Explores how students' epistemological ideas about the nature of science interact with their conceptual understanding of a particular domain as reflected in written explanations for an event of natural selection constructed by groups of high school students through a technology-supported curriculum on evolution. Highlights the need for an…

Reports on some potential teaching problems associated with children's scientific ideas about the concept of mutation. Provides information on the sample, methodology of study, and analysis. Concludes that in biology teaching the treatment of the concept must ensure that its genetic sense is specifically delineated. (RT)

Describes four court cases involving confrontation between the theory of evolution and the theory of creation: the Scopes trial, the Seagraves trial, Arkansas Act 590, and the Louisiana law. Provides 64 references on the issue. (YP)

Examined is the extent to which teachers actually hold pseudoscientific beliefs. Described are the study design, sources of pseudoscientific belief, and correlates with various types of pseudoscientific beliefs. Results indicate that many high school biology and life science teachers endorse these beliefs. Implications of this study are discussed.…

Presents a case study of the interpenetration of the paradigm discourses of science, religion, politics, and law and public motive structures as demonstrated by the controversy over scientific creationism. Argues that the discursive populist commitments of journalism indirectly legitimate the populist discourse of creationism. (RAE)

Reports results of interviews and tests carried out with students after they had been taught the topic of evolution. Different interpretations of Charles Darwin's theories are also analyzed. Results revealed that students show a poor understanding of evolutionary theories. (ZWH)

Discusses the teaching of evolution in New Zealand during the first half of the twentieth century. Reports that evolution instruction began formally in the 1920s but was withdrawn 30 years later amid protests. Observes that the teaching of evolution predated the 1920s in muted form. Describes the roles of broadcasting and religion in the dispute.…

A computer program that simulates the random evolution of a metabolic pathway is given. The program shows that natural selection preserves favorable traits if they occur in a specific sequence. (KR)

An indirect procedure that uses the foraging behavior of animals at experimental food patches to address questions in animal behavior is discussed. Suggested projects that include the concepts of predation risk, harvest rates and metabolic costs, missed opportunity costs, and competition are described. (KR)

Details the use of the game Yahtzee with modified rules to help students understand the extreme improbability of obtaining complex structures by chance in the process of evolution. Includes a discussion of probability calculations. (DDR)

Reviews 100 years of history and focuses on the relationship between socially controversial biological issues and the decision-making procedures in the construction of the national curriculum. Contains 39 references. (DDR)

Although the film and play "Inherit the Wind" is sometimes thought to be an accurate depiction of the Scopes Trial, there are many major inaccuracies. Summarizes the major differences between what is portrayed in "Inherit the Wind" and what happened in Dayton, Tennessee in 1925 at John Scopes's trial. (WRM)

Describes what kinds of fossils work well in student laboratory activities, and where and how to acquire these fossils at reasonable prices. (WRM)

Discusses the strengths of the many lines of scientific evidence supporting the idea of human evolution and the importance of the agreement that exists between them. Argues that using humans as a case study in evolution allows educators to illustrate broader aspects of the nature of science and how the overall strength of any scientific…

Addresses the apparent conflicts between the ideas of evolutionary biology and the Jewish faith, especially those related to literal interpretations of the Old Testament. Believes that lurking behind the would-be debate between the Torah and evolution is either a shallow understanding of the Torah, or an unsophisticated appreciation of science, or…