Science and Religion in Education


Book Description

This book brings together the latest research in education in relation to science and religion. Leading international scholars and practitioners provide vital insights into the underlying debates and present a range of practical approaches for teaching. Key themes include the origin of the universe, the theory of evolution, the nature of the human person, the nature of science and Artificial Intelligence. These are explored in a range of international contexts. The book provides a valuable resource for teachers, students and researchers in the fields of education, science, religious education and the growing specialist field of science and religion. Science and Religion in Education is a compelling read for current and future generations of academic researchers and teachers who wish to explore the fascinating intersect between science education and religious studies. The research findings and insights presented by these international scholars offer new dimensions on contemporary practice. - Vaille Dawson, Professor of Science Education, University of Western Australia Science and Religion in Education offers a fascinating and diverse collection of chapters surveying the current state of thinking about how science and religion can be understood in education. The book offers a wealth of thought-provoking material for anyone interested in the natures of science and religion, their relationship(s), or their representation within the curriculum. - Professor Keith Taber, University of Cambridge Science education and religious education are uncomfortable bedfellows. This book, written in part as a response to the – perhaps too clear – accounts of Ian Barbour, provides suitably nuanced pictures of how science and religion are dealt with in schools. Whatever the views of specialists, young people ‘receive’ an education in both science and religion: hearing their voices is refreshing in such a serious academic account. - Julian Stern, Professor of Education and Religion, York St John University Humans have long endeavored to make sense of the world often using science and religion. Yet, these two great traditions are frequently seen as incompatible. This useful volume features thoughtful contributions from experts whose work straddles the divide and provides educators with arguments, engaging strategies and historical perspectives to help build a bridge and allow a fruitful discussion in schools. - William F. McComas, Distinguished Professor of Science Education, University of Arkansas Equal parts critical examination of existing models for the relationship between science and religion, scholarly exposition of newer models, and insights toward practical application in classrooms, this book is an invaluable resource for science and religion educators. If you have been thinking it is time we looked beyond Barbour’s taxonomy, you will want to read this book. If you have not, I implore you to read this book. - Jason Wiles, Associate Professor of Biology and Science Education, Syracuse University




Making Sense of Science and Religion


Book Description

"It's inevitable: If your lessons deal with evolution, genetics, the origin of the universe, or climate change, some students are bound to question whether they can reconcile what you teach with what they believe about religion. "Making Sense of Science and Religion" is the book that will help you anticipate and respond to their questions-and help students learn science while maintaining their religious beliefs. Understanding that science and religion can co-exist can also make students more willing to learn, regardless of messages to the contrary that they may hear outside of your classroom. This book is divided into three parts: (1) a framework for addressing science-religion issues in a legal, constitutional manner; (2) guidance on teaching specific scientific concepts at every grade level; and (3) advice for engaging families, administrators, school boards, policy makers, and faith communities. The book's authors are all personally and professionally invested in the subject. They are a mix of K-12 teachers, college professors, and experts from organizations such as the American Association for the Advancement of Science and the Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History. As the preface notes, their hope is that you'll find "the concise yet comprehensive nature of this book useful to your everyday work and to your greater understanding of science and religion.""--




A Teacher’s Guide to Science and Religion in the Classroom


Book Description

A Teacher’s Guide to Science and Religion in the Classroom provides practical guidance on how to help children access positive ways of thinking about the relationship between science and religion. Written for teachers of children from diverse-faith and non-faith backgrounds, it explores key concepts, identifies gaps and common misconceptions in children’s knowledge, and offers advice on how to help them form a deeper understanding of both science and religion. Drawing on the latest research as well as the designs of successful workshops for teachers and for children, there are activities in each chapter that have been shown to help children understand why science and religion do not necessarily conflict. The book highlights children’s interest in the so-called "Big Questions" that bridge science and religion and responds to the research finding that most children are missing ideas that are key to an explanation of why science and religion can be harmonious. The book explores key concepts and ideas including: Nature of science Power and limits of science Evolution, genes and human improvement Miracles, natural disasters and mystery Profiles of scientists, including Galileo and Newton A Teacher’s Guide to Science and Religion is an essential companion for preservice and practising teachers, providing session plans and pedagogic strategies, together with a cohesive framework, that will support teachers in fostering children’s curiosity and enthusiasm for learning.




Science Vs. Religion


Book Description

That the longstanding antagonism between science and religion is irreconcilable has been taken for granted. And in the wake of recent controversies over teaching intelligent design and the ethics of stem-cell research, the divide seems as unbridgeable as ever.In Science vs. Religion, Elaine Howard Ecklund investigates this unexamined assumption in the first systematic study of what scientists actually think and feel about religion. In the course of her research, Ecklund surveyed nearly 1,700 scientists and interviewed 275 of them. She finds that most of what we believe about the faith lives of elite scientists is wrong. Nearly 50 percent of them are religious. Many others are what she calls "spiritual entrepreneurs," seeking creative ways to work with the tensions between science and faith outside the constraints of traditional religion. The book centers around vivid portraits of 10 representative men and women working in the natural and social sciences at top American research universities. Ecklund's respondents run the gamut from Margaret, a chemist who teaches a Sunday-school class, to Arik, a physicist who chose not to believe in God well before he decided to become a scientist. Only a small minority are actively hostile to religion. Ecklund reveals how scientists-believers and skeptics alike-are struggling to engage the increasing number of religious students in their classrooms and argues that many scientists are searching for "boundary pioneers" to cross the picket lines separating science and religion.With broad implications for education, science funding, and the thorny ethical questions surrounding stem-cell research, cloning, and other cutting-edge scientific endeavors, Science vs. Religion brings a welcome dose of reality to the science and religion debates.




Religion and American Education


Book Description

Warren Nord's thoughtful book tackles an issue of great importance in contemporary America: the role of religion in our public schools and universities. According to Nord, public opinion has been excessively polarized by those religious conservatives who would restore religious purposes and practices to public education and by those secular liberals for whom religion is irrelevant to everything in the curriculum. While he maintains that public schools and universities must not promote religion, he also argues that there are powerful philosophical, political, moral, and constitutional reasons for requiring students to study religion. Indeed, only if religion is included in the curriculum will students receive a truly liberal education, one that takes seriously a variety of ways of understanding the human experience. Intended for a broad audience, Nord's comprehensive study encompasses American history, constitutional law, educational theory and practice, theology, philosophy, and ethics. It also discusses a number of current, controversial issues, including multiculturalism, moral education, creationism, academic freedom, and the voucher and school choice movements.




Evolution and Religion in American Education


Book Description

Evolution and Religion in American Education shines a light into one of America’s dark educational corners, exposing the regressive pedagogy that can invade science classrooms when school boards and state overseers take their eyes off the ball. It sets out to examine the development of college students’ attitudes towards biological evolution through their lives. The fascinating insights provided by interviewing students about their world views adds up to a compelling case for additional scrutiny of the way young people’s educational experiences unfold as they consider—and indeed in some cases reject—one of science’s strongest and most cogent theoretical constructs. Inevitably, open discussion and consideration of the theory of evolution can chip away at the mental framework constructed by Creationists, eroding the foundations of their faith. The conceptual battleground is so fraught with logical challenges to Creationist dogma that in a number of cases students’ exposure to such dangerous ideas is actively prevented. This book provides a detailed map of this astonishing struggle in today’s America—a struggle many had thought was done and dusted with the onset of the Enlightenment.




Science and Religion: A Very Short Introduction


Book Description

The debate between science and religion is never out of the news: emotions run high, fuelled by polemical bestsellers like The God Delusion and, at the other end of the spectrum, high-profile campaigns to teach "Intelligent Design" in schools. Yet there is much more to the debate than the clash of these extremes. As Thomas Dixon shows in this balanced and thought-provoking introduction, a whole range of views, subtle arguments, and fascinating perspectives can be found on this complex and centuries-old subject. He explores the key philosophical questions that underlie the debate, but also highlights the social, political, and ethical contexts that have made the tensions between science and religion such a fraught and interesting topic in the modern world. Dixon emphasizes how the modern conflict between evolution and creationism is quintessentially an American phenomenon, arising from the culture and history of the United States, as exemplified through the ongoing debates about how to interpret the First-Amendment's separation of church and state. Along the way, he examines landmark historical episodes such as the Galileo affair, Charles Darwin's own religious and scientific odyssey, the Scopes "Monkey Trial" in Tennessee in 1925, and the Dover Area School Board case of 2005, and includes perspectives from non-Christian religions and examples from across the physical, biological, and social sciences. About the Series: Combining authority with wit, accessibility, and style, Very Short Introductions offer an introduction to some of life's most interesting topics. Written by experts for the newcomer, they demonstrate the finest contemporary thinking about the central problems and issues in hundreds of key topics, from philosophy to Freud, quantum theory to Islam.




Science and Religion in Schools


Book Description

The aim of the Science and Religion in Schools Project, the first major project of its kind, is to encourage the teaching in schools of issues concerning the debate between the claims of science and those of the major world religions. We want to stimulate open-minded discussion and to ensure that students are well informed and have a balanced picture of the different views involved. Aimed at students aged from 11 to 19 (a separate guide and CD ROM is available for Primary School students aged 7 to 11) the materials are differentiated and offer a range of teaching and learning styles. To make this possible we are providing a very wide range of materials for teachers and students. This includes background information since there are few teachers, either of Religious Education or of Science, who can claim to be equally well informed about both subjects and would therefor be able to therefor be able to cover these topics with complete confidence. A broad range of materials is required, not only because the subject itself is broad, but because the examination system in the UK still provides a very diverse set of syllabuses for Religious Education and Religious Studies. By providing such a range we can most areas which are examined and also encourage syllabus writers to increase the representation of this important debate in future curricula. No teacher could possibly cover all this material but we hope that all teachers will be able to use some. The materials have been written and edited by practising teachers or those with recent experience of classroom teaching. They have all been trialled in schools and rewritten in the light of comments and criticism. University experts have reviewed them for academic accuracy. For the sake of busy teachers we have provided background reading and lesson plans designed for ease of use. We hope that more experienced teachers will change and develop what they find here to suit their own students and their own particular teaching styles. It is hoped that the materials will act as a stimulus and not be treated as a course which must be rigidly adhered to. The Guide is designed to give an idea of the scope and quality of the materials, which are available in full in the attached CD ROM. It includes summaries of each topic, and units within the topics,to give teachers a flavour of how that particular topic or unit is treated and to make it easier to decide which they wish to study in greater depth. What we present here is the work of many people, but it should be seen as a first rather than a final edition. Thanks to 'Print on Demand' and the CD ROM, we are able to produce a great deal of material at a modest cost. Moreover, it will be possible to produce 'new editions' relatively cheaply and frequently. This will enable us to cover some areas which we have not yet been able to cover and to improve the quality of what is already there. This project should be seen as ongoing rather than complete. We shall rely on those using the material to keep us informed about their opinion of the material and to suggest improvements. We hope that teachers and their students will enjoy what they find here and may contribute in the future. We are greatly encouraged by the interest already shown in this project both in the UK and around the world and hope that you will find these materials exciting, stimulating and enjoyable. If you have ideas about how these materials could be improved or extended please contact us at [email protected] or by using the feedback on the CD ROM or on the website. The project has been supported by a grant from the John Templeton Foundation.




Religion Vs. Science


Book Description

At the end of a five-year journey to find out what religious Americans think about science, Ecklund and Scheitle emerge with the real story of the relationship between science and religion in American culture. Based on the most comprehensive survey ever done-representing a range of religious traditions and faith positions-Religion vs. Science is a story that is more nuanced and complex than the media and pundits would lead us to believe. The way religious Americans approach science is shaped by two fundamental questions: What does science mean for the existence and activity of God? What does science mean for the sacredness of humanity? How these questions play out as individual believers think about science both challenges stereotypes and highlights the real tensions between religion and science. Ecklund and Scheitle interrogate the widespread myths that religious people dislike science and scientists and deny scientific theories. Religion vs. Science is a definitive statement on a timely, popular subject. Rather than a highly conceptual approach to historical debates, philosophies, or personal opinions, Ecklund and Scheitle give readers a facts-on-the-ground, empirical look at what religious Americans really understand and think about science.




Religion Versus Science


Book Description

As commonly presented the great battle between science and religion over evolution is intractable. This book maintains that the approaches both sides take in the debate drive most of the fury in the debate. Although the facts of evolution are beyond doubt, the big mistake that many scientists make is to present these facts using a materialistic premise that is not scientifically defendable. The resulting model for evolution implies that humans arose on this planet merely by chance, that the value of our lives is based only upon the genes that we carry within us, and that our lives are essentially meaningless. Naturally religious people recoil in horror as such a bleak view of human existence. In this book Dr. Frost argues that all the World's Religions advocate for the existence of a transcendent consciousness. Scientific studies can in no way prove or disprove the existence of this consciousness.