On the
study of evolution:
"Evolution" refers both to a set
of scientific facts and to a theory explaining
such facts. "Evolution" refers to
the scientific fact that biological organisms
have changed through time, and that all life,
including humanity, has descended with modification
from common ancestors. Evolution is as well
documented as are other currently accepted scientific
facts. The theory of evolution is a comprehensive
and well-established scientific explanation,
based on natural processes, of the fact of biological
evolution. |
On the teaching
of evolution:
Evolutionary theory should be taught in public
schools because it is one of the most important
scientific theories ever generated, and because
it is the accepted scientific explanation for
the diversity of life. As a scientific theory,
it is testable and has been extensively tested.
As stated by the great geneticist and evolutionist
Theodosius Dobzhansky, "Nothing in biology
makes sense except in the light of evolution.
The theory of evolution is subject to refinements
and revisions, but this is no different from
any other major scientific theory, such as the
those providing the explanatory frameworks of
geology, physics, or chemistry. There is no
pedogogical or scientific reason to treat evolutionary
theory any differently than any other well-accepted
scientific theory, and it should be taught in
public schools as the firmly established, accepted
unifying scientific principle that it is. |