Evolution Korea
The economic crisis that swept across Asia prompted a major reappraisal the old system of government and business alliances, as well the public management of risks. In Korea this meant a change in the model of development.
In a controversial move, South Korea's government has asked textbook publishers not to comply with calls to remove examples of evolution in science books for high school students. This includes the evidence supporting the evolution of horses and the bird an ancestor Archaeopteryx.
1. Evolution and Religion
A group of creationists in South Korea has successfully convinced textbook publishers to remove evidence of evolution from science textbooks for high school students. 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 decision. The STR claims that this kind of materialism paints an unhopeful picture for students and can lead to their eventual loss of faith.
Scientists around the globe expressed concerns when the STR campaign was featured in the news. Jae Choe, evolutionary biologist at Ewha Womans University, Seoul wrote in an email to Nature's editor that South Korea had succumbed to religious prejudice. He was supported by colleagues from across the country, who formed a group called Evolution Korea to organize an anti-textbook petition.
Some scientists are worried that the STR campaign could spread to other parts of the world, where creationism is on the rise. The letter to Nature warned that the anti-evolutionist movement will push for textbook revisions in other countries, notably those with large Christian and Muslim population.
South Korea has a particularly powerful cultural backdrop for the debate on evolution. 26 percent of South Koreans are members of a religion and the majority of them practice Christianity or Buddhism. Many Koreans also adhere to Ch'ondogyo - the philosophy based on Confucian principles, which is a strong advocate of social harmony, individual self-cultivation, and self-respect. Ch'ondogyo is a way of teaching that the human being is one with Hanulnim, the God of Sun, and that divine blessings are achievable by doing good deeds.
All of this has provided an ideal environment for the spread of creationism. Multiple studies have shown students who have a religious background to be more uncomfortable learning about evolution as compared to those who do not. However, the root causes of this phenomenon are unclear. Students with a religious background may be less experienced with the theories of science, making them more susceptible to creationists and their influence. Another factor could be that students with a religious background may view evolution as an idea that is agnostic, making them less comfortable.
2. Evolution and Science
In recent years, campaigns against evolution in schools have raised concerns 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 would be in conflict with their religious beliefs. Many scientists believe that, despite the fact that creationism has been successful the best method to stop this movement is to educate the public about the evidence that supports evolution.
Scientists are accountable for teaching their students science including the theory of evolution. They must also educate the public on the research process and the way in which knowledge is verified. They should also explain how scientific theories are often challenged and revised. However, misunderstandings about the nature of research conducted by scientists often fuel anti-evolution beliefs.
For instance, some people confuse the term "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 has survived repeated testing and observation becomes an established scientific principle.
The debate about evolutionary theory is a good opportunity to discuss the significance of the scientific method and its limitations. It is crucial for people to understand that science cannot answer questions about the meaning or meaning of life, it only serves as a mechanism by which living things can develop and adapt.
A well-rounded education must include exposure to all major scientific fields including evolutionary biology. This is especially important since the jobs that people hold and the decisions they make require understanding of how science works.
The vast majority scientists in the world believe that humans have evolved through time. A recent study predicting adults' opinions of the consensus around this issue found that those who had higher levels of education and science knowledge were more likely to believe that there is a general consensus among scientists on the subject of human evolution. The people with more religious beliefs and less knowledge of science tend to be more skeptical. It is essential that teachers insist on the importance of gaining an understanding of this consensus, so that people can make informed decisions about the use of energy, health care and other issues of policy.
3. Evolution and Culture
Cultural evolution is a close cousin of the popular evolutionary theory. It focuses on the ways that humans and other species learn from each other. Researchers in this area use explanation tools and models that are adapted from evolutionary theorists and go back to prehistoric times to discover the origins of culture.
This method also acknowledges the differences between cultural and biological traits. Cultural traits can be acquired gradually, whereas biological traits are usually acquired simultaneously (in sexual species at fertilization). This means that the acquisition of one cultural trait may affect the development of another.
In Korea for instance the emergence of Western fashion elements in the latter part of the 19th and early 20th centuries was the result of a complicated sequence of events. One of the most significant was the arrival of Japanese occupation forces, who introduced Western hairstyles and styles of clothing to Korean society.
When Japan departed Korea in the 1930s, some of these trends began to change. At the end of World War II, Korea was united once more and again under Choson dynasty rule.
Today, Korea is a vibrant economic and political power. Despite the recent financial crisis the economy of Korea has been growing at a steady pace over the last decade. It is expected to keep this trend going in the near future.
The current government is confronted with many challenges. One of the most serious is its inability to find a coherent policy to tackle the economic crisis. The crisis has revealed the weaknesses of the country's economic policies, including its excessive dependence on exports and foreign investment, which may not be sustainable in the long run.
The crisis has shaken the confidence of investors, the government needs to rethink its economic strategy and look for alternatives to increase domestic demand. It will also have to reform the incentive, monitoring, and disciplining systems that are in place to guarantee an environment that is stable for the financial sector. This chapter presents several scenarios of how the Korean economy might grow in a post-crisis environment.
4. Evolution and Education
A fundamental challenge for educators of evolution is how to teach evolutionary concepts in ways that are appropriate for students at various ages and developmental stages. Teachers must, for example be mindful of the religious diversity in their classrooms and create an environment where students with both religious and secular perspectives feel comfortable. Teachers should be able to recognize common misconceptions regarding evolution and be able to address them in the classroom. Teachers must also have easy access to the many resources available to teach evolution.
In this context the Thinking Evolutionarily Convocation was an important step towards bringing evolutionary scientists and educators from a variety of sectors to discuss the best practices for teaching evolution. Participants included representatives from scientific societies as well as educational researchers, government funding agency officials as well as curriculum developers. The convergence of these diverse stakeholders resulted in a consensus set of recommendations that will serve as the basis for future actions.
에볼루션 슬롯게임 of the most important recommendations is that the study of evolution should be included in all science curricula at any level. To accomplish this it is recommended that the National Science Education Standards (NRC) call for evolution to be taught in an integrated manner across all sciences with a progression of concepts that are developmental appropriate. Additionally, a new publication from the NRC offers guidelines to schools on how they can integrate evolution into the life science curriculum.
A number of studies have demonstrated that a more thorough and comprehensive understanding of evolution is associated with higher levels of student understanding and belief in the concept of evolution. However it is difficult to determine the causal effect of evolution 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 timing of gubernatorial elections and state board of education appointments. To overcome this limitation I use a longitudinal data set that gives me to control for the fixed effects of state and years as well as individual-level differences in the beliefs of teachers about evolutionary theory.
Another important finding is that teachers who are more comfortable teaching evolution report having fewer personal barriers to teaching it. This is in line with the notion that faculty who are more confident are less likely to avoid evolution-related topics in the classroom, and could be more likely to employ strategies such as a reconciliatory approach that is known to boost undergraduate students' acceptance of evolution.