The status of creation and evolution in public education has been the subject of substantial debate and conflict in legal, political, and religious circles.
[1][3] Some adherents of these Christian and Islamic religious sects or political groups are passionately opposed to the consensus view of the scientific community.
[1] Internationally, biological evolution is taught in science courses with limited controversy, with the exception of a few areas of the United States and several Muslim-majority countries, primarily Turkey.
In the United States, intelligent design (ID) has been represented as an alternative explanation to evolution in recent decades, but its "demonstrably religious, cultural, and legal missions" have been ruled unconstitutional by a lower court.
The practice was directly initiated by politicians in power who were promoting their personal religious views, and their action moved Brazilian scientists to protest the abuse.
[14] For example, a Brazilian senator, Marcelo Crivella, the former Minister of Fishing and Aquaculture, publicly declared his religiously founded antagonism to evolution.
However, one study has identified limitations with the textbooks used in Mainland China, including the absence of topics covered in other countries such as the USSR and the USA.
The resolution observed that "The war on the theory of evolution and on its proponents most often originates in forms of religious extremism closely linked to extreme right-wing political movements," and urged member states "firmly oppose the teaching of creationism as a scientific discipline on an equal footing with the theory of evolution and in general the presentation of creationist ideas in any discipline other than religion.
According to India's National Council for Education, Research and Training (NCERT), this decision was made to lighten students' workload following the Covid-19 pandemic.
An emphasis is placed on empirical evidence, such as the study of fossils, rather than Islamic scripture, thus portraying geologists and other types of scientists as the authoritative voices of scientific knowledge.
[37] Poland saw a controversy over creationism in 2006 when Deputy Education Minister Mirosław Orzechowski denounced evolution as a lie taught in Polish schools.
Science textbooks approved by the Saudi Ministry of Education have associated Darwin with Western philosophy which they reject and perceive to be "problematic".
[47] Saudi's denial of evolution originated from the lack of secularization in the nation, the continuing development of its education system, and its homogenic religious population.
[25] The rest of the textbook focuses on descriptions of the taxonomic ranks: it makes no further mention of evolution, only quoting Qur'an verses as relevant to certain groups of animals.
[51] "After a deluge of protest from scientists, teachers and opposition parties" says the BBC report, Čolić's deputy, Milan Brdar, made the statement, "I have come here to confirm Charles Darwin is still alive" and announced that the decision was reversed.
[55] In fact, some prominent Turkish scholars during the first decades of the new-born Turkish republic, such as Ahmet Hamdi Akseki (d. 1951), who once served as the President of Religious Affairs of Turkey, and İzmirli İsmail Hakkı (d. 1946) thought that the theory of evolution cannot be seen as contrary to Islam because it was already to be found in the classical works of Muslim theology.
[56] In the 1980s, conservatives came into power, and used the ideas of scientific creationists in the US as a method of discrediting evolution (notwithstanding material on the age of the Earth, which Islamic creationism is less specific about).
One anti-evolutionist group in Turkey is the Istanbul based Bilim Araştırma Vakfı (BAV), or "Science Research Foundation," which was founded by Adnan Oktar in 1990.
Some scientists have protested that anti-evolution books published by this group (such as The Evolution Deceit (1999) by Harun Yahya) have become more influential than real biology textbooks.
The teaching of evolution in high schools has been fought by Ali Gören, a member of parliament and professor of medicine, who believes such education has negative effects.
For example, in 1985 the Minister of National Education, Youth and Sports Vehbi Dinçerler had scientific creationism added to high school texts, and also had the discredited Lamarckism presented alongside Darwinism.
[58] In April 2008, the defendant was acquitted by a court and a judge ruled against banning the book due to the fact that it limited freedom of thought.
[60][61][citation needed] In each of the countries of the United Kingdom, there is an agreed syllabus for religious education with the right of parents to withdraw their children from these lessons.
[68] The teaching of creationism and intelligent design in schools in the UK is being opposed by the British Centre for Science Education (BCSE).
[73] The Edwards v. Aguillard ruling of the Supreme Court set a Lemon test that limits teaching of creationism in government run schools.