Study: Most high school biology teachers don’t endorse evolution

[Danno 1,228]

Study: Most high school biology teachers don’t endorse evolution

By Valerie Strauss

The central theory of biology is evolution, yet a new study shows that most high school biology teachers are reluctant to endorse it in class.

In the same week we learned that most American students did not do well in science on a test known as “the nation’s report card,” a study about biology teachers in public high schools was published that said:

* About 28 percent consistently implement National Research Council recommendations calling for introduction of evidence that evolution occurred, and craft lesson plans with evolution as a unifying theme linking disparate topics in biology.

* About 13 percent of biology teachers "explicitly advocate creationism or intelligent design by spending at least one hour of class time presenting it in a positive light." Creationists do not believe in Darwin’s theory of evolution.

* The rest, about 60 percent, “fail to explain the nature of scientific inquiry, undermine the authority of established experts, and legitimize creationist arguments.”

These teachers, the researchers said, try to avoid controversy by using one of several different strategies that include :

* Teaching evolutionary biology as if it applies only to molecular biology and failing to to explain evidence that one species gives rise to other species.

* Telling students they don't have to "believe" in evolution but they have to know it for tests.

* Telling students to make up their own minds -- even though scientists say that they are as certain of the validity of evolution as they are of other scientific principles taken as fact.

The research was conducted by Penn State political science professors Michael Berkman and Eric Plutzer and published in the newest issue of Science magazine. They examined data from the National Survey of High School Biology Teachers, a representative sample of 926 public high school biology instructors, to reach their conclusions.

More high school students take biology than any other science course, the researchers said. They also said that for as many as 25 percent of them, biology is the only science course they will ever take,

In related news, the details released this week about student performance on the 2009 National Assessment of Educational Progress was not stellar: 34 percent of 4th graders and 30 percent of 8th graders were deemed proficient or better in science.

Here’s the position of the National Science Teachers Association on evolution:

"The National Science Teachers Association (NSTA) strongly supports the position that evolution is a major unifying concept in science and should be included in the K–12 science education frameworks and curricula. Furthermore, if evolution is not taught, students will not achieve the level of scientific literacy they need. This position is consistent with that of the National Academies, the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS), and many other scientific and educational organizations.

"NSTA also recognizes that evolution has not been emphasized in science curricula in a manner commensurate to its importance because of official policies, intimidation of science teachers, the general public's misunderstanding of evolutionary theory, and a century of controversy. In addition, teachers are being pressured to introduce creationism, “creation science,” and other nonscientific views, which are intended to weaken or eliminate the teaching of evolution."

http://voices.washingtonpost.com/answer-sheet/science/study-most-high-school-biology.html

[Amby 490]

I've had a lot of biology classes. A LOT. In middle school they taught evolution & creation. In high school...evolution only but when questioned they would say to decide for yourself and rely on your own beliefs. College...strictly evolution, no mention of creation at all.

[^_^ 5,021]

I know a HS biology teacher who tells his students that the commonly understood definition of 'species' (they can interbreed amongst each other, whereas you can't breed with members of other species) is something they need to know for the test but isn't really true. He tells his students that the definition is a result of religious attitudes against interspecies sex.

College...strictly evolution, no mention of creation at all.

That's because it takes a lot of work to be a college instructor. Lots of yahoos and clowns at the K-12 levels.

[Amby 490]

That's because it takes a lot of work to be a college instructor. Lots of yahoos and clowns at the K-12 levels.

In middle school I had a history teacher who told the entire class they were idiots if they believed in creation

[^_^ 5,021]

In middle school I had a history teacher who told the entire class they were idiots if they believed in creation

So a few smarties do sneak in from time to time

[Amby 490]

So a few smarties do sneak in from time to time

I grew up in the bible belt. It did not go over well. Outrage, parent meetings, etc.

[james&olya 1,121]

I went to religious schools from 1st through college and beyond. I was never taught evolution. Yet, no other theory of our origin makes any sense! I believe in evolution and have for many years. I fear for the future of our country relative to the rest of the world. Our scientific illiteracy will have future consequences for our standing relative to other countries in standard of living, etc. It was ignorance and religious superstition that held back science in the past. Our relative freedom from the constraints of religious dogma enabled much of our past success. Now it appears that the opposite is occurring. Sad!

[^_^ 5,021]

I grew up in the bible belt.

You have my sincerest sympathies.

I fear for the future of our country relative to the rest of the world.

+1

[Amby 490]

I think part of the reason people don't do science is it's hard. There's a lot of stuff to memorize and understand. If you miss one tiny concept in the beginning then you're lost forever. And science isn't "cool".

[Amby 490]

You have my sincerest sympathies.

obviously it really did nothing to me. my thirst for knowledge made me ditch the church before I even hit the double digits.

in fact...I just thought of something :lol: when I was little my grandma took me to church with her and I would draw pictures of the devil in the bibles and then put them back in the pew

[Henykat 16]

dp

Edited February 9, 2011 by Henykat

[I AM NOT THAT GUY 5,715]

I grew up in the bible belt. It did not go over well. Outrage, parent meetings, etc.

Must be a Protestant thing. I attended parochial (Catholic) school grades 5-9, and nary a word about creationism. The rest was in public schools. I took Biology in grade 10, had a crush on the biology teacher, and I don't remember much else. I took biology in college 12 years later, and things sure changed a lot since 1972, when we only had a basic understanding of cell structure.

[Henykat 16]

my biology teacher was god

[james&olya 1,121]

obviously it really did nothing to me. my thirst for knowledge made me ditch the church before I even hit the double digits.

in fact...I just thought of something :lol: when I was little my grandma took me to church with her and I would draw pictures of the devil in the bibles and then put them back in the pew

I did something similar in 2nd grade in protestant church school. I got in a LOT of trouble and it was downhill ever since. Managed to get suspended just about every year for asking the kind of questions the bible teacher could not answer. I was quite a smartass!! (Better than a dumb-####)

[Henykat 16]

I did something similar in 2nd grade in protestant church school. I got in a LOT of trouble and it was downhill ever since. Managed to get suspended just about every year for asking the kind of questions the bible teacher could not answer.

censored

Edited February 9, 2011 by Henykat