more schools doing the same thing.

This is not the first suggestion that creationism is on the rise. In
2006, a group called Truth in Science sent out intelligent design
teaching materials to every secondary school in the country, at least
59 of which began using them. And there has been a longstanding
controversy over the Emmanuel Schools Foundation, an evangelical
organisation that already runs three schools under the Government's
academies scheme and hopes to take on four more, and which has been
widely criticised for teaching evolution and creationism as competing
scientific theories – although Ofsted found no problem with its
science provision.

What's the official position?

In 2002, Tony Blair said that he was relaxed about the Emmanuel
Schools position, saying that "it would be unfortunate" if the issue
stood in the way of "getting as diverse a school system as we properly
can". The Government's Guidance on Creationism and Intelligent Design,
to which Professor Reiss contributed, is the most recent official word
on the subject. It says that creationism and intelligent design should
not be taught as part of the national curriculum; but, crucially, it
adds that "there is a real difference between teaching 'x' and
teaching about 'x'", and argues that questions about creationism
"could provide the opportunity to explain why they are not scientific
theories".

What do the public think?

Professor Reiss estimated yesterday that perhaps 10 per cent of the
public believe in creationism, but this may be a severe underestimate:
according to a 2006 Mori poll, 39 per cent of people believe in either
creationism or intelligent design – and more than 40 per cent believe
they should be taught in schools.

How does this compare internationally?

Our 39 per cent of people being adherents to creationism may sound
high, but it is considerably lower than the United States, where
surveys say that 66 per cent of people believed that the world was
less than 10,000 years old – and even 16 per cent of biology teachers
are creationists. America's culture war makes it particularly fertile
ground for evangelical Christians, whose catchphrase – infuriating to
a unanimous scientific community – is "Teach the Controversy".

Elsewhere, the Council of Europe recently declared that member
governments should "firmly oppose" the teaching of creationism in
science classes, denouncing it as a potential threat to human rights.
Most countries in the developed world take the same stance. Islam has
historically been much more well-disposed towards the theory of
evolution than Christianity, in part because the Qu'ran does not go
into detail about the creation process – but Islamic creationism is on
the rise, in particular in Turkey, where creationism is included in
school syllabuses.

Why is it an issue again?

It's hard to give an empirical answer. It is partly to do with an
increasingly organised evangelical Christian movement and a growing
number of Muslims in the UK who subscribe to creationism; according to
Professor Reiss it may be a reaction against the exclusion of
dissenting views from the science classroom. What's certain is that
it's a phenomenon on the rise. "There is an insidious and growing
problem," says the geneticist Professor Steve Jones. "It's a step back
from rationality. They (the creationists) don't have a problem with
science, they have a problem with argument. And irrationality is a
very infectious disease."

Should creationism be taught in science lessons?

Yes...

* If science education ignores creationism, those who believe in it
will ignore science

* It may strengthen the case for evolution to explain why creationism
is not scientific

* A belief held by large numbers of people should not be dismissed out of hand

No...

* Presenting creationism alongside evolution gives it a false
scientific credibility

* No one says evolution should feature in RE classes: why should this
be any different?

* Science education should be decided by facts, not pressure from
special interests
"

Henk Elegeert

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