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September 26, 2005The Devolution of ThoughtThe whole Darwin v.s. God matter is kicking again, as a federal court in Harrisburg, PA begins hearings on whether or not the Dover school district (a tiny rural community of 22,000) should be allowed to teach "intelligent design." The ID theory surmises that living organisms are so complex that they must have been created by something more complex, i.e., by a higher being. Last October, the Dover School District voted to have teachers present alternative explanations to evolution, the ID theory included. Unfortunately, this ticked off some parents, who believe that ID is a "Trojan horse" for introducing religion in schools. Keep in mind, in 1987, the Supreme Court ruled that Creationism has no place in schools because the theory is based on religion. Now to me, education is about teaching people how to think, not what to think. We need to teach kids to evaluate different philosophies and come to conclusions on their own. I've met so many people who groupthink with the majority, and who view any counterthought as an unfounded threat. It is a horrendous devolution of intellectualism. Ideas to the contrary should not be seen as threats. If evolutionism is so sound and logical, and if indeed evolutionism is fact, then it should hold up to any challenges presented by the theory of intelligent design. Further, advocates of a particular mode of thinking should seek challenges, because as each challenge is disproved, the defending theory gains strength. In schools, we should seek to present as many approaches to a single problem as feasible and walk students through critical analysis and objective reasoning. By only presenting students with a single line of thought, we are stunting their ability to reason. The battle should be fought in the minds of individuals, not in the courts. More readings:
Posted by carolyn at September 26, 2005 10:16 AM CommentsAgreed. I think the idea of ID is complete hokum myself. BUT if it's presented in school as a potential theory, along with the theory of evolution, this presents an opportunity for students to hone their critical-thinking skills and to reach conclusions for themselves -- and that kind of practice is sadly lacking in the classroom experience as it is today. That way, students can start reaching their own conclusions instead of simply regurgitating facts. Posted by: Dave at September 26, 2005 04:00 PM There are people who believe in ID, that the holocaust didn't happen, that we've never landed on the moon, and there wasn't even a hurricane recently in New Orleans. We might as well teach kids that the moon is made of cheese, phrenology, women are inferior to men, and that the sun rotates around the earth. Posted by: Brady at September 29, 2005 01:32 PM Post a comment |
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