Survey supports evolution in science ed

Seventeen scientific organizations are calling on the scientific community to promote the teaching of evolution in scientific education, basing their call on a survey published in the January 2008 issue of the Federation of American Societies for Experimental Biology Journal.

The survey looked at how 1,000 people viewed evolution, science, the role of scientists and science education. Researchers said they found a majority belief in evolution (either evolution through natural processes or evolution guided by a "supreme being") and weaker overall support for creationism (the belief that God created living things in their present form).

The survey also found that people preferred to hear about evolution, creationism and intelligent design from scientists (77%), science teachers (76%), and clergy (62%). Some respondents were ambivalent about scientific education in the public schools, but a majority (53%) favored teaching evolution over creationism or intelligent design.

Gerald Weissmann, editor of FASEB Journal, gave Science Daily the bottom line: "The world is round, humans evolved from an extinct species, and Elvis is dead. … This survey is a wake-up call for anyone who supports teaching information based on evidence rather than speculation or hope; people want to hear the truth, and they want to hear it from scientists."

Michael Keas, professor of history and philosophy of science at Biola University, disagrees that the survey supports evolution-only education. Keas, a contributor to the supplemental textbook Explore Evolution: The Arguments for and Against Neo-Darwinism, told WoW that open scientific inquiry means evaluating the evidence for and against science's dominant theories. Keas believes that other biology textbooks lack this "inquiry-based" approach, and his book fills a void for textbooks that supply only the evidence in favor of Darwin's theory.

Scientific organizations call for public education in the fundamentals of science, including the scientific method. Keas agrees, saying the survey actually supports his mission: "The main point of science and literacy and science education is to teach science as it's best practiced by scientists."