Points out the important role of scientists in society as educators. Explains problems caused by not understanding the theory of evolution and discusses possible solutions. First published in 1966. (YDS)

Discusses controversy over the teaching of biological evolution and other scientific ideas such as Big Bang theory. Recommends that teachers avoid debating creationists, help students develop a greater understanding and appreciation for science as a way of explaining the natural world, and emphasize inquiry and the nature of science. (Contains 19…

Describes the commitments and research that went into the design of a 9-week high school course in evolutionary biology designed to bring students to an understanding of the practice of evolutionary biology by engaging them in developing, elaborating, and using one of the discipline's most important explanatory models. (Contains 39 references.)…

Presents an annotated bibliography of books in favor of evolution and opposed to creationism. (MM)

Describes how science teachers want to be better informed about evolution/creation beliefs. Evaluates how sharing such information with students and their community may clear the way for teaching about evolution. (CCM)

Suggests that the title of the recent Larson and Witham article in the journal Nature, "Leading Scientists Still Reject God", is premature and without reliable data upon which to base it. (Author/CCM)

Analyzes biology textbooks on the subject of evolution before the Scopes trial, immediately after the trial, and today. Also considers the impact of the Biological Sciences Curriculum Study (BSCS) on biology textbooks. (MM)

In this article, the author discusses the continuing controversy of teaching intelligent design along with evolution in science classes in the interest of academic freedom, an idea since endorsed by President Bush. More recently religious fundamentalists have tried a new approach to fight the teaching of evolution in public schools. With this new…

Challenging basic principles of constitutional law, advocates of intelligent design are undermining educators' ability to teach evolution in their science classrooms. Because US Supreme Court rulings now prohibit creationist accounts of the origin of life in schools, arguments favoring divine intervention, known as intelligent design, have emerged…

Although Homo sapiens emerged in Africa some 170,000 years ago, the origins of "modern" behavior, as expressed in technology and art, are attributed to people who migrated out of Africa around 50,000 years ago, creating what has been called a human revolution in Europe and Asia. There is recent evidence that a mutation of the FOXP2 gene (forkhead…

Describes using the evolution-creation controversy to introduce students to the scientific method by having them write a paper that summarizes arguments used by those who took a viewpoint opposite their own. Results indicate that most students learned about the controversy, focused their views on where they stood, and valued the learning…

The battle between creationists and evolutionists has waxed and waned in American culture and education for decades. This conflict is evident in the contemporary debate between the proponents of intelligent design and its opponents. This article illuminates the intelligent design movement by describing major proponents' beliefs, goals, and…

J. Weeden and J. Sabini's finding of small to no relation between traits rated as attractive in a mate and health of that mate might be interpreted as consistent with C. Darwin's (1859) proposal that these traits are arbitrary signs of beauty. However, such a conclusion would be premature. A combination of consistent empirical findings with…

The scientific method is the principal methodology by which biological knowledge is gained and disseminated. As fundamental as the scientific method may be, its historical development is poorly understood, its definition is variable, and its deployment is uneven. Scientific progress may occur without the strictures imposed by the formal…

The purpose of this research study was to (a) describe how concept mapping can be used as an integral instructional strategy for teaching a college course in evolution, (b) evaluate the utility of incorporating concept mapping in a college course on evolution, (c) determine whether students' concept maps reveal "critical junctures" in learning as…