By Mubarrat Choudhury
As a six weeks project, biology students in past years were given the task of presenting the arguments for Darwin’s Theory of Evolution. Next year, students might be required to explain the “Creationist Theory,” if the Texas Board of Education adopts a new textbook.
Last year, Governor Rick Perry appointed Michael L. Williams as Commissioner of Education to appoint a 28-member textbook review panel. After the panel reviews several textbooks, it sends a report to publishers, who make changes accordingly. Mr. Williams will review the changes and recommend books to the state board, which will vote on a final approved list of textbooks in November.
The review panel has stirred controversy because several members reject evolution.
“Some people don’t believe in the story of Adam and Eve,” senior Hayden Seagraves, an AP Biology student, said. “Problems could arise between those who do believe and those who don’t.”
Biology teachers are worried about how to approach teaching creationism, especially in a school with diverse religious beliefs. Teachers would have to accommodate the different religious views while trying to satisfy the curriculum.
“Creationism is difficult to include since so many people have different religious views,” AP Biology teacher Jeff Bivins said. “What view point would we be discussing on this issue? Would it come from the Christian view, the Jewish, the Buddhist, the Atheist, the Muslim or somewhere else?”
Some freshmen currently taking biology question the legality of teaching creationism, since most of the evidence behind the “Creationist Theory” would be based on biblical text.
“It’s illegal to teach religion in schools,” Freshman Biology student Parker Thoman said. “If they put Creationism in biology textbooks, it would be unconstitutional.”
Historically, Texas’ textbook selections have had a large impact on the curriculum throughout the country. In 1994, Texas ordered over 400 revisions to health textbooks that led to the deletion of the toll-free numbers of teenage suicide prevention groups. Many states followed.
Bivins believes teaching creationism in the classroom could potentially strike controversy, creating confusion for students regarding what is fact and what is a personal belief.
“It’s great for people to come to their own understanding of creationism based on parents, priests, and elders of the church,” Bivins said. “But as biology teachers, we have to teach evolutionary theories as to how life can evolve based on scientific research and data. In the end, it is up to the individual to draw their own understanding.”