http://www.upi.com/Top_News/US/2011/04/11/Calif-college-in-creation-teaching-debate/UPI-79551302552587/
This talks about a university in Riverside, CA called La Sierra University that is under pressure by a local Seventh-day Adventist Church to include Creationism more in their biology curriculum. This drew the attention of the Western Association of Schools and Colleges which is responsible for accrediting the university. This is very interesting to me because we have pretty much only talked about the problem of teaching Creationism in middle and high schools. It hadn't really occurred to me that this was a legitimate problem in some universities as well. I mentioned that I have been in a biology class all semester, and coincidentally we are talking about the Creationism vs. Evolution debate in class right now. Don't worry, I made sure to mention this class. In this university setting, it is taught that evolution exists, and we studied in depth the reasons why and the evidence for it. All that was said about Creationism was that it is pretty much a load of illegitimate claims. The discussion about the debate was very open dispite the number of people in the class, and I was surprised that people were actually willing to talk about it when it is such a touchy subject. But the point is, here, the common opinion is that, duh, evolution exists. I can't imagine having Creationism pushed on me in a university biology setting, and I was shocked to come across this article addressing just that sort of situation.
It seems like colleges have a lot more freedom with their curriculum. Even public colleges have a lot more options and teachers who are more willing to speak their mind. I know because took some classes at a public college when I was in high school. And, honestly, even though teachers can be real annoying sometimes, I like their openness because it makes classes more interesting and moreeven though I don't always agree with their opinions.
ReplyDeleteAnyways, I suppose I understand why there is a push for Creationism to be taught in this school. It is, after all, a private, Seventh-day Adventist college which, by definition, parades a literal interpretation of the Bible. The thing that strikes me is that I'm sure there are other professors out there in many different colleges-- religious or not-- who believe in Creationism and may even mention it during class. Therefore, if the accreditation of this particular school is being questioned, I wonder if that will open the door to more monitoring of public and private college science classes as well to make sure that Creation isn't being taught in ANY accredited schools. Maybe that is why, as of now, we don't hear as much about Creationism in college as we do in middle and high schools. No one wants to be stuck monitoring so many friggin schools.
Like Lauren, I do understand to an extent why a private, religious institution could legitimately push for the modification of the curriculum to include material that aligns with the religious beliefs of the institution. However, just like the article demonstrates, this comes at a necessary price. In this situation, the loss of academic accreditation is exactly what the institution is up against. In my mind, this is completely appropriate—a private institution has every right to teach whatever ideas its particular belief system encompasses. If they wanted to teach their students that the world is flat and the moon is made out of cheese, they technically could and have every right to do so. However, their choice to espouse beliefs that are radical and outside the norm of accepted academic discipline will have the demonstrated consequences. There is a concept of academic standards and a system of evaluation which determines how well universities across the nation implement these standards. If the institution is willing to take this risk, then so be it. Honestly, I think this is incredibly unlikely to happen because of how much it would damage the future prospects of students who count on getting an academic education even within the setting of their religious faith. Students are entirely free to attend any institution they choose, as long as they are cognizant of the fact that the knowledge they gain there is outside the perimeter of accepted academic standards and will have broader effects on their post-graduate lives.
ReplyDeleteI like what Lauren said about college professors speaking their mind and being open to all kinds of topics. College should be a place where professors, as well as students, don't have to worry about saying something that might get them in trouble. Discussions should be open for anyone to say anything they want. In my experiences at Butler so far, all of my discussion based classes have been extremely open, which I have really enjoyed. Like Aja said, students choose their colleges and hopefully do their research. Therefore, colleges should be able to teach whatever their belief systems are. If a college wants to offer a class on creationism, I think that's perfectly fine as long as it isn't required for all students. Students have the right to explore different classes and topics and receive a well-rounded education.
ReplyDeleteYeah! I get the feeling that it is like you say Camryn, even at universities other than Butler. I think that students and teachers generally do bring up more radical issues in colleges. I hear about protests and on-campus groups all the time at other schools. I don't really hear about people fighting or disagreeing with these things though. That makes me wonder; why, even at a school like Butler (which, honestly, doesn't have many radical students in the traditional sense), do people seem to embrace these radical teachers and concepts when we hear such a fuss about it in high schools?
ReplyDeleteI think one reason might be that most people don't have a choice of which high school they go to. Sure there are private schools, but I'm from a really small town and we only had one public school. When it comes to college, students get to choose where they go and what kind of school they go to. They can choose to go to a Christian college, where evolution might not be taught or accepted. Since students have a choice, I think its more acceptable for professors to teach evolution at most colleges because students should be aware of the fact that evolution is accepted at that college and they wouldn't go there if they thought otherwise.
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