Evolution Korea
The financial crisis that struck Asia forced a major reappraisal of the old system of government-business alliances and the management by the public of private risks. In Korea this meant a shift in the model of development.
In a controversial move South Korea's government has asked textbook publishers to ignore calls to remove examples of evolution in science books for high school students. This includes the evidence for the evolution of horses as well as the bird ancestor Archaeopteryx.
1. Evolution and Religion
A South Korean creationist group has persuaded textbook publishers to eliminate evidence of evolution from high-school science texts. This was the result of a campaign by the Society for Textbook Revise (STR) an independent branch of the Korea Association for Creation Research which aims to get rid of textbooks on biology of "atheist materialism." The STR claims that such materialism creates a negative image for students, making them be skeptical.
Scientists around the globe expressed concerns when the STR campaign gained attention. In a letter to the editor of Nature evolutionary biologist Jae Choe at Ewha Womans University in Seoul complained that South Korea had given in to religious prejudice. He was backed by colleagues from across the country, who set up an organization called Evolution Korea to organize a petition against the textbook changes.
Researchers are worried about the possibility that the STR campaign will spread to other parts of the globe, where the prevalence of creationism is rising. The letter to Nature warned that the anti-evolution movement could push for textbook revisions in other countries, particularly those with large Christian and Muslim population.
South Korea's culture is particularly strong in the debate on evolution. 26 percent of South Koreans belong to of a religion, with the majority practicing Christianity or Buddhism. Additionally, a large portion of Koreans adhere to Ch'ondogyo, a philosophy based on Confucian principles that emphasizes social harmony and personal self-cultivation. Ch'ondogyo teaches that human beings are one with Hanulnim the God of the Sun, and that heavenly blessings can be obtained by doing good deeds.
All of this has made creationism fertile ground. A number of studies have demonstrated that students with a religious background tend to be more uncomfortable about learning evolution than those who do not have a religious background. However, the root causes of this phenomenon are not clear. Students who have a religious background may not be as knowledgeable about the theories of science, making them more susceptible to creationists and their influence. Another possible factor is that students who have a religious background tend to view evolution as a religious concept which could make them less at ease with it.
2. Evolution and Science
In recent years, campaigns against evolution in schools have raised concern in the scientific community. A survey conducted in 2009 revealed that nearly 40 percent of Americans believed that biological evolution was not true and that it could conflict with their religious beliefs. Despite the fact that creationism has been a huge success in some states, a lot of scientists believe that the best strategy to stop this trend is not to actively engage in with it, but rather inform people about the evidence that supports evolution.
Scientists are accountable to instruct their students in science that includes the theory of evolution. They should also inform the public about the science process and how knowledge from science is gathered and verified. They must also explain that scientific theories are often challenged and re-examined. However, misconceptions about nature and purpose of research can lead to a negative view of evolution.
For example, some people may confuse the word "theory" with the normal meaning of the word, which is a hunch or guess. In science, however an hypothesis is rigorously tested and empirical data is used to prove it. A theory that is repeatedly tested and observed is then a scientific principle.
The debate about the evolutionary theory provides a great opportunity to discuss the significance of the scientific method and its limitations. It is essential to realize that science is unable to answer questions about the meaning or meaning of life, it only serves as a mechanism that allows living things to grow and change.
A well-rounded education should cover all the major scientific fields that include evolutionary biology. This is important because many jobs and decisions require individuals understand the way science operates.
The majority of scientists around world agree that humans have evolved over time. A recent study that predicted adults' views of the consensus on this issue found that those who had higher levels of education and scientific knowledge were more likely to believe that there is a general consensus among scientists on the subject of human evolution. Those with more religious faith but less science knowledge tend to be more divided. It is critical that educators emphasize the importance of understanding the consensus on this issue to ensure that people have a solid basis for making informed decisions regarding their health care, energy usage and other policy issues.
3. Evolution and Culture
Cultural evolution is a close relative of the mainstream evolutionary theory. It explores the ways that humans and other species learn from each other. Researchers in this field utilize explanatory models and investigative tools that are adapted from the ones used by evolutionary theorists. they reach back into human prehistory to find out the origins of our capacity for culture.
This method also acknowledges that there are some differences between cultural and biological traits. Cultural traits can be acquired slowly, whereas biological traits are typically acquired at the same time (in the case of sexual species after fertilization). The acquisition of a cultural characteristic can influence the development and growth of another.
In Korea the introduction of Western style elements in the latter part of the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries was the result an intricate sequence of events. One of the most important was the appearance in Korea of Japanese occupation forces who introduced Western hairstyles and clothes.
When Japan quit Korea in the 1930s, some of these trends began to change. By the end World War II, Korea was united once more, this time under Choson dynasty rule.
Today, Korea is a vibrant economic and political power. Despite the recent global financial crisis, the economy of Korea has grown steadily in the past decade and is poised to continue its healthy growth in the near future.
The current government is faced by a myriad of problems. The inability of the government to come up with a coherent strategy to deal with the current economic crisis is one of the most significant challenges. The crisis has exposed weaknesses of the country's economy policies, mainly its overreliance on exports and foreign investment that may not be sustainable over the long term.
The financial crisis has shaken the confidence of investors. This means that the government has to reconsider its approach and find other ways to increase domestic demand. It will also have to reform the incentive monitoring, control, and discipline systems that are currently in place to create an environment that is stable for the financial sector. This chapter provides a number of scenarios for how the Korean economy could grow in a post-crisis environment.
4. Evolution and Education
The challenge for evolution educators is how to teach evolutionary concepts that are appropriate for various stages of development and ages. Teachers, for instance, must be aware of the diversity of religions in their classrooms and create a setting where students with religious and secular views feel comfortable in learning about evolution. Teachers must be able to recognize common misconceptions about evolution and be able to address them in the classroom. Teachers should also have quick access to the numerous resources that can be used to teach evolution.
In this context, Thinking Evolutionarily Convocation played an important role in bringing evolutionary researchers and educators from different sectors to discuss best methods of teaching Evolution. Participants included representatives from scientific societies and educational research organizations, as well as officials of government funding agencies as well as curriculum developers. The convergence of different participants helped to identify a set of shared recommendations which will serve as the foundation for future actions.
It is crucial to include evolution in all science curricula at every level. To achieve this the National Science Education Standards (NRC) call for evolution to be taught in a seamless manner across all life sciences with a progression of ideas that are developmentally appropriate. Furthermore, 에볼루션 사이트 from the NRC offers guidance to schools on how to integrate evolution into their life science curriculum.
Several studies have found that a more thorough and comprehensive understanding of evolution is associated with higher levels of student understanding and belief in the concept of evolution. It is difficult to quantify the causal effects of evolution in the classroom since school curricula do not change randomly and are influenced by the timing of the state board of education and the gubernatorial election. To overcome this limitation, I use a longitudinal data set which allows me to control for year and state fixed effects and the individual-level variation in the beliefs of teachers about the evolution of their curriculum.
Teachers who are more comfortable teaching evolution have fewer internal barriers. This is in line with the notion that faculty who are more confident are less likely to avoid teaching about evolution in the classroom. They may also be more inclined to employ strategies such as a reconciliatory approach which is used to increase the students' understanding of evolution.