Evolution Korea
The financial crisis that struck Asia caused a significant rethinking of the old system of government-business alliances and public management of private risks. In Korea, this meant a change in the development paradigm.
In a controversial move South Korea's government has requested 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 remove evidence of evolution from high-school science texts. The Society for Textbook Revise, an independent branch of the Korea Association for Creation Research which aims to rid biology textbooks of "atheist materialism," was behind the move. The STR claims that this kind of materialism paints an unhopeful picture for students and can lead to their eventual loss of faith.
When the STR's ad campaign made the news, scientists across the world expressed concern. In a letter addressed 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 up by colleagues across the country, who formed an organization called Evolution Korea to organize a petition against the changes to the textbooks.
Some scientists are worried that the STR could expand to other parts of the globe, where creationism has been increasing. The letter to Nature warned of the anti-evolutionist campaign putting pressure on textbook revisions, especially in countries with large Christian and Muslim population.
The South Korean culture is particularly strong in the debate over evolution. 26 percent of South Koreans are members of a religious group with the majority of them practicing Christianity or Buddhism. Many Koreans also follow Ch'ondogyo, the philosophy based on Confucian principles that emphasizes harmony in the social, personal self-cultivation, and self-respect. Ch'ondogyo teaches the human being is one with Hanulnim the God of Sun and that the heavenly blessings are possible by doing good deeds.
All of this has created fertile ground for the spread of creationism. A number of studies have demonstrated that students who have a religious background tend to be more uncomfortable about learning about evolution than students who do not have a religious background. The underlying causes are not evident. Students who are religious may not be as familiar with the theories of science, making them more susceptible to the creationists influence. 에볼루션 코리아 could be that students who have religious backgrounds might view evolution as a concept that is atheistic, making them feel uncomfortable.
2. Evolution and Science
In recent times the scientific community has been concerned about anti-evolution initiatives in schools. A 2009 survey revealed that nearly 40 percent of Americans believe that biological evolution is a lie and that a belief in it would be contrary to their faith-based beliefs. Many scientists believe that despite the fact that creationism has been successful the best way to counter this belief is to educate the public about the evidence supporting evolution.
Scientists have a responsibility to instruct their students in science, including the theory of evolution. They also need to inform the general public about the process of science and how knowledge from science is gathered and confirmed. They must also explain that theories of science are often challenged and revised. However, misconceptions regarding the nature of research conducted by scientists often cause people to believe that evolution is not real.
Some people confuse the word "theory" as a guess, or a guess. However, in science, a theory is rigorously tested and verified through empirical data. A theory that is able to withstand repeated testing and observations becomes an established scientific principle.
The debate about evolutionary theory is an excellent opportunity to discuss the significance of the scientific method and its limitations. It is important for people to recognize that science is not able to answer questions regarding the purpose or meaning of life, but it is merely a means through which living organisms can evolve and change.
Moreover, a well-rounded education should include exposure to all the major scientific fields that include evolutionary biology. This is crucial because the jobs people are employed in and the decisions they make require a understanding of how science functions.
The majority of scientists around the world agree that humans have changed through time. In a recent study, which predicted the opinions of adults about the consensus around this issue, those with higher levels education and scientific knowledge were found to be more likely believe that there is a broad consensus among scientists on the evolution of humans. The people with more religious beliefs and have less science-based knowledge tend to be more skeptical. It is essential that educators emphasize the importance of understanding the general consensus on this issue to ensure that individuals have a solid basis for making informed decisions regarding their health care, energy use and other policy issues.
3. Evolution and Culture
A close cousin to the popular evolutionary theory, cultural evolution focuses on the various ways that organisms, including humans, learn from and with each other. Researchers in this area use explanation tools and models derived from evolutionary theorists. They also go back to prehistoric times to discover the origins of culture.
This approach also acknowledges that there are differences between cultural and biological traits. While biological traits are typically acquired in one go (in sexual species, during fertilization) however, cultural traits can be acquired over a lengthy period of time. In the end, the acquisition of one cultural trait may affect the development of another.
In Korea the emergence of Western style elements in the late 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 clothing and hairstyles.
When Japan left Korea in the 1930s, a few of these trends began to reverse. At the close of World War II, Korea was once more united, this time under the rule of the Choson dynasty.
Today, Korea is an economic and political power. Despite the recent global financial crisis, the country's economy has been growing steadily over the past decade and is poised to maintain its steady growth in the coming years.
The current government is confronted by a myriad of problems. One of the biggest is the inability to come up with a consistent policy to tackle the economic crisis. The crisis has exposed weaknesses of the country's policies, especially its over-reliance on exports and foreign investment, which may not last.
The crisis has shaken the confidence of investors, the government has to rethink its economic strategy and find alternatives to boost domestic demand. It also needs to revamp the incentive monitoring, control, and discipline systems in place to guarantee a stable financial environment. This chapter provides a number of scenarios of how the Korean economy could develop in a post-crisis world.
4. Evolution and Education
A fundamental challenge for evolution educators is how to teach evolutionary concepts in ways that are appropriate for students at various levels of development and ages. Teachers need to, for instance be mindful of the diversity of religions in their classrooms and create a welcoming environment where students from both religious and secular beliefs are at ease. Moreover, teachers need to be aware of the most common misconceptions about evolution and how to address these in their classrooms. Teachers should also have quick access to the various resources that can be used to teach evolution.
In this context, Thinking Evolutionarily Convocation played a significant role in bringing evolutionary researchers and educators from different sectors to discuss the best practices for teaching about Evolution. Attendees included representatives of scientific societies, educational researchers, government funding agency officials and curriculum designers. The convergence of these diverse groups led to the identification of a common set of recommendations that will be the basis for future action.
It is essential to incorporate 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 method to achieve this goal. A new publication from NRC provides guidance for schools on how to incorporate evolution into the life science curriculum.
Numerous studies have demonstrated that a more thorough presentation of evolution is linked to a greater understanding of students and belief in evolution. However the estimation of causal effects in the classroom is a challenge because school curriculums are not assigned randomly and change in time as a result of the predetermined dates of gubernatorial election and appointments to the state board of education. To overcome this issue I utilize a longitudinal data set that lets me control for year and state fixed effects and the individual-level variation in the beliefs of teachers about evolution.
Another significant finding is that teachers who feel more comfortable teaching about evolution report having fewer personal barriers to doing so. This is in line with the idea that more confident faculty are less likely to be hesitant about evolution-related topics in the classroom. They may also be more inclined to use strategies such as a reconciliatory approach known to increase the students' understanding of evolution.