Evolution Korea
The economic crisis that swept across Asia caused a major review of the traditional system of government, business alliances, as well as public management of risks. In Korea, that required a change in the development paradigm.
In a controversial decision, the South Korean government has requested textbooks publishers to ignore calls to remove examples of evolution from science texts for high school students. This includes evidence for the evolution of horses as well as the bird an ancestor Archaeopteryx.
1. Evolution and Religion
A South Korean creationist group has pushed textbook publishers to eliminate evidence of evolution from high-school science texts. The Society for Textbook Revise, an independent offshoot from the Korea Association for Creation Research that wants to rid biology textbooks of "atheist materialism," was behind the move. The STR claims that this kind of materialistic views create a negative image for students and leads to their eventual denial of faith.
When the STR's campaign hit the news, scientists around the globe expressed concern. In a letter to the editor of Nature the evolutionary biologist Jae Choe from Ewha Womans University in Seoul complained that South Korea had given in to religious prejudice. His colleagues backed him from across the country who gathered into a group called Evolution Korea to organize an anti-textbook petition.
Some researchers are worried about the possibility that the STR campaign could spread to other regions of the world where the belief in creationism is on the rise. The letter to Nature warned of the anti-evolution campaign increasing pressure on textbook revisions, specifically in countries with large Christian and Muslim populations.
South Korea has a particularly powerful cultural backdrop for the debate on evolution. 26 percent of South Koreans are members of a religion, with the majority practicing Christianity or Buddhism. In addition, a lot of Koreans adhere to the philosophy of Ch'ondogyo. It is founded on Confucian principles which emphasizes harmony in society and personal self-cultivation. Ch'ondogyo believes that humans are in a relationship with Hanulnim, the God of the Sun, and that the heavenly blessings are possible through good works.
All of this has created fertile ground for the spread of creationism. Several studies have shown that students who have a religious background are more hesitant about learning evolution than those who are not religious. The underlying reasons for this phenomenon are not clear. One reason is that students who have religious beliefs tend to be as familiar with scientific concepts and theories, which makes them more vulnerable to the influence of creationists. Another possibility is that students who have a religious background tend to view evolution as a religious concept, which may make them less at ease with it.
2. Evolution and Science
In recent years, campaigns against evolution in schools have caused concern among the scientific community. A survey conducted in 2009 revealed that nearly 40% of Americans believe that biological evolution is wrong, and that a belief in it would be contrary to their faith-based beliefs. Many scientists believe that despite the popularity of creationism the best method to counter this belief is to educate the public on the evidence supporting evolution.
Scientists are accountable for teaching their students science, which includes the theory of evolution. 에볼루션 코리아 evolutionkr.kr must also inform people about the scientific process, and how scientific knowledge is collected and validated. They must also clarify that scientific theories are often challenged and reformulated. However, misconceptions about the nature of scientific research often cause people to believe that evolution is not real.
For example, some people may confuse the word "theory" with the normal meaning of the word - a hunch or a guess. In science, however the theory is thoroughly tested and verified using evidence. A theory that is repeatedly tested and observed becomes a scientific principle.
The debate over the theory of evolution is a wonderful opportunity to discuss both the importance of scientific methodology and its limits. It is crucial to be aware that science is not able to provide answers to questions about life's purpose or meaning, but instead offers a way for living things to evolve and adapt.
A well-rounded education should also include exposure to all major scientific fields including evolutionary biology. This is especially important since the jobs that people have and the decisions they make require a understanding of how science works.
The majority of scientists around the world agree that humans have changed over time. A recent study that predicted adults' opinions of the consensus around this issue found that those who had higher levels of education and science knowledge were more likely to believe there is a consensus among scientists on the subject of human evolution. People with a higher level of religious belief but less scientific knowledge tend to disagree more. It is essential that educators emphasize the importance of understanding the consensus on this issue to ensure that people have a solid foundation for making informed decisions about their health care, energy usage and other issues of policy.
3. Evolution and Culture
A close cousin to the mainstream evolutionary theory, the concept of cultural evolution focuses on the various ways that organisms, including humans, learn from and interact with each other. Researchers in this field use explanatory models and investigative tools that are adapted from those employed by evolutionary theorists, and they go back to human prehistory to find out the genesis of our capacity for culture.
This method also acknowledges the difference between traits that are cultural and biological. Cultural traits are acquired slowly, whereas biological traits are typically acquired at the same time (in the case of sexual species after fertilization). The acquisition of one cultural characteristic can influence the growth and development of another.
In Korea, for example the emergence of Western fashion elements in the latter half of the 19th century and the early 20th century was a result of a complex series of events. One of the most important was the arrival of Japanese occupation forces who introduced Western hairstyles and clothing styles to Korean society.
After that, when Japan left Korea in the 1930s, a portion of those trends began to revert. By the end of World War II, Korea was once more united and was again under the rule of the Choson dynasty.
Today, Korea is an economic and political power. Despite the recent financial crisis, Korea's economy has been growing steadily over the past decade. It is expected to keep this trend going in the coming years.
The current administration is faced by a myriad of problems. The inability of the government to develop a coherent plan to tackle the current economic crisis is among the biggest obstacles. The crisis has exposed the weaknesses of the country's economy policies, including its excessive dependence on exports and foreign investment, which may not be sustainable over the long term.
Since the financial crisis has destroyed the confidence of investors, the government must rethink its economic strategy and find alternatives to boost domestic demand. To ensure a stable financial climate the government will need reform its incentive system, monitoring and discipline. This chapter offers a number of scenarios of how the Korean economy might develop after the crisis.
4. Evolution and Education
The challenge for teachers of evolution is how to teach evolutionary concepts that are appropriate for different stages of development and ages. Teachers should, for instance, be sensitive to the diversity of religions within their classrooms and create an environment where students from both secular and religious beliefs are at ease. Teachers must also be able to identify common misconceptions about evolution and be able to correct them in the classroom. Teachers should also have quick access to the numerous resources that can be used to teach evolution.
In this context, the Thinking Evolutionarily Convocation was a crucial step towards bringing evolutionary scientists and educators from a variety of disciplines to discuss most effective methods of teaching about evolution. Attendees included representatives of scientific societies as well as educational researchers, government funding agency officials and curriculum designers. The convergence of different stakeholders led to the development of a set of shared recommendations that will form the basis for future actions.
One important recommendation is that the teaching of evolution should be integrated in every science curriculum at every level. National Science Education Standards (NRC) which require the integration of evolution across all life sciences with an educational progression that is developmental appropriate, are one method to achieve this goal. A new publication from NRC provides guidance to schools about how to integrate evolution into the life science curriculum.
Several studies have found that a more thorough and comprehensive understanding of evolution can lead to greater student knowledge and belief in the concept of evolution. However the estimation of the causal impact of teaching in the classroom is difficult given that school curricula are not randomly assigned and evolve in time as a result of the predetermined timing of gubernatorial elections and state board of education appointments. To overcome this limitation, I use an ongoing data set that allows me to account for state and year fixed effects and individual-level variation in the beliefs of teachers about changes in the curriculum.
Teachers who are more comfortable teaching evolution have fewer internal barriers. This is in line with the notion that more experienced faculty are less likely to be hesitant about teaching about evolution in the classroom, and may be more inclined to employ strategies such as the reconciliatory method which is used to increase the acceptance of undergraduate students of evolution.