This Week's Most Remarkable Stories About Evolution Korea
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Evolution Korea
The economic crisis that swept across Asia caused a major review of the traditional system of government, business alliances, as well the public management of risks. In Korea this meant a shift in the model of development.
In a controversial move, South Korea's government has requested textbook publishers to ignore requests to eliminate examples of evolution from high school science books. This includes the evidence supporting the evolution of horses as well as the bird ancestor Archaeopteryx.
1. Evolution and Religion
A South Korean creationist group has convinced textbook publishers to remove evidence of evolution from high school science texts. This was the result of a campaign by the Society for Textbook Revise (STR) an independent offshoot of the Korea Association for Creation Research that aims to clear textbooks on biology of "atheist materialism." The STR claims such materialism portrays negative images to students, causing them to abandon their faith.
When the STR's ad campaign made the news, scientists across the world reacted with concern. In a letter to the editor of Nature the evolutionary biologist Jae Choe of Ewha Womans University in Seoul complained that South Korea had given in to religious prejudice. He was supported by colleagues around the country, who formed a group called Evolution Korea to organize a petition to protest the changes to the textbooks.
Some researchers are concerned about the possibility that the STR campaign will spread to other parts of the world where creationism is on the rise. The letter to Nature warned of the anti-evolutionist campaign putting pressure on textbook revisions, particularly in countries with large Christian and Muslim population.
South Korea has a particularly significant cultural context for the debate about evolution. 26 percent of South Koreans belong to of a religious community and the majority of them practice Christianity or Buddhism. In addition, many Koreans adhere to the philosophy of Ch'ondogyo. It is that is based on Confucian principles that emphasizes social harmony and personal self-cultivation. Ch'ondogyo teaches the human being is one with Hanulnim, the God of Sun and that heavenly blessings are achievable through the good works of one's.
All of this has provided fertile ground for the spread of creationism. Numerous studies have revealed that students with a religious background tend to be more uncomfortable about learning evolution than those without religion. The causes behind this are not obvious. Students who have a religious background might be less knowledgeable about scientific theories, making them more susceptible to creationists' influence. Another reason could be that students who have religious backgrounds might view evolution as a belief system that is atheistic, making them feel uncomfortable.
2. Evolution and Science
In recent times the scientific community has been concerned about the anti-evolution agenda in schools. A survey in 2009 revealed that 40 percent of Americans believed that biological evolution was not true and that it would be in conflict with their religious beliefs. Many scientists believe that, despite the popularity of creationism the best way to stop this movement is to educate the public about the evidence supporting evolution.
Scientists have a duty to educate their students about science, including the theory of evolution. They must also educate the public on the process of scientific research and how knowledge is confirmed. They should also explain that scientific theories are often challenged and re-examined. However, misunderstandings about the nature of research conducted by scientists often fuel anti-evolution beliefs.
For instance, some people are able to confuse the term "theory" with the normal meaning of the word - a guess 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 on evolution theory is a great opportunity to discuss both the importance of scientific method and its limits. It is crucial for people to recognize that science is unable to answer questions regarding the purpose or meaning of life but it is merely a means by which living things can grow and change.
A well-rounded education must include exposure to all major fields of science including evolutionary biology. This is particularly important because the jobs people are employed in and the choices they make require understanding of how science works.
The majority of scientists around world accept that humans have evolved over time. A recent study predicting adults' opinions of the consensus on this issue found that those with higher education levels and science knowledge were more likely to believe that there is a general consensus between scientists regarding human evolution. Those who have more religious beliefs and less science-based knowledge are more likely to disagree. It is important that educators stress the importance of understanding this consensus, so that people can make informed decisions about health care, energy usage and other issues of policy.
3. Evolution and Culture
Cultural evolution is a close cousin of the mainstream evolutionary theory. It examines how organisms like humans learn from one another. Researchers in this field employ explanatory models and investigative tools adapted from those used by evolutionary theorists, and they reach back into human prehistory to discover the genesis of our capacity for culture.
This approach also acknowledges the distinction between cultural and biological traits. While biological traits are typically inherited all at once (in sexual species, at fertilization) but cultural traits can be acquired over a lengthy period of time. This means that the acquisition of one trait can influence the development of another.
In Korea for instance, the adoption of Western fashion elements in the latter part of the 19th and early 20th century was the result of a complicated sequence of events. One of the most significant was the arrival of Japanese occupation forces who introduced Western clothing styles and hairstyles to Korean society.
When Japan left Korea in the 1930s, some of these trends began to change. At the close of World War II, Korea was united once more but this time under Choson dynasty rule.
Today, Korea is a vibrant political and economic power. Despite the recent global financial crisis, the country's economy has grown consistently over the past decade and is poised to continue its healthy growth in the near future.
The current government faces numerous challenges. The inability of the government to develop a coherent strategy to deal with the current economic crisis is one the most significant challenges. The crisis has exposed the shortcomings of the country's economic policies, including its excessive dependence on foreign investment and exports, which may not be sustainable in the long run.
The crisis has shaken the confidence of investors, the government has to review its economic strategy and look for alternatives to boost domestic demand. It will also have to reform the incentive monitoring, monitoring, and discipline systems that are currently in place to ensure an environment that is stable for the financial sector. This chapter outlines several scenarios of how the Korean economy could grow in the post-crisis period.
4. Evolution and Education
One of the biggest challenges for evolution educators is how to present evolutionary concepts in a manner that is appropriate for students of various ages and developmental stages. For instance, teachers need to be sensitive to the religious diversity in their classrooms and create a setting where students with both secular and religious views feel comfortable in learning about evolution. Teachers must also be able to identify common misconceptions about evolution and know how to address them in the classroom. Additionally, teachers should be able to access a range of resources available to teach evolution and be able locate them quickly.
In this context, the Thinking Evolutionarily Convocation was a crucial step towards bringing evolutionary scientists and educators from a range of disciplines to discuss most effective methods of teaching about evolution. Participants included representatives from scientific societies, educational research, government funding agency officials and curriculum designers. The convergence of different participants helped to identify a set of shared recommendations which will serve as the basis for any future actions.
It is crucial to include evolution in all science curricula 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 a way to accomplish this goal. A new publication from NRC provides guidance for schools on how to integrate evolution in the life science curriculum.
Several studies have found that a more comprehensive teaching of evolution is linked to more knowledge and belief in the existence of evolution. However the estimation of the causal impact of teaching in the classroom is challenging due to the fact that school curriculums are not assigned randomly and evolve over time as a result of the predetermined timeframe of gubernatorial elections as well as state board of education check here appointments. To overcome this limitation I employ a longitudinal data set which allows me to control for fixed state and year effects and 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 hypothesis that faculty who are more confident are less likely to be hesitant about teaching about evolution in the classroom. They may also be more likely to employ strategies such as the reconciliatory method that is known to boost undergraduate students' acceptance of evolution.