Evolution, Creationism and Our School System

The month of February is quite special in the history of science. 

In fact, February qualifies to be called science history month. February 12 is the birthday of late British scientist, Charles Darwin. 

On this date or around it, a global celebration of science and reason is staged. It is called the International Darwin Day.

According to the initiators of this very important festival, the goal is to ‘recognise the achievements of humanity as represented in the acquisition of verifiable scientific knowledge.’

Darwin’s discoveries shook the foundations of religions, especially the doctrine of creation.

According to Darwin, human beings were not created as the holy books clearly stated. Instead, we are products of evolution that has been going on for millions of years. Literally, Darwin’s writing proved the Christian book of Genesis to be what it is, a book of myth and fantasy, not reality.

While this important discovery by Darwin has been there for a while, it has been difficult to get it into classrooms and get our children to learn in science classes about this fact of nature. 

Many faith groups want evolution excluded from school curriculum. Or they want both evolution and creationism to be taught in science classes. 

They claim that evolution is an inconclusive and controversial ‘theory’ and that children should be taught all sides of the argument or accounts for human origin. That definitely sounds like a valid argument, right? 

But it is not. Evolution, not creationism should be thought in our science classes. 

Evolution is science but creationism is religion. So, creationism or its synonym, intelligent design, has no place in our science classes. 

Teaching creationism or intelligent design in a science class is like teaching faith healing in a medical college or teaching students how to speak in ‘tongues’ as part of a foreign language class. 

It is nonsense. Those who want to teach creationism in science classes should also campaign to have the myth of resurrection and ascension be taught in a physics class as part of the lectures of gravity.

The government should not allow religious fundamentalists to undermine or corrupt the teaching of science in schools.

My one complaint with this argument is the line stated that, “according to Darwin…”  Evolution would still exist with or without Darwin.  It would merely be a question of who was able to properly observe and analyze the process.

(Source: momentng.com)