The teaching of biological evolution: is it essential to the scientific progress?

Abstract

Nowadays the teaching of biological evolution faces the creationist movement that claims this theme has no scientific evidence and that it could be excluded from the educational system. A challenging question about whether the exclusion of the teaching of Darwinian Evolution would harm the scientific progress was asked to a Brazilian population sample. In general, the results showed a rejection of the above question. Among the religious respondents, Spiritualists were those showing higher acceptance of the proposed statement whereas the Evangelicals were those less agreeing with the proposed question and with a considerable percentage of disagreement; Catholics were in a median position, agreeing with the question and a few rejecting it. The more educated the respondents were the higher acceptance of the question. The present study revealed that even the inquired creationists recognize that the teaching of biological evolution is essential in modern science.