Education And Evolution

Throughout recent history creationists and evolutionists have argued whether
evolution should be a part of America’s public education. Whether evolution is
science fact, or science fiction. Evolution being a science based on statistics
has some faults, although many concepts in science or math do. The process of
learning about evolution is a necessary part of a well-rounded student’s
education due to the fact that it is a statistically proven science and removing
it in turn revokes certain student’s rights. In a student’s academic career that
a student is most likely at one time or another going to have to take a science
class. Science, being the main topic of discussion in this class, should at one
point include evolution, because that is what evolution is, a science. Although
to truly understand evolution in its fullest context, one must not look to a
dictionary, for dictionary definitions just are too vague. One of the most
respected evolutionary biologists has defined biological evolution as follows:
“In the broadest sense, evolution is merely change, and so is
all-pervasive; galaxies, languages, and political systems all evolve. Biological
evolution … is change in the properties of populations of organisms that
transcend the lifetime of a single individual. The ontogeny of an individual is
not considered evolution; individual organisms do not evolve. The changes in
populations that are considered evolutionary are those that are inheritable via
the genetic material from one generation to the next. Biological evolution may
be slight or substantial; it embraces everything from slight changes in the
proportion of different alleles within a population (such as those determining
blood types) to the successive alterations that led from the earliest
protoorganism to snails, bees, giraffes, and dandelions.” – Douglas J.

Futuyma in Evolutionary Biology, Sinauer Associates 1986 All sciences are based
on some form of proof. Whether it being living proof such as in Biology where
one can observe cell division, mathematical proof such as in calculating
air-resistance in Physics, or statistical proof as in all science experiments
when a predicted result occurs again and again. All sciences have at least one
of these qualities, including evolution. The proof of evolution’s existence has
been on this earth ever since life was formed from carbon based atom structures.

Humans, however, have not been in existence long enough to observe properly the
phenomena of evolution. Although by using the latest technology we can
accurately observe the process of evolution as it occurred over time long ago
and is still happening today. Charles Darwin, a British naturalist, made the
first major step in classifying evolution during his studies in the Galapagos
Archipelago in 1831 when he was only 22 years of age. Due to this he is credited
with first forming a structured theory of evolution. During his studies in the
Galapagos Archipelago he found a multitude of flora and fauna that had complete
isolation from the rest of the world. One particular type of animal that he paid
close attention to be a small bird called a Finch. This was thought as being
simple at first, but as he traveled to the different islands he noticed many
different species of finches. These finches probably descended from one type of
ancestor and then, due to isolation and through chance, different climates and
natural forces such as food availability and type, they evolved into many
different types of finches. Some finches had different colorings, wingspan, and
even beak style. In total he found thirteen different varieties of finches.

Later on in Charles’ life he formed many theories on the origins of man. This
was directly related to his studies in the Galapagos Archipelago. In his book
“Decent of Man” written in 1871 he declares why man had been so
ignorant by denying evolution in the final parts of chapter one. “Thus we
can understand how it has come to pass that man and all other vertebrate animals
have been constructed on the same general model, why they pass through the same
early stages of development, and why they retain certain rudiments in common.

Consequently we ought frankly to admit their community of descent: to take any
other view, is to admit that our own structure, and that of all the animals
around us, is a mere snare laid to entrap our judgment. This conclusion is
greatly strengthened, if we look to the members of the whole animal series, and
consider the evidence derived from their affinities or classification, their
geographical distribution and geological succession. It is only our natural
prejudice, and that arrogance which made our forefathers