 "Photo: Evan Andrews")
This month marks the 150-year anniversary of the publication of Charles Darwin's "Origin of Species." The main premises of Darwin's theory have been repeatedly reinforced and modified to form the modern understanding of evolutionary theory. It is largely accepted scientific fact that the natural history of the Earth has undergone evolutionary changes for the past three billion years. But students who attended Texas public education system might have difficulty understanding the theory.
Many schools in this state inadequately educate students on the theory. The result of this lack of education will affect the next generation of Texans. Given the speed of genetics and biomedical research, knowledge of the theory will dictate the public's understanding of discoveries and potential finds in the field. This understanding will impact current and future laws in the coming golden age of genetics.
U.S. polls show 44 percent of the country accepts no part of evolutionary theory, with only 50 percent accepting some or all of it. These percentages have stayed essentially stagnant for more than 15 years. This sadly reflects a lack of education on the subject despite the abundance of additional evidence and resources on evolution.
If half the country did not understand or even disbelieved a different scientific theory, it would be very disconcerting to the general public. Imagine half the country not accepting the basic components of the atom, or having difficulty understanding why water readily dissolves salt but not oil. Basic concepts of evolution are poorly understood at best by a large percentage of the adult population of this country.
Even with the advances in understanding, there has been a good deal of pushback on simply mentioning evolution in the classroom. Four years ago next month, the first court case on teaching intelligent design in the public classroom came from a school district in Dover, Pa. The decision unambiguously stated that Intelligent Design was a form of creationism, and therefore couldn't be taught alongside evolution in a science class.
In March of this year, the Texas Board of Education voted narrowly to prevent politically motivated language describing the "weaknesses" of evolution to be presented to the state's high school biology students. Despite this victory, many districts simply avoid teaching much about evolution due to the political climate surrounding it. The end result of the absence of evolution in public education is the continued degradation of the country's collective understanding of the basics behind modern advances in science.
Genetically modified crops, stem cell research and cures for cancer, HIV and other infections are all deeply rooted in the application of evolutionary theory. Now is a perfect time to take some time out and be educated on what the state of Texas has failed to properly teach. The anniversary of the discovery of evolution is a wonderful excuse to catch up on the basics of the underlying theme of all of biology.
The biology department is having the "Darwin 150" lecture series in coordination with other universities around the globe. The final lecture is next Tuesday with additional information found on their website. There is also the new Richard Dawkins book "The Greatest Show on Earth," which is presented as a defense of evolution and introductory explanation of the theory. Both of these are excellent sources of information for those who may have missed out previously in their high school years. Additionally, there are several classes offered here at A&M in the biology and genetics departments that could fill up a class slot for next semester.
The current status of evolution in our public education is appalling. The U.S. ranks No. 17 out of the world's richest countries in science education. The end result is the next generation of Americans will not be as equipped with the same knowledge and understanding as the rest of the modern world.
With much of the planet becoming interconnected, surrendering the leading edge of education will have disastrous effects on the U.S.'s role in the next century of scientific progress. Science is propelling us into the age of genetic engineering, gene therapy and evolutionary research. But without a proper education on evolution, many of us will be unable to understand even what the next century's discoveries mean.
