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: 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. However, for most Americans who would like to see some mention of God or a Divine role in the development of humans, along with the teaching of Evolution, it is not primarily religion behind their opinions. It is much more of what can be called a Post Modernist perspective (a “Hey, you never know” mentality). This perspective is characterized by a wide tolerance for many different beliefs, since no single belief is seen as the final and complete answer to any issue. Also, many parents want their children to be exposed to a wide range of views. Their reasoning is, “our kids should be given enough information so, when they grow up, they can make up their own minds.”