If you are a teacher, would you refuse to teach that creationism nonsense?

[Ladyhawk]

If it becomes the law of your land, how is this different from pharmacists refusing to fill a Rx?

I actually have a teaching credential. If I ever get well enough to use it, I would refuse to teach that creationism nonsense. When I was a kid, my "science" classes consisted of making fun of that stupid evolution "theory." Now I can't stand "creationism."

If this turns out to be a stupid question, please forgive me. I just slept about 17 hours.

[MojoXN]

1. Yes.

Nuff said.

[slackmaster]

2. I'd teach it in the context of critical thinking and the scientific method

Creationism is a great example of pseudoscience masquerading as science. "Intelligent Design" illustrates the extent to which some people are willing to lie in order to hide their real agendas.

[Ladyhawk]

4. Excellent. Could you site some examples, just out of curiosity? n/t

[slackmaster]

19. Check out how ICR disavows the ID "movement"

From the Institute for Creation Research Web site:

There is a strong movement among evangelicals today to emphasize "intelligent design" as the argument of choice against naturalism and Darwinian evolution. The movement is also called "mere creation" or "the wedge movement," the idea being to avoid controversial subjects such as the Biblical doctrine of creation in talking to evolutionists. Any discussion of a young earth, six-day creation, a worldwide flood and other Biblical records of early history will turn off scientists and other professionals, they say, so we should simply use the evidence of intelligent design as a "wedge" to pry them loose from their naturalistic premises. Then, later, we can follow up this opening by presenting the gospel, they hope.

But this approach, even if well-meaning and effectively articulated, will not work! It has often been tried in the past and has failed, and it will fail today. The reason it won't work is because it is not the Biblical method....

http://www.icr.org/pubs/btg-a/btg-127a.htm

I have to give the ICR credit for being honest. See their site at http://www.icr.org - the museum is about a 20-minute drive from my home. It's a real hoot and admission is free.

[Vladimir]

3. Nah, I'd just teach it under philosophy

and get the kids to read a little bit of Karl Popper. They'd get the point soon enough...

[Protagoras]

5. Yes

I'd refuse to "teach" it. But I'd answer questions about it if asked because I want my students to THINK about any issue that's raised.

[SmokingJacket]

6. Yes -- I wouldn't mention it at all.

Religion belongs in the church or home.

I certainly never mentioned it when I was a teacher.

[sellitman]

7. I would quit teaching first.

Or move to a state that isn't in the stone age.

[noahmijo]

8. This calls for another "Why do you hate America?" response!

Half the reason I wanna get the hell out of Tucson is because my girlfriend wants to be a teacher and here in AZ they treat teachers like scum they don't get NEARLY enough even for what is known to be a relatively medicore salary and to boot the Christian Right has a lock on virtually every school out here.

Nope I think at the bare minimum it'd be best for her to have a teaching career in a state that doesn't outlaw teacher's unions.

Plus not to mention since racist Arizona passed prop 200 she refuses to be a snitch for the INS.

[mcscajun]

9. I'd have frogs leaping from my mouth if I tried to teach that crap.

:)

[DistressedAmerican]

10. I Am And I Would. Although I Teach Archaeology. So, Creation Wouldn't

be much of an issue!

There are plenty of Biblical archaeologists out there.

Some actually do pretty good fieldwork. For example, an archaeologist is now working sites that they believe are the biblical Sodom And Gomorrah. Their identification of the sites if based on some excellent and compelling investigative work.

However, any interpretations relying on the supernatural I would NOT teach!

As far as I know they have yet to argue for evidence of any final destruction from on high. If they suggest that as a cause for site abandonment, I'd have to seriously rip their work.

[clydefrand]

11. Absolutely and I taught for 32 years! I was also a science

major. I can only recall once when a student questioned something I was teaching about evolution. He wanted to know about the Bible's take on creating the world and that God had done it. I agreed that God could have been responsible for the evolution and went on with the discussion. That was a better way out than debate with a fourth grader and possibly his parents later about religion. That was not my responsibility to bring religion in the classroom.

Except that I did have the Golden Rule posted!!!

[Catch22Dem]

13. Nothing wrong w/ the Golden Rule...why it's....um...GOLDEN!

:D

[slackmaster]

21. My 4th grade Sunday School teacher gave the same explanation

She told us that not everything in the Bible is literally true (clearly not, because it contains many obvious contradictions). She spent much of the rest of the class trying to explain the concept of allegory to a bunch of fidgety 8- and 9-year-olds.

:D

[Catch22Dem]

12. I would refuse, and not because I'm an atheist

But because it's just bad science. It's not even science. It doesn't meet the criteria to be considered a scientific theory. They're gonna have to do better than ID to get me to teach their shit.

[Arugula Latte]

15. Yeah, but didn't you know that

God put dinosaur bones in the Earth to test our faith?

:rofl:

[Catch22Dem]

26. Great, now I'm all messed up!

[proud2BlibKansan]

14. I wish I could say yes

But if we don't teach the curriculum we are given, we risk losing our jobs.

So I would probably give it the bare minimum treatment. Just enough to avoid bringing the wrath of the adminsitrators upon me.

[Coastie for Truth]

16. Absolutely refuse to teach creationism in science class

I would teach it is a course "about" religion or in a history (of American thought or American politics or "science" along with alchemy) but NEVER as science.

FLAME ON!!

THIS IS EXACTLY WHY THE US IS NOW THE LEAST SCIENTIFICALLY LITERATE OF ANY INDUSTRIALIZED DEMOCRACY. WE HAVE LET THE "FLAT EARTH FUNDIES" AND THE "PROPOSITION XIII BIRCHERS" CONTROL OUR EDUCATION - AND NOW - ALONG WITH THE DAVID HOROWITZ NEO-CONS - THEY ARE TRYING TO TAKE OVER THE COLLEGES - A SURE RECIPE FOR DISASTER!

INTERNAL SUBVERSION BY THE FUNDIES AND RWERS

FLAME OFF

[Massacure]

17. Of course I'd teach it.

But by the time I was done with them, the kids would make that theory crash and burn anytime someone tried stating it as fact. :evilgrin:

[eallen]

18. Not at all. It's a great example of psuedo-science. Lots of lessons there.

[seabeyond]

20. how do you teach to these bright little faces, the world is only

6000 years old.

i dont know i could knowingly lie to kids. regardless of respecting anothers belief

[sweetheart]

22. No my class would split a side they'd be laughing so hard

I'd teach the whole thing tongue in cheek, that were i on camera
it would be flawless, but the whole class would have tears in their
eyes from the acid humour of the sillyness of creationism.

I once had a teacher who did similarly, and i much appreciated Ms. Hand's
biology class at Santa Monica High school for it.... She was a great
teacher, and i learned creationism from her ... (ha ha!)... and
what pseudo science is all about!

[murray hill farm]

23. Sure, i would t each it...

as in "some people" believe that god created the earth in 6 days...and some people believe the mother turtle created the earth in one year...and some people believe that the earth is an illusion..etc. And why not...a lot of people believe for many different reasons in many different beliefs as to how the earth got here...but these are beliefs that are based on a particular religous belief rather than on scientific researach...in the scientific world, the theories of how the earth evolved have also evolved as humankind has evolved in its ability to do more and more evolved studies of the earth and of our universe, etc. nowl, if you teach in a religous school, this will not be an option..and u will be required to teach creationism

[HockeyMom]

24. They would even have a problem with Catholics

Catholic Church doesn't doesn't teach Creationism, but the so called Intelligent Design. God guided Evolution.

Not every religion, and we have a LOT of other religions where I live, believes in the Bible or the literal interpretation of it.

This is government sponsoring of ONE SPECIFIC RELGION - Evangelical Christian.

[LibertyorDeath]

25. Course: Calling out to Idiot America. Credits: Zero. Length: Interminable

It would be lumped in with superstitions & voodoo curses. :)

At the end of each class we would all go outside and do a rain dance
and on the times that it happened to rain we could all congratulate each other.

[Malikshah]

27. I would teach it in a course on Religion

But not in a science course in a way to make it any way equal to evolution etc.

In addition-- I would teach it in all its glory

The myriad forms of Creationism withing Christianity.
The variety of creationist beliefs as found in Hinduism, Shintoism, etc. Lovely stories about a god who pleasures himself and creates the rivers, others who slay an elder god and split her body in half to make the heavens and the earth, etc.

Creationsim is not "owned" by the select few and one way to take the wind out of their collective sails is to provide the numerous other examples of creationist belief

Mircea Eliade's From Primitives to Zen is a good place to start.

[Lone_Wolf]

28. I wouldn't teach it...

Maybe I'd mention it in passing with other mythology like the Greeks, Norse, etc.

I'd also refuse to let students cite Faux News as a source for any of their papers...

[ulysses]

29. nope. I'd teach it.

Some folks might not like the way in which I taught it, but I'd teach it. Gotta follow the curriculum. ;-)