Evolution is False: Public Schools Should Teach Intelligent Design
The greatest travesty in public education today is the way that “scientific” theories which are far from proven such as macroevolution and man-made global warming are being shoved down the throats of children without much if any at all exposure to the alternative viewpoints. While other subjects like social studies and language arts stress strong critical thinking skills that allow for a diversity of viewpoints to be shared and thus for students to be encouraged to think strongly for themselves, the approach often advocated for use in the science classroom is designed to encourage students to swallow whole the information given to them without even thinking of having a dissenting opinion.
It is ever apparent by the way those who believe in evolution and man-made global warming object to the presentation of alternative viewpoints in the classroom, that they do not have enough faith to allow for comparison. If alternatives to evolution and man-made global warming are indeed bogus and reek of a lack of intelligence, you would certainly think that those who propagate these theories would have no fear of a science teacher who presents the information in an unbiased manner so as to encourage the students to use strong critical thinking skills in order to decide for themselves.
The discussion of alternative viewpoints in the classroom would further demonstrate respect for students who come from a background of believing in alternatives like intelligent design, thus making the students more willing to also hear about the theory of evolution. Many students are not learning what they need to know to be successful on the science test because they realize that theories are being shoved down their throat without any attention at all being given to those who have a different view. This clearly does not match the rigors of critical thinking that are encouraged in other classes, and thus causes many students to lose interest in the field of science altogether.
With evolution and man-made global warming being such controversial topics, many teachers are choosing to simply brush over the material and teach what needs to be known for the test rather than offering a clear explanation and encouraging thoughtful discussion that requires the students to use strong critical thinking skills. From my own educational experience as a public school student, I remember only two things being mentioned in science class in regards to evolution. My 8thgrade science teacher who was a Mormon introduced the topic of evolution briefly and simply stated that she did not see why there was such objection to it; for we did not know how God created the Earth. My high school biology teacher made one single mention of the theory of evolution. When the majority of the students in the class expressed that they knew better than to believe in evolution, she quickly brushed over the topic and moved on. My own knowledge of evolution actually came from the comparison of evolution to creationism in my high school Bible class, in which we did a several week study comparing the two viewpoints and debating them openly in class.
I imagine there are many students that tune out their science teachers who teach evolution or man-made global warming because they are smart enough to realize the close-mindedness which seeks at all costs to quickly shut down the thoughts of those who dare to disagree. Students are less willing to learn when their teachers take an exclusive approach that is utterly intolerant of other views, often discrediting those who hold such views as incompetent and unintelligent. This severely undermines the significant contributions of many scientists who believe in intelligent design while denying man-made global warming.
