The Complete Guide To Evolution Korea
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Evolution Korea
The financial crisis that struck Asia forced a major reappraisal of the old system of business-government alliances and the public management of private risks. In Korea this meant a change in the development paradigm.
In a controversial decision the South Korean government has requested textbook publishers to ignore requests for the removal of examples of evolution in science texts for high school students. This includes evidence of the evolution of horses and the bird ancestral Archaeopteryx.
1. Evolution and Religion
A South Korean creationist group has pushed textbook publishers to remove 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 such materialism creates a negative image for students, leading them to abandon their faith.
Scientists across the globe expressed concern when the STR campaign gained attention. In a letter to the editor of Nature evolutionary biologist Jae Choe at Ewha Womans University in Seoul complained that South Korea had given in to religious prejudice. He was supported by colleagues from around the country who gathered into a group named Evolution Korea to organize an anti-textbook petition.
Some scientists are also concerned about the possibility that the STR campaign will be spread to other parts of the world where the prevalence of creationism is rising. The letter to Nature warned that the anti-evolutionist movement will push for textbook revisions in other countries, especially those with strong Christian and Muslim populations.
South Korea's cultural background is particularly strong in the evolution debate. 26 percent of the country's citizens belong to an organized religion and the majority of them adhere to Christianity or Buddhism. Many Koreans also adhere to Ch'ondogyo - an ideology based on Confucian principles that is a strong advocate of social harmony, individual self-cultivation and self-respect. Ch'ondogyo believes that humans are one with Hanulnim the God of the Sun, and that heaven-bound blessings are possible by doing good deeds.
All of this has made creationism a fertile ground. Numerous studies have revealed that students with religious backgrounds are more hesitant about learning evolution than those without religion. The underlying causes are not obvious. One possible explanation is that students with religious beliefs tend to be as familiar with scientific theories and concepts which makes them more susceptible to the influence of creationists. Another factor could be that students with religious backgrounds might view evolution as a concept that is not a religion, which makes them feel uncomfortable.
2. Evolution and Science
In recent years, anti-evolution campaigns in schools have raised concerns in the scientific community. A 2009 survey revealed that nearly 40 percent of Americans believe that biological evolution is a lie and that a belief in it would conflict with their convictions about religion. Many scientists believe that, despite the success of creationism the best way to counter this belief is to educate the public about the evidence that supports evolution.
Scientists are accountable for teaching their students science, which includes the theory of evolution. They must also inform people about the science process and how knowledge is gathered and confirmed. They must explain how scientific theories are frequently challenged and changed. However, misperceptions regarding the nature of scientific research frequently create anti-evolution beliefs.
Some people interpret the term "theory" as a hunch, or a guess. However, in science, a theory is rigorously tested and verified through empirical data. A theory that is tested and observed repeatedly is then a scientific principle.
The debate about evolutionary theory is an excellent opportunity to discuss the importance of the scientific method and its limitations. It is essential to be aware that science is not able to answer questions about life's purpose or meaning, but allows living things to grow and adapt.
A well-rounded education should cover the vast majority of scientific fields including evolutionary biology. This is crucial because the jobs that people hold and the decisions they make require a understanding of how science works.
The vast majority of scientists around world accept that humans have evolved over time. A recent study predicting adults' view of the consensus on this subject found that those with higher levels of education and knowledge of science were more likely to believe that there is a broad agreement among scientists about human evolution. People with a higher level of religious belief but less knowledge of science tend to be more divided. It is important that educators emphasize the importance of understanding this consensus to enable people to make informed choices about energy use, health care and other issues of policy.
3. Evolution and Culture
A close relative to the mainstream evolutionary theory, cultural evolution explores the many ways that humans and other species learn from and interact with each other. Researchers in this area use elaborate tools and investigative models adapted from evolutionary theorists and go back to prehistoric times to discover the origins of culture.
This method also acknowledges the differences between the characteristics of culture and biological. While biological traits are largely inherited all at once (in sexual species, after fertilization), cultural traits can be acquired over a lengthy period of time. This means that the acquisition of one trait can influence the development of another.
In Korea for instance the introduction of Western fashion elements in the late 19th century and early 20th century was the result of a variety of events. One of the most important was the arrival of Japanese occupation forces who introduced Western hairstyles and styles of clothing to Korean society.
Then, when Japan left Korea in the 1930s, some of these trends began reverse. By the end of World War II, Korea was once more united, this time under the rule of the Choson dynasty.
Today, Korea is a vibrant economic and political power. Despite the financial crisis of recent Korea's economy has been growing steadily over the past decade. It is expected to keep this get more info trend going in the near future.
The current government faces numerous challenges. One of the most significant is its inability to develop a consistent policy to deal with the economic crisis. The crisis has exposed the weaknesses of the country's economic policies, mainly its overreliance on exports and foreign investment that may not be sustainable in the long run.
The crisis has shaken the confidence of investors. As a result, the government has to reconsider its approach and find other ways to boost the domestic demand. It will also have to revamp the incentive, monitoring, and disciplining systems that are currently in place to ensure an environment that is stable for the financial sector. This chapter presents several scenarios for how the Korean economy could grow in a post-crisis environment.
4. Evolution and Education
The challenge for teachers of evolution is to teach evolutionary concepts that are appropriate for different stages of development and ages. Teachers need to, for instance be mindful of the religious diversity in their classrooms and create an environment where students from both religious and secular perspectives are at ease. Additionally, teachers must recognize the most common misconceptions about evolution and how to deal with them in their classrooms. Teachers must also have quick access to the many resources that can be used to teach evolution.
In this regard, the Thinking Evolutionarily Convocation had a key role in bringing together evolutionary researchers and educators from a variety of sectors to discuss best practices for teaching Evolution. Participants included representatives from scientific societies as well as educational research, officials from government funding agencies and curriculum developers. The convergence of these diverse parties resulted in a consensus set of recommendations that will be the basis for future actions.
It is crucial to include evolution in all science curricula, at every level. To achieve this goal the National Science Education Standards (NRC) require that evolution be taught in a unified way across the life sciences using a sequence of concepts that are developmental appropriate. Furthermore, a new publication from the NRC provides guidance to schools on how they can integrate evolution into the life science curriculum.
Numerous studies have shown that a more comprehensive teaching of evolution is linked to higher levels of student understanding and belief in evolution. It is difficult to determine the causality of teaching in the classroom, since school curricula don't change in a random manner and are affected by the timing of state boards of education and gubernatorial election. To overcome this problem I employ an ongoing dataset that gives me control for state and years fixed effects as well as individual-level differences in the beliefs of teachers about evolutionary theory.
Teachers who are more comfortable teaching evolution have less internal barriers. This is in line with the idea that more confident faculty are less likely to avoid teaching about evolution in the classroom. They may also be more inclined to employ strategies such as a reconciliatory approach which is used to increase undergraduate students' acceptance of evolution.