Title: Evolution and Creationism in Public Education - People For the American Way
Headings: Evolution and Creationism in Public Education
People For the American Way Foundation
Evolution and Creationism in Public Education
Methodology
Main Findings
Context for Understanding the Main Findings

Content: there is a schism between those who hold a “strict” definition (meaning a literal reading of Genesis) versus those who hold a “loose” definition. Americans are also unclear about precisely what the Theory of Evolution really is. Although just about all Americans have heard of Evolution, fewer than half say they are very familiar with it. Further, roughly one in three hold an incorrect definition of Evolution (believe Evolution states humans evolved directly from apes). Many Americans are also unclear about Evolution’s scientific status. Although most Americans want Evolution to be taught in the public schools, most are not sure that the theory, as they understand it, is fully accurate or proven. Americans who lack a college education show the least certainty about Evolution. As a result of the public’s lack of deep and detailed knowledge of these issues, their views about how exactly public schools should approach them (the specifics of what should be taught in the classroom) are not fully formed. A second important contextual point is what we term the “post-modernist” influence. For about a third of Americans, their fundamentalist religious beliefs drive their support for including Creationism in the public school curriculum.