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09:45
New Variations for Strategy Set-shifting in the Rat
Published on: January 23, 2017
Dispatches from the evolution wars: shifting tactics and expanding battlefields.
Glenn Branch1, Eugenie C Scott, Joshua Rosenau
1National Center for Science Education, Oakland, California 94609, USA. branch@ncse.com
Annual Review of Genomics and Human Genetics
|May 28, 2010
Summary
Creationism challenges evolution education in the US by misrepresenting it as controversial. Scientists must defend evolution teaching across all educational levels against these persistent efforts.
Area of Science:
- Evolutionary biology
- Science education policy
Background:
- Creationism poses a significant challenge to the established science curriculum in the United States.
- Previous attempts to ban evolution education or mandate "balanced" instruction have largely failed.
Purpose of the Study:
- To analyze the strategies creationists employ to undermine evolution education.
- To identify the key levels of educational governance where these challenges manifest.
- To highlight the role of scientists in defending evolution education.
Main Methods:
- Examination of creationist tactics in challenging evolution education.
- Analysis of creationist activities across state legislatures, state boards of education, local school boards, and classrooms.
- Assessment of the scientific community's role in countering these challenges.
Main Results:
- Creationists increasingly frame evolution as scientifically controversial.
- Challenges occur at multiple governance levels, including state and local education bodies.
- Scientists are crucial in resisting these challenges and improving evolution instruction.
Conclusions:
- Understanding creationist strategies across educational governance levels is vital.
- Scientists have a unique responsibility to defend and enhance the teaching of evolution.
- Proactive engagement by scientists is necessary at precollege and college levels.
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