Evolution Korea
The economic crisis that swept across Asia caused a major review of the old system of government and business alliances, and public management of risk. In Korea this meant an evolution of the development paradigm.
In a controversial move, the South Korean government has asked publishers of textbooks to ignore calls to remove examples of evolution in high school science textbooks. This includes evidence for the evolution of horses as well as the bird ancestral Archaeopteryx.
- Evolution and Religion
A South Korean creationist group has convinced textbook publishers to eliminate evidence of evolution from high school science texts. The Society for Textbook Revise, an offshoot of the Korea Association for Creation Research that aims to cleanse biology textbooks of "atheist materialism," was behind the move. The STR claims that this kind of materialistic thinking creates a negative picture for students and leads to their eventual loss of faith.
When the STR's ad campaign made the news, scientists from all over the globe expressed worry. In a letter addressed to the editor of Nature the evolutionary biologist Jae Choe of Ewha Womans University in Seoul complained that South Korea had given in to religious prejudice. He was backed by colleagues from across the country who gathered into a group named Evolution Korea to organize an anti-textbook petition.
Researchers are also concerned that the STR campaign will spread to other parts of the world where creationism is on the rise. The letter to Nature warned that the anti-evolution movement will push for textbook revisions in other countries, especially those with large Christian and Muslim populations.
South Korea has a particularly strong cultural background for the evolution debate. 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, a philosophy based upon Confucian principles, which emphasizes 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 possible through good works.
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. The reasons behind this aren't clear. One reason is that students with a religious background tend not to be as knowledgeable about scientific concepts and theories which makes them more vulnerable to the influence of creationists. Another reason could be that students with religious backgrounds might view evolution as a belief system that is agnostic, making them feel uncomfortable.
- Evolution and Science
In recent years, anti-evolution programs in schools have raised concerns among the scientific community. A 2009 survey revealed that nearly 40% of Americans believe that biological evolution is a lie and Evolutionkr.kr that a belief in it would be contrary to their religious beliefs. Despite the fact that creationism has been a huge success in some states, many scientists believe that the best strategy to combat this inclination is not to actively engage in with it, but rather educate the public on the evidence supporting evolution.
Scientists are accountable for teaching their students science including the theory of evolution. They also need to inform the public about the research process and the way in which knowledge is validated. They must explain how scientific theories are frequently challenged and changed. However, misperceptions regarding the nature of research conducted by scientists often create anti-evolution beliefs.
For instance, some people are able to confuse the term "theory" with the everyday meaning of the word - a guess or guess. In the realm of science, a theory is thoroughly tested and verified using evidence. A theory that is repeatedly tested and observed becomes a scientific principle.
The debate on evolution theory is an excellent occasion to discuss both the importance of the scientific method and its limits. It is crucial to realize that science is unable to answer questions about the purpose or meaning of life but it is merely a means that allows living things to grow and change.
A comprehensive education should include exposure to the major fields of science including evolutionary biology. This is particularly important because the jobs people are employed in and the decisions they make require knowledge of how science works.
The majority of scientists around the world agree that humans have evolved over time. A recent study that predicted adults' views of the consensus around this issue found that those with higher levels of education and knowledge of science were more likely to believe there is a broad agreement among scientists about human evolution. The people who have more religious beliefs but less science knowledge tend to disagree more. It is essential that teachers insist on the importance of gaining an understanding of this consensus, to enable people to make informed decisions about energy use, health care and other policy issues.
- Evolution and Culture
Cultural evolution is a close relative of the popular evolutionary theory. It explores how organisms like humans learn from each other. Researchers in this area use elaborate tools and investigative models adapted from evolutionary theorists and go back to the prehistoric human to discover the origins of culture.
This method also acknowledges that there are differences between cultural and biological traits. While biological traits are typically acquired at once (in sexual species, after fertilization), cultural traits can be acquired over a lengthy period of time. The acquisition of a cultural characteristic can affect the development and growth of another.
In Korea the introduction of Western styles in the late nineteenth and early twentieth century was the result of a complex sequence of events. One of the most important was the arrival in Korea of Japanese occupation forces, who introduced Western clothing and hairstyles.
When Japan left Korea in the 1930s, some of these trends began revert. At the close of World War II, Korea was once more united, this time under Choson dynasty rule.
Today, Korea is an economic and political power. Despite the financial crisis of recent the economy of Korea has been growing consistently over the past decade. It is anticipated to continue to grow in the coming years.
The current government is faced by a myriad of problems. The inability of the government to come up with a coherent plan to tackle the current economic crisis is among the biggest challenges. The crisis has revealed weaknesses of the country's policies and its reliance on exports and foreign investment that may not last.
The financial crisis has shaken the confidence of investors. This means that the government needs to reconsider its approach and find other ways to increase domestic demand. It also needs to revamp the incentive monitoring, monitoring, and discipline systems that are in place to guarantee an environment that is stable for the financial sector. This chapter provides a variety of scenarios of how the Korean economy might develop in the post-crisis era.
- Evolution and Education
The biggest challenge for evolution educators is how to present evolutionary concepts in ways that are appropriate for students of various age groups and developmental stages. For instance, teachers need to be aware of the religious diversity of their classrooms and create a space that students who have religious and secular beliefs feel comfortable in learning about evolution. Teachers should also be able to identify common misconceptions about evolution and know how to correct them in the classroom. Teachers should also have quick access to the various resources to teach evolution.
In this context, the Thinking Evolutionarily Convocation was a crucial step in bringing together evolutionary scientists and educators from a variety of sectors to discuss the best practices for teaching evolution. Attendees included representatives of scientific societies and educational researchers, as well as government funding agency officials, and curriculum developers. The convergence of these diverse groups resulted in a consensus set of recommendations that will be the basis for future action.
It is important to include evolution in all science curricula at every level. National Science Education Standards (NRC), which call for the integration of evolution across all life sciences, with an educational progression that is developmental appropriate, are one method to achieve this goal. Additionally, a new publication from the NRC offers guidance to schools on how to integrate evolution into the life science curriculum.
A number of studies have demonstrated that a more thorough and comprehensive understanding of evolution can lead to greater student knowledge and belief in evolution. However the estimation of causal effects 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 an ongoing dataset that gives me to control the fixed effects of state and years as well as individual-level differences in the beliefs of teachers regarding evolutionary theory.
Teachers who are more comfortable in teaching evolution have less internal barriers. This is in line with the idea that more experienced faculty are less likely to be hesitant about teaching about evolution in the classroom, and could be more inclined to employ strategies such as a reconciliatory approach which is used to increase undergraduate students' acceptance of evolution.