Reiss, Michael J;
(2023)
Debating Evolution in Context – Religion in the Biology Classroom – Brazil, England, Pakistan and the United States.
In: Fraser-Pearce, Jo and Fraser, James, (eds.)
The Bloomsbury Handbook of Schools and Religion.
Bloomsbury Academic: London, UK.
Preview |
Text
Reiss_2023 Debating evolution in context.pdf Download (325kB) | Preview |
Abstract
Evolution is perhaps the central theory in biology. Many with a religious faith accept its validity but there are many with a religious faith who reject it, holding that it contradicts their understanding of their religion. I examine the place of religion in the biology classroom when teaching evolution in four contrasting countries: Brazil, England, Pakistan and the USA and then go on to discuss ways in which school biology teachers might deal with the issue. One approach is to consider evolution as a controversial issue; this can work well so long as ‘controversial’ is used to mean ‘contentious’, not that evolution is scientifically controversial – the overwhelming majority of scientists see evolution as a very robust and well-established theory. I explore the worth of seeing acceptance of creationism or intelligent design as worldviews, and discuss the advantages of treating evolution as a sensitive issue for some students.
Type: | Book chapter |
---|---|
Title: | Debating Evolution in Context – Religion in the Biology Classroom – Brazil, England, Pakistan and the United States |
ISBN-13: | 9781350297272 |
Open access status: | An open access version is available from UCL Discovery |
Publisher version: | https://www.bloomsbury.com/uk/bloomsbury-handbook-... |
Language: | English |
Additional information: | This version is the author accepted manuscript. For information on re-use, please refer to the publisher’s terms and conditions. |
Keywords: | Evolution, science and religion, school biology, Brazil, England, Pakistan, the USA, controversial issues, worldviews, sensitive issues |
UCL classification: | UCL UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > School of Education UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > School of Education > UCL Institute of Education UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > School of Education > UCL Institute of Education > IOE - Curriculum, Pedagogy and Assessment |
URI: | https://discovery.ucl.ac.uk/id/eprint/10189404 |



1. | ![]() | 8 |
2. | ![]() | 7 |
3. | ![]() | 3 |
4. | ![]() | 2 |
5. | ![]() | 2 |
6. | ![]() | 1 |
7. | ![]() | 1 |
8. | ![]() | 1 |
9. | ![]() | 1 |
10. | ![]() | 1 |
Archive Staff Only
![]() |
View Item |