For almost 100 years, America has grappled with Darwin's theory of evolution and how the origin of man should be taught in public schools. From the Scopes Trial in 1925 to intelligent design in 2005, the debate continues. Explore these resources to learn more.
Overview and history of the teaching of evolution in the US public classroom, with background on the intelligent design movement.
This feature on evolution, creationism and politics in Kansas is part of the University of Wisconsin's "Why Files?", which explores the science behind the news.
Subtitled "The Faith That Dare Not Speak Its Name," this article from The New Republic Online reviews the history of evolution and creationism in the classroom, from the Scopes trial to the 2005 case coming to trial in Pennsylvania.
This Seattle-based nonprofit is at the center of the intelligent design debate. Vice President Stephen C. Meyer is co-author of "Darwinism, Design and Public Education." Its Center for Science and Culture seeks to "replace materialistic explanations with the theistic understanding that nature and human beings are created by God."
This National Academies provides easy access to books, position statements, reports, research papers, and other resources on evolution education and research.
This 2002 article from the Howard Hughs Medical Institute explores the concept of intelligent design and the efforts to include this concept in Ohio science standards.
Is evolution a science? Is creationism a science? What is science? Is there evidence for either? Religious fundamentalists often attack evolution, but rarely from a positions of really understanding what evolution is and how it works. Here you can read the basics on all of these issues - what evolution is, what creationism is, and what science is.
The University of Berkeley's Museum of Paleontology provides online exhibits that trace evolutionary thought as it has developed over time, including the contributions of scientists and thinkers such as Aristotle, Darwin, and Wallace.
The Intelligent Design Network, Inc. is a "nonprofit organization that seeks objectivity in origins science." The theory of intelligent design holds that certain features of the universe and of living things are best explained by an intelligent cause rather than an undirected process such as natural selection.
In 2001, the Kansas State Board of Education reversed a decision that had made teaching evolution optional. In 2004, the Board appointed a committee of 25 scientists and educators to revise the Kansas Science Standards. The resulting report was not unanimous; this web site provides minority report documents.
Subtitled "How Adam saw Eden is not how Darwin saw Earth," this article from About Guide Geology begins: "Why is it that today, more than 140 years after Charles Darwin published On the Origin of Species by Means of Natural Selection, we are still fighting over evolution? The Catholic Church has endorsed evolution..."
The Online Literature Library has converted Charles Darwin's "On the Origin of Species by Means of Natural Selection, or the Preservation of Favoured Races in the Struggle for Life" to an online edition; this link is to the 6th edition which "is often considered the definititive edition."
Evolution is a controversial, and often misunderstood, topic among the general public. PBS provides resources to explore and understand the complex relationships between science, religion, and public policy.
This evolution web site for teachers is a collaborative project of the University of California Museum of Paleontology and the National Center for Science Education. Topics range from the nature of science to a history of evolutionary thought; the site also includes lessons and concepts by grade level.
