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: Evolution and Creationism in Public Education - People For the American Way
People For the American Way Foundation
Evolution and Creationism in Public Education
Aug. 2002
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For decades, there has been an ongoing debate in the United States regarding how public schools can best teach about the origins and development of human beings. Teaching scientific theories on this topic without challenging the religious beliefs of many Americans is no simple task. Recently, this debate has intensified in various states and localities throughout the nation. The current issue: whether or not to include “Creationism” in the public school curriculum as an alternative explanation to (or instead of) Evolution. The Kansas State Board of Education has taken a major policy step by voting last year to delete Evolution from its new state science standards. Other states may follow suit. In other areas, the issue surfaces in other ways. In Rochester, New York, for example, a controversy has erupted over attempts to create a publicly funded charter school that will reportedly include the teaching of creationism in its science classes. And in Tangipahoa Parish, Louisiana, the school board has just voted to ask the U.S. Supreme Court to overturn a lower court ruling that found their antievolution, pro-religion disclaimer in science textbooks to be unconstitutional.