Creationism In US High Schools: 16 Percent Of US Science Teachers Are Creationists

ABC News reports on the findings of a study that concluded 16% of U.S. science teachers are Creationists, and that, disturbingly, one in eight are teaching creationism as a valid science:

Despite a court-ordered ban on the teaching of creationism in U.S. schools, about one in eight high-school biology teachers still teach it as valid science, a survey reveals. And, although almost all teachers also taught evolution, those with less training in science -- and especially evolutionary biology -- tend to devote less class time to Darwinian principles...

...The researchers polled a random sample of nearly 2,000 high-school science teachers across the U.S. in 2007. Of the 939 who responded, 2 percent said they did not cover evolution at all, with the majority spending between 3 and 10 classroom hours on the subject.

However, a quarter of the teachers also reported spending at least some time teaching about creationism or intelligent design. Of these, 48 percent -- about 12.5 percent of the total survey -- said they taught it as a "valid, scientific alternative to Darwinian explanations for the origin of species".

Related: Ben Stein: Front Man for Creationism's Manufactroversy

Comments

[wsblake]

And 95 percent of all high school teachers are close-minded, conservative morons.

[UnbiasView]

You must obviously not have any kids in public schools then . . .

Did you know that kids these days get medals and trophies for finishing in 13th place? Only liberals reward people for losing.

Did you know they use Al Gore's movie in many science classes even though everyone knows the truth is stretched big time? Only liberals would believe that his movie is fact.

[shockmagog]

If you can't defend the stupid idea of creationism, and you cannot defend those who foist it on us with no regard to our nation's future, simply say so. Stop trying to change the subject to some other argument you always lose.

[Araxiel]

I was educated by Jesuit priests and Dominican nuns. I still remember, back in the olden days (1950s) one the nuns in science class telling us that there was nothing wrong with believing in evolution, that it was, as she saw it, God's intent to let life and the universe unfold in wondrous ways. Anyhow, in the intervening years, I came to appreciate what she told us so many years ago, and even though I am no longer a religious person, I still am amazed at how many Americans are so very stupid when it comes to empirical evidence. I think religion, as Christopher Hitchens points out so well in his latest book, "poisons everything­." If we do, as it seems likely, fall further behind other countries in science and technology, we have no one to blame but ourselves for allowing creationism and intelligent design to gain a foothold in our public schools.

The evangelicals and their political cronies have done untold damage to our culture and especially to our system of public education.

[researcher]

many are teaching intelligent design not creationism.

darwin has more gaps than mc wars straight talk.

to teach it as fact will be a laughin matter a hundred years from now.

the universe is intelligent but to our ignorant eyes it looks like chaos.

the problem with teaching intelligent universe is that the religous folks will sneak in their religious beliefs and many of those are illogical. i actually saw a 5 year old ask a sunday school teacher about god and she did not have an answer.

he figured out the insanity of what she was teaching at 5.

poor kid the parents will make sure he get brainwashed to accept those illogical beliefs. and so it goes.

[Quaoar]

Intelligent Design IS creationism.

[Boboday555]

I'm amazed that so many people from the bread basket of America don't believe in 'natural selection' considering how often they have to contend with pesticide resistant insects.
Pesticide resistant insects are the very definition of 'natural selection.­'

[SlinkyTWF]

Technically, that is "unnatural selection," wherein the changes in evolotionary development are driven by conscious actions of those who would modify their environment. Carl Sagan gave a fantastic example of this in his Cosmos series with the story of a species of crab in Japan that flourished while others were fished-out because the markings on their shell were considered by locals to have some spiritual significance.

[ResidentChimp]

At one time over ninety percent of scientists were creationists. They're really two different viewpoints that don't exclude each other.

[kdogg]

they can be mutually exclusive but thats because one is a theory based of science and evidence and the other is a belief based of faith. if beliefs are allowed become fact then the basis of science is destroyed.

[kdogg]

sorry meant inclusive not exclusive

[cmaff05]

Creationism is junk science. Why is it taught in schools?

[CC1]

Creationism is a joke and usually on religious grounds. If teachers insist on polluting students' mind with that drivel, at least do it in a private faith based school.

[Boboday555]

With the ever dwindling pool of jobs in this country, especialy jobs in high tech and all things science, I'm all for them teaching ID to their kids.

When their kids go up against ours for a job in, let's say, the Earth sciences, and their kids explain that the Earth is 6,000 thousand years instead of 4.5 billion, our kids will get the jobs.

I, for one, am all for them teaching Creationism exclusively.

[ResidentChimp]

It's obvious that you don't understand science, religion or intelligent Design.

[kdogg]

its obvious you don't either. ID and creationism are bad science, ie they are not based off hypothesis supported with evidence. teach children bad science and they will be at a dis-advantage compared to children that learn the proper fundamentals of science. seems pretty cut and dry to me.

[Boboday555]

And roughly 16% of Americans don't think George W. AWOL is the worst President in American history.
Very interestin­g...

[UnbiasView]

And 18% think the Democratis lead congress is doing a good job.
Also very interestin­g...

[drblack]

Democrats don't actually lead Congress because they don't have a commanding majority.
Congress is basically split 50-50 and Cheney has the deciding vote.
After this upcoming election the Democrats will have a majority and then we will see.

[DuffyShort]

So what, three out of ten Republican Presidential candidates were too. It's not against the law to be stupid. Look at the right wingers on Fox that call global warming a hoax. I bet all of the science teachers from Bob Jones University are creationists. Creationism needs to be in the Literature Department. It has no place in the Science Department. The New Testament is more the product of the Church of the first through the fifth centuries than a chronicle of the life of Jesus. Jesus himself was likely just a human like me and you. It is written that he was disappointed when the end of time did not come during his stay on earth. His physical miracles were created by a new religious culture that needed to compete with the polytheism of the Greeks and Romans. Jesus was a reasonably well known dark skinned rabbi that had a relatively strong following. His crucifixion made him a martyr and the spin doctors of the next few hundred years created a mythology that many now worship. Many humans need a belief system to provide a source for basic morality. Whether Christian or Muslim or Buddhist or Jew....all are based on the needs of those religions to control people. The current wave of fundamentalist Christianity sweeping the US is likely not what Jesus had in mind, if he did actually exist.

[Boboday555]

Bingo!
Organized Religion is a business..­.just a business.
Remember what Jesus himself said about organized religion;
"Pray not in public like the Pharisees. Pray, instead, in your private inner room."

[UnbiasView]

Who cares, the public schools are based on the religion of government . . . what's the difference?

[pigsatthetrough]

Dear God, what's wrong with this world?
Dear God, what's wrong with your story?
Dear God, what's wrong with these teachers?
Dear God, why is it that everyone that invokes your name, for their country, seems to want war, prejudice, biggoty, superstition, mythology, hatred, slavery, inferiority of women, to prevail?
Sorry, no use in my use of Dear God, I just don't get it.

[ResidentChimp]

You definitely don't get it; especially if you think there is something to get. And you must not be religious, because their are plenty of religious people who don't fit your bigotted profile.

[deluxebrand]

I think at some point in the future it will become clear that people that believe in fairy tales about gods and creation myths have a medical disorder that will be treated with prescription drugs, and big pharma will make billions.

[UnbiasView]

You are a smart guy, since you are so bright how did life begin on this planet?

I have no logical explaination, do you?

[Exusian]

You have no logical explanations, period.

[newworldman777]

No one knows. That doesn't mean that we have to propagate a bunch of ancient myths to explain the unexplainable. If we choose to go that route, then whose "creation" theory do we teach? The Christian beliefs? If so, why them and not the Buddhist or Muslim beliefs? Why not pagan beliefs?

Don't you find it to be just a tad suspicious that, according to the Bible, all of the major events of early humankind -- from the Garden of Eden, to the Great Flood, to the parting of the Red Sea, etc. -- occurred in the region of the Middle East? Give-me-a-break.

[SlinkyTWF]

"READ A BOOK!"

-- The Human Ton's little friend, Handy

[darcy]

This is unbelievable. Schools, fire them!

[rwe]

Only 16% , that is disturbing. Seriously though, " court ordered ban" ? have not heard of that before...s­cience and Christian bliblical teaching do complement each other...Ge­nesis is an allegory not literal . Catholicism most protestant denominations and Judaism all aknowledge.

[mydogshakespeare]

Lack of qualified science teachers is what our society gets when it a) underpays science teachers (well, all teachers), b) allowing those qualified to teach science attain a higher standard of living in commerce or research, c) leading to a less enlightened cohort of science teachers, and d) a less enlightened cohort of students.

Of course, this plays well into the hands of Republicon Social Engineers who can more easily manipulate a less educated (i.e. brainwashed) population.

[SlinkyTWF]

Back in my day, there was also administrative pressure not to even mention evolotion in class. Or so I heard from more than one of my high-school science teachers when the teenage informants in the Christian Gestapo weren't watching.