[Why isnt the creation theory taught in public schools?]
Forest, Plain and simple because of intimidation and fear tactics used by the ACLU. Creation is perfectly fine to teach in schools but most schools wont because of fear of law suits which most schools in this day of education budget shortfalls don't have enough funds to pursue, Because if they did pursue them they would easily win the cases. Creation can be taught, You just cant REQUIRE that it be taught. It boils down to intimidation and fear tactics on the part of the ACLU.
51 comments
That and it's religion, and the constitution of the United States says that religion can't be taught in state schools. If a high school dropout from New Zealand knows this, then you have no fucking excuse.
Actually, it's because there's precious little evidence for it, it depends on the existence of an entity who has not been shown to exist, and it does not allow for any kind of scientific thinking. With evolution we can ask "why did this happen?" and say, "Maybe this attribute was favorable". With creation, we ask "Why did this happen?" and get, "Because the Creator said so. And the knowledge stops there.
What Quasarsphere said...
That said, it technically is possible as part of a literature or social science elective. It just cannot be taught in science classes, and cannot be taught as anything except literature and/or mythology.
I agree, creation should be taught in schools. I always thought the creation mythology in JRR Tolkien's The Silmarillion was quite fascinating.
From there, we'll move on to Klingon beliefs.
Maybe some day we'll make it on to creation myths from here on earth, and maybe, just maybe, someday we'll cover Christianity.
Hey, Mike. Go talk to some people at your local ACLU office, and ask them what the acronym ACLU stands for. While you are there, ask them for a list of their court cases where they defend Xtians. I bet you'll be surprised that it is quite a long list.
Well, I am O.K. with creation to be taught at school.
And in Germany (for eample) it can be taught at school.
But in religious classes...
never in science classes
and never with the intention to be some kind of replacement for the ToE ;)
Wrong. It's only fair that people who don't want to be taught about creationism should not be forced into it. It's not science and it never will be. If you want to learn about it, go to church, where the teaching of such a backwards idea belongs.
Creationism can't be taught in public schools because, 1. it's not science, it's religion, and 2. creationism, as a religious doctrine and not science, is trying to force religion to be taught in public schools, thereby trying to get the government to endorse religion, going against the 1st Amendment. It's crap.
"Because if they did pursue them they would easily win the cases. "
Dork, you need to look up the Dover trial.
No, it's not taught in school, because Creationism is religion based, with nary a thing to back it up as proof. And no, that ancient collection of fables isn't proof.
I always thought the creation mythology in JRR Tolkien's The Silmarillion was quite fascinating.
Agreed - all of reality being some kind of divine symphony, and the gods its orchestra, if I remember correctly, is rather potent imagery.
Wow, I didn't know the ACLU (as in AMERICAN) had so much influence on the curricula in European, Oceanian, Asian and African schools. You know, where they don't teach creationism either!
Okay, we'll start teaching Creationism:
In the beginning was the Void, and from the empty chaos emerged the Earth, the Underworld, Darkness, and Love. The Earth birthed the Ocean to encircle her and Sky to embrace her. Darkness made Light and together they made Night and Day. From there Love got involved, and it's been generally down hill ever since.
Oh... You were talking about the Theogony?
" Because if they did pursue them they would easily win the cases."
Edwords vs aguilar. You lose.
Dover. You lose again.
First amendment. You lost before you started.
Forest, Plain
It's called Temple Garden, or Savannah, if you're playing with the old Alpha sets. (Sorry...I love my MtG...)
Also, it couldn't be because any Science teacher worth his pay sees creationism as hammering a Bible onto a table, and yelling GODDIDIT! And all your screeching and weaseling won't make it real science.
So, you're going to replace a much-researched, evaluated, and constantly evolving sphere of science with "GODDIDIT!"? I'm glad I'm childfree, I'd hate for it to go to school after you lot have finished raping the curriculum.
'Creation theory' isn't taught in public schools simply because there's nothing to teach. There's no evidence at all to back it up, so it can't properly be called a 'theory'. It's just a belief. All any teacher could tell students is "It must be so, because I believe it is."
You might as well ask 'why isn't the Tinkerbell theory taught in public school?' For young kids, Tinkerbell is as real as the fantasies of creationists.
fergus
except that it has 0 scientific merit? I agree, you can teach your creation myth in a world religions class, but science, not a chance.
Sometimes I wonder if I'd have been happier remaining ignorant of such stupid stuff like this.
Well no, then I'd be limited in my venues of entertainment.
Because if they did pursue them they would easily win the cases.
No, they would certainly lose, and have lost every suit they've attempted. In Kitzmiller v. Dover Area School Board, the school board didn't even attempt to teach creationism; they just required the reading of a disclaimer and a reference to a creationist book in the school library. They not only lost, but were ordered to pay Kitzmiller et. al.'s $2 million legal bills.
Sadly creationism, particularly the young earth variety has nothing to support it. It's feet are of clay, the clay in this case being lies.
What does a civil liberties organisation have to do with the course content in schools? Could it be that the folks who have been pushing creationism don't much like civil liberties? Things like free speech, the right to vote, freedom of assembly and politically inconvenient stuff like that?
Wrapped in the flag and carrying the cross.
Here in Sweden we learn about different religions. The Creationism could be included in the studies of Christianity, as Sharia laws can be included in the studies of Islam. I remember learning about sharia, but I can't remember learning about "Intelligent Design"... Maybe Swedish Christians are not narrowminded enough to believe in this? Or my mind might have sorted that knowledge out, together with the belief in Santa Clause and ghosts under the bed?
One day: God.
CREATION!!!
A lot of things are not taught in schools. Unicorn anatomy, the geography of Narnia, the physics of transformers, medical problems with time-travels.
Which creation should be taught? The Ancient Greek creation? The Aesir creation? The Hindu creation? Creation stories can only be taught in Religion classes or Philosophy classes (or perhaps History, as a "what the people in the past believed" study), as they are not scientific and can't be taught as facts.
You do know that ACLU protects your freedom of religion, right, Mikey?
No, it does not protect your right to persecute others, as you don't have a right to do that in the first place.
"Because if they did pursue them they would easily win the cases. Creation can be taught, "
People like this are the reason people keep running for school boards, expressly to be the one who takes the fight to the Supreme Court. This mis-belief that their cause is right AND that this time, they will take the right actions to reach victory.
And then another school district has to pay court costs instead of textbooks...
Confused?
So were we! You can find all of this, and more, on Fundies Say the Darndest Things!
To post a comment, you'll need to Sign in or Register . Making an account also allows you to claim credit for submitting quotes, and to vote on quotes and comments. You don't even need to give us your email address.