Giving Darwin His Due

A few years ago, I wrote a classroom resource about ecology for elementary and middle school kids. It covered all the territory you’d expect—biomes, habitats, food chains, etc.

But the publisher insisted on a conspicuous omission. No mention could be made of one of the major biologists who pioneered ecology.

That biologist was Charles Darwin.

One section of the resource did note that life on earth had changed gradually over millions of years. But this monumental point was brought up almost as an afterthought. And the term evolution was not permitted.

Scientifically, this was like writing a book about astronomy with just a glancing reference to the ideas of Nicolaus Copernicus—and then not mentioning him by name.

Why was this insult to science and injury to K-12 education permitted? Because the nationally known publisher was afraid of Christian creationists. I’m not speculating—I was told point-blank. Including evolution might have caused the publication to be banned at schools throughout the South. The publisher’s fears were well-grounded. In just the last few months, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, and Texas have all seen attempts to undermine evolutionary teaching.

This Friday—February 12—is Darwin Day [2]. A celebration of Charles Darwin is badly needed because a mere 39 percent of Americans believe evolution explains how life formed on Earth. The censored resource I wrote is just one of the reasons why. School children are simply not being exposed to Darwin and his discoveries. They grow up hearing about evolution only vaguely and in the context of a debate with creationists.

Darwin Day is needed because a noisy subculture of religious extremists has dictated scientific education in this country. Publishers respond to pressure. So do school districts and state textbook committees. Seeing Americans celebrate Charles Darwin may help give these policymakers a much-needed dose of courage.

Perhaps then they will finally put evolution into the school curriculum with no apologies and no equivocation.