Evolution and Intelligent Design: Schools, Politics and Participation Monday, January 23, 2006

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Evolution and Intelligent Design Schools,
Politics and ParticipationMonday, January 23,
2006
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Ground Rules

• Panelists 7 minutes each
• Open to the floor
• Question or comment
• Max of 3 minutes
• Purpose to bring light rather than heat

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Introduction

• Paul Faber
• Greg Farley
• Craig Brown
• Shala Mills
• Cheryl Shepherd Adams
• Dick Heil

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Preliminary Point 1

• Creationism
• Typically holds that differing species were
  individually created
  
• Typically holds a young earth view

• Intelligent Design
• Intelligence, self-consciousness cannot arise
  without an intelligent designer
  
• Compatible with old earth

Intelligent Design views
Creationist views
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Preliminary Point 2

• That which exists

• Method for studying that which exists

Naturalism?
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Preliminary Point 3

• theorycommon meaning

• theoryscientific meaning

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How do we know?

• Basically
• Reasoning
• Deduction
• Induction
• By hypotheses (abduction)

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Reasoning by Hypothesis
Gather data with something puzzling
Analyze data
Rank hypotheses (seeking best explanation)
Devise ways of testing
Carry out test Confirm or disconfirm hypothesis
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Reasoning by Hypothesis
Gather data with something puzzling
Analyze data
Rank hypotheses (seeking best explanation)
Devise ways of testing
Carry out test Confirm or disconfirm hypothesis
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What data?

• Only public data? (science)
• Or public data plus private feelings,
  convictions? (science within philosophy)

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Best explanation in what sense?

• Explaining public data? (science)
• Explaining public and private data? (science
  within philosophy)
  
• Fitting with scientific theories only? (science)
• Fitting with scientific and personal theories?
  (science within philosophy)

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The questions of the day

• Should we base our thinking on science only or
  science within philosophy?
  
• If science within philosophy, then which
  philosophy?
  
• In a society with many philosophies, which do we
  teach in schools?
  
• What can we do to see that the right thing gets
  done?

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Evolution

• Greg Farley, PhDAssociate ProfessorDepartment
  of Biology

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Intelligent Design

• Craig H Brown, MDiv, MEd, EdS Rector, St.
  Michaels Episcopal ChurchHays

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Intelligent Design Definition
The theory of intelligent design holds that
certain features of the universe and of living
things are best explained by an intelligent
cause, not an undirected process such as natural
selection. It is an effort to empirically
detect whether the apparent design in nature
is genuine design (the product of an intelligent
cause) or is simply the product of an undirected
process such as natural selection acting on
random variations.
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Intelligent Design Key Concepts

• Irreducible complexity
• Specified complexity
• Fine-tuned universe
• The designer or designers

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Intelligent Design Questions to Consider

• Is Intelligent Design good science?
• Does ideology compromise the exploration of
  Intelligent Design? Is there a similar concern
  associated with Evolution?
  
• What is the appropriate setting for the
  exploration of Intelligent Design and its ideas?

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Overview Relevant Court Cases

• Shala Mills, JDAssociate ProfessorDept. of
  Political Science Justice Studies

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• Congress shall make no law respecting an
  establishment of religion or prohibiting the free
  exercise thereof.
  
• U.S. Constitution, Amendment I

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Two specific safeguards

• Establishment clause
• Free exercise clause

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Establishment clause

• Separation of church and state
• Prohibits state from favoring one religion over
  another

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Free Exercise clause

• More personal
• Prohibits interference with an individual's
  religious belief
  
• Prohibits state from requiring that an individual
  act inconsistently with the demands of his or her
  religion

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The Courts Test

• Government regulations that impact religion
  (positively or negatively) must
  
• Have secular (non-religious) purpose
• Have secular (non-religious) effect
• Not cause excessive government entanglement with
  religion

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So

• What about Evolution, Intelligent Design, and
  Creationism?
  
• How have Federal Courts looked at the questions
  we are discussing tonight?

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Scopes to Kitzmiller

• 80 years of controversy

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Scopes Monkey Trial (1925)

• Famous case
• Scopes lost, but case never went to the Supreme
  Court

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U.S. Supreme Court Cases

• Epperson v. Arkansas (1968)
• Edwards v. Aquillard (1987)
• In both cases court struck down efforts to
  minimize evolution in public school curriculum.
  
• Lack of secular purpose.
• The anti-evolution laws were motivated by a
  desire to promote a particular understanding of
  the Biblical account of creation, literally read.

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Some Other Cases

• McLean v. Arkansas Board of Education
• Freiler v. Tangipahoa Parish Board of Education
• Selman v. Cobb County School District
• Kitzmiller v. Dover Area School District
• Federal courts see efforts to minimize evolution
  and/or promote creationism or intelligent design
  in biology classrooms as lacking secular purpose
  and/or effect and therefore as promoting one
  religious perspective over others in violation of
  the Establishment Clause of the 1st Amendment.

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Implications for the Science Classroom

• Cheryl Shepherd-AdamsScience TeacherHays High
  School

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Standards

• State Assessments
• Used for accountability
• Based on standards
• What should be in the standards?
• Core, mainstream knowledge
• Up-to-date, accurate
• Not a complete curriculum

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The New Science Standards

• Summary of changes
• Changed definition of science
• Equated science with atheism
• Changed definition of evolution
• Added criticisms of evolution

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Change 1 Science Atheism

• Equates methodological with metaphysical
  naturalism
  

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From
Change 2 Definition of science

• Science is the human activity of seeking
  natural explanations for what we observe in the
  world around us. Science does so through the use
  of observation, experimentation, and logical
  argument while maintaining strict empirical
  standards and healthy skepticism.

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To
Change 2 Definition of science

• Science is a systematic method of continuing
  investigation that uses observations, hypothesis
  testing, measurement, experimentation, logical
  argument and theory building to lead to more
  adequate explanations of natural phenomena.

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Change 3 Definition of evolution

• From The theory of evolution is both the
  history of descent, with modification of
  different lineages of organisms from common
  ancestors, and the ongoing adaptation of
  organisms to environmental challenges and
  changes.
• To Biological evolution postulates an unguided
  natural process that has no discernable direction
  or goal.
  
• Impact If students accept evolution as it is
  erroneously defined by the KSBE, they cant
  believe in a God that acts through natural
  processes.

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Change 4 Criticisms of evolution

• Evolution is the only theory singled out for
  criticism
  
• The criticisms the KSBE have been refuted in
  scientific literature
  
• Impact Teenagers hear, Hey, everything else in
  science is sound. But this evolution stuff?
  Nah, thats bogus.

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Is ID in the standards?

• The substance of intelligent design includes
• Redefining science and evolution
• Equating science and atheism
• Criticizing evolution

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KSBE has an established procedure for writing
standards
KSBE accepts draft approved by committee majority
KSDE selects writing committee of experts
educators in the field
Public hearings for input (HHS, 2/13/05)
KSBE incorporates changes suggested from expert
review
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External Standards Evaluation

• McREL (Mid-continent Research for Education and
  Learning)
  
• Found the criticisms of evolution not
  supported
  
• Termed the definitions of evolutionary terms
  misleading
  
• Advice rejected by KSBE because McREL didnt
  consider the statements from the May ID hearings
  in Topeka

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Groups issuing negative opinions about new
standards

• National Academy of Sciences
• National Science Teachers Association
• American Association for the Advancement of
  Science
  
• American Association of Physics Teachers
• American Chemical Society
• Thomas B. Fordham Institute F-
• National Association of Biology Teachers

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Some groups approve of the new standards

• Discovery Institute
• The Seattle-based Discovery Institute, which
  supports challenges to Darwinian evolutionary
  theory, praised the Kansas effort. MSNBC
  11/8/2005
• Institute for Creation Research
• In Kansas, ICR's behind the scenes consultation
  is encouraging a great effort, which might begin
  a national dethroning of evolution's monopoly in
  the schools. July 2005 ICR fundraising letter

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Other impacts . . .

• Increased pressure on science teachers to ignore
  evolution, substitute creationism
  
• College university expectations
• BYU, ND, Baylor, U of CA system

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June 3, 2005