Posted on: Monday, August 6, 2001

Editorial
BOE comes to senses on creationism

If three hours of noisy and theatrical debate was what it took to shake the state Board of Education out of its poorly-thought-out dalliance with creationism, it was well worth while.

The board was on a gangplank toward nothing but controversy and distraction in its thought that it might make sense to teach creationism along with evolution in public school science classes.

Fortunately, good sense prevailed, and the board voted unanimously to keep evolution as the only theory of biological origin taught in our science classes.

The debate over evolution and creation is a profound one, well worth consideration by our public school students as they consider who they are, where they come from and their place in the physical and spiritual universe.

But it has no place in a science classroom, where students are supposed to learn the techniques and rigor of scientific thought and investigation.

Most of the world's religions and belief systems have convictions about how the world and life began. And these beliefs are not in conflict — in the most basic way — with the theory of evolution as it has come to be understood.

But they are in conflict with the scientific method and our understanding of biological life as the facts present themselves.

The board made the right decision.