Is Debunking Intelligent Design an Effective Approach to Teaching?

Details Is Debunking Intelligent Design an Effective Approach to Teaching? Is Debunking Intelligent Design an Effective Approach to Teaching?

Dec 2006

adsabs.harvard.edu/cgi-bin/nph-data_query?bibcode=2006aas...20912802s&link_type=abstract

2007 AAS/AAPT Joint Meeting, American Astronomical Society Meeting 209, #128.02; Bulletin of the American Astronomical Society,

Astronomy and Astrophysics

Astronomy

Scientific paper

Good teaching demands that faculty establish students’ prior knowledge and beliefs and use this to guide instruction. One of the most important beliefs many students bring with them into science instruction is religious faith. Over 80% of undergraduates claim some sort of religious affiliation (Lindholm 2004) and a fifth of these rely on a literal interpretation of the Bible. Instructors must acknowledge the deep convictions of many undergraduates, and not dismiss them as “unscientific”. It is our position that teaching a science course while pretending that human affairs and convictions do not impact the scientific enterprise is not only misguided, but ineffective at providing students a liberal undergraduate education.
While including “Intelligent Design” (ID) in public school classes has been thoroughly repudiated (e.g Kitzmuller v. Dover) many students equate ID to “God”. Debunking ID thus appears to prove that “God” doesn’t exist. When faced with a choice between beliefs developed over a lifetime and a single science course, the natural position for students will be to discard science when it seems in direct conflict.
We propose a short discussion at the start of the first class which elicits and values student perspectives. This can defuse some of the tension experienced by students of faith and allow them to learn more science, developing better attitudes toward science. This is in contrast to simply telling students that “there is no room for faith in the objective pursuit of science.” At minimum we should provide students with references to modern discussions of science and religion issues and examples of scientists of faith who are able to fully resolve seemingly disparate issues between their scientific life and their religious convictions, even when full exploration of these topics is beyond the scope of the course.
References:
Lindholm, J. (2004): http://www.spirituality.ucla.edu/Publication%20&%20Reports/Lindholm%20USC%20chapter.doc

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