Tuesday, September 27, 2005
The court case...
[disclaimer: The following is not an attempt to woo anyone to any side, but an attempt for me to get my thoughts straight, as I tend to do so better in written word.]
Intelligent design in the classroom. My first thoughts are "what's the big deal?" It seems like saying what the media seems to indicate the teachers in Penn. are being pressured to say should be a happy middle ground for both sides. It seems like being upfront and getting the hot topic out of the way so that class can continue seems like a good idea. I'm under the impression that the school board is requiring (encouraging, demanding) teachers to say that some scientists do not agree with the popular view of evolution and in its place have theories involving intelligent design, perhaps waste 2 minutes giving the basics of what that would mean, maybe even mention that it is largely relgiously-based, instead of science-based, and then go on with, "but we're not going to study that any more in this classroom; we are going to study evolution, and that is what you'll be tested on." Maybe I am misunderstanding the situation and that is not at all what is happening. However, the above scenario seems to be the best way to not have to deal with what is a passionate topic for some on both sides of the fence. It seems odd to me that no one is willing to compromise on this in an age where treating all beliefs as equal is popular. Both sides are only interested in a full-scale, 100% win.
I do believe in intelligent design. I'm not much of a scientist and I don't think I really understand all the information that is going into evolution, but i do know that the theory is continually, if I may, evolving. All of that really is beside the point, because i do believe that a science classroom is a place to teach science and scientific method. I know there are people who share my beliefs in intelligent design who are extreme in their position about it being taught in a classroom and evolution not taught in the classroom, but i don't think this court decision is giving into their extremism. It seems like a sensible resolution that moderates can accept and then drop the issue.
I don't know too much about the specific case, if there is more information to know than the general, nation-wide debate (although, that's not quite correct...the nation-wide difference of opinion?), so I can't make a very educated opinion on this court case. I'm not much of an expert on science, which is why they aren't calling me in as a witness, so I can't argue either side very well from a scientific point of view. I guess that's all I have. I wish people didn't get so mad about all this.
Intelligent design in the classroom. My first thoughts are "what's the big deal?" It seems like saying what the media seems to indicate the teachers in Penn. are being pressured to say should be a happy middle ground for both sides. It seems like being upfront and getting the hot topic out of the way so that class can continue seems like a good idea. I'm under the impression that the school board is requiring (encouraging, demanding) teachers to say that some scientists do not agree with the popular view of evolution and in its place have theories involving intelligent design, perhaps waste 2 minutes giving the basics of what that would mean, maybe even mention that it is largely relgiously-based, instead of science-based, and then go on with, "but we're not going to study that any more in this classroom; we are going to study evolution, and that is what you'll be tested on." Maybe I am misunderstanding the situation and that is not at all what is happening. However, the above scenario seems to be the best way to not have to deal with what is a passionate topic for some on both sides of the fence. It seems odd to me that no one is willing to compromise on this in an age where treating all beliefs as equal is popular. Both sides are only interested in a full-scale, 100% win.
I do believe in intelligent design. I'm not much of a scientist and I don't think I really understand all the information that is going into evolution, but i do know that the theory is continually, if I may, evolving. All of that really is beside the point, because i do believe that a science classroom is a place to teach science and scientific method. I know there are people who share my beliefs in intelligent design who are extreme in their position about it being taught in a classroom and evolution not taught in the classroom, but i don't think this court decision is giving into their extremism. It seems like a sensible resolution that moderates can accept and then drop the issue.
I don't know too much about the specific case, if there is more information to know than the general, nation-wide debate (although, that's not quite correct...the nation-wide difference of opinion?), so I can't make a very educated opinion on this court case. I'm not much of an expert on science, which is why they aren't calling me in as a witness, so I can't argue either side very well from a scientific point of view. I guess that's all I have. I wish people didn't get so mad about all this.
# posted by Adam @ 7:22 AM 
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As a person who gets mad about this, I feel the need to try to justify slightly why I do get mad. Not hair pulling screaming mad, but pretty ticked off.
I think that we should all have the right to practice what ever religion we want, and I feel that very firmly. We have had seperation of church and state so that people can do exactally that. So that no one is 'converted' to any religion by the state, the state should not endorse any religion so that we all go on following what ever religion we do.
Evolution involves no religion at all, it is nothing but pure science, something that can be prooven with science. Its taught in the class rooms because, it involves no religion at all. Its not that it has to be right in the eyes of religion, it just has to be right in the eyes of science, in a science classroom.
Intelligent design isn't a bad thing, and I am not angry at the people who beleive in it. But I don't think it belongs in our science classrooms because it involves religion. When you involve one religion, you have to give them all equal time (and there are thousands). This means that we will have to take a science class and turn it into a theology class on creation.
If you want a theology class that explains different creation theories thats fine with me. But science is science and mandatory in schools because its the only way to explain things with out involving religion. The only way to talk about how it all works without saying some religions are right and others wrong.
Well thats my poorly worded explanation, which is in no part a critisizm on you or anything like that. Just an explantion as to why some people (like me) get so up in arms about the topic.
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I think that we should all have the right to practice what ever religion we want, and I feel that very firmly. We have had seperation of church and state so that people can do exactally that. So that no one is 'converted' to any religion by the state, the state should not endorse any religion so that we all go on following what ever religion we do.
Evolution involves no religion at all, it is nothing but pure science, something that can be prooven with science. Its taught in the class rooms because, it involves no religion at all. Its not that it has to be right in the eyes of religion, it just has to be right in the eyes of science, in a science classroom.
Intelligent design isn't a bad thing, and I am not angry at the people who beleive in it. But I don't think it belongs in our science classrooms because it involves religion. When you involve one religion, you have to give them all equal time (and there are thousands). This means that we will have to take a science class and turn it into a theology class on creation.
If you want a theology class that explains different creation theories thats fine with me. But science is science and mandatory in schools because its the only way to explain things with out involving religion. The only way to talk about how it all works without saying some religions are right and others wrong.
Well thats my poorly worded explanation, which is in no part a critisizm on you or anything like that. Just an explantion as to why some people (like me) get so up in arms about the topic.
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