Evolution Korea
The financial crisis that struck Asia caused a significant rethinking of the old system of government-business alliances and public management of private risks. In Korea this required a change in the development model.
In a controversial move, the South Korean government has asked textbook publishers to ignore requests for the removal of examples of evolution from high school science textbooks. This includes evidence for the evolution of horses as well as the bird ancestral Archaeopteryx.
1. Evolution and Religion
A creationist group in South Korea has successfully convinced textbook publishers to omit evidence of evolution from science textbooks for high school students. The move was a result of a campaign by the Society for Textbook Revise (STR), an independent offshoot of the Korea Association for Creation Research that aims to clear biology books of "atheist materialism." The STR claims that this kind of materialistic thinking creates a negative picture for students, and could lead to their eventual denial of faith.
Scientists around the globe expressed concern when the STR campaign made headlines. Jae Choe, an evolutionary biologist at Ewha Womans University, Seoul and wrote an email to Nature's editor that South Korea had succumbed to religious prejudice. His colleagues backed him from around the country who formed a group called Evolution Korea to organize an anti-textbook petition.
Some researchers are concerned that the STR will spread to other parts around the globe, where the belief in creationism has been on the rise. 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 has a particularly strong cultural background for the evolution debate. 26 percent of the nation's residents belong to a religious denomination and the majority adhere to Christianity or Buddhism. Many Koreans also adhere to Ch'ondogyo, the philosophy based on Confucian principles that emphasizes social harmony, individual self-cultivation and self-respect. Ch'ondogyo teaches that human beings are one with Hanulnim the God of the Sun, and that heaven-bound blessings are possible by doing good deeds.
All of this has provided fertile ground for the spread of creationism. Numerous studies have revealed that students who have a religious background to be more reluctant to learn about evolution as compared to those who do not. The reasons behind this aren't evident. Students who have a religious background may be less experienced with the theories of science, making them more susceptible to creationists influence. Another reason could be that students who have religious backgrounds might view evolution as a concept that is atheistic, making them feel uncomfortable.
2. Evolution and Science
In recent years, anti-evolution campaigns in schools have raised concerns among the scientific community. A 2009 survey revealed nearly 40 percent of Americans believed that biological evolution was wrong and that it would be in conflict with their religious beliefs. Despite the fact that creationism has been a huge success in some states, many scientists believe that the best strategy to stop this trend is not to be actively involved in it, but rather to inform people about the evidence supporting evolution.
Scientists are responsible to teach their students science, which includes the theory of evolution. They also need to educate the public on the process of scientific research and how knowledge is verified. They must explain how scientific theories are frequently challenged and modified. However, misconceptions about the nature and purpose of research can fuel anti-evolution views.
For example, some people may confuse the word "theory" with the common meaning of the word, which is a hunch or a guess. However, in science the theory is rigorously tested and verified through evidence. 에볼루션 바카라 that is tested and observed repeatedly is then a scientific principle.
The debate over evolutionary theory is a good opportunity to discuss the significance of the scientific method and its limitations. It is important for people to recognize that science cannot answer questions regarding the purpose or meaning of life, but it is merely a means through which living organisms can develop and adapt.
A well-rounded education should also include exposure to the major fields of science including evolutionary biology. This is essential because a variety of jobs and decisions require individuals understand the way science operates.
The majority of scientists around the world agree that humans have changed over time. A recent study predicting adults' views of the consensus around this issue found that those with 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 have less science-based knowledge tend to be more skeptical. It is important that educators emphasize the importance of understanding this consensus, so that people can make informed decisions regarding health care, energy usage, and other policy matters.
3. Evolution and Culture
A close relative to the mainstream evolutionary theory, the concept of cultural evolution studies the numerous ways that organisms, including humans, learn from and with each other. Researchers in this field employ elaborate tools and investigative models derived from evolutionary theorists. They also go back to human prehistory to find the origins of culture.
This method also acknowledges that there are differences between the characteristics of culture and biological. While biological traits are typically acquired at once (in sexual species, during fertilization) but cultural traits can be acquired over a long period of time. The acquisition of one cultural characteristic can influence the growth and development of a different.
In Korea the emergence of Western style elements in the late nineteenth and early twentieth century was the result of an intricate 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 quit Korea in the 1930s, some of these changes began to reverse. At the close of World War II, Korea was once more united but this time under Choson dynasty rule.
Today, Korea is an economic and political power. Despite the recent global financial crisis, the economy of Korea has been growing steadily over the last decade and is set to maintain its steady growth in the coming years.
However, the current government has many challenges to face. One of the biggest is its inability to find a coherent policy to deal with the economic crisis. The crisis has exposed weaknesses in the country's policies and its reliance on foreign investment and exports which could not last.
The crisis has shaken the confidence of investors. As a result, the government needs to reconsider its strategy and come up with ways to increase domestic demand. It will also have to revamp the incentive, monitoring, and disciplining systems currently in place to ensure an environment that is stable for the financial sector. This chapter provides a number of scenarios of how the Korean economy could develop in a post-crisis world.
4. Evolution and Education
The challenge for evolution educators lies in how to teach evolutionary concepts that are appropriate for various ages and stages of development. For instance, teachers need to be aware of the religious diversity in their classrooms and create an environment where students with religious and secular views are comfortable with 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 many resources to teach evolution.
In this regard, the Thinking Evolutionarily Convocation was an important step in bringing together evolutionary scientists and educators from a variety of disciplines to discuss best methods for teaching evolution. Participants included representatives from scientific societies as well as educational research, officials of government funding agencies 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.
It is crucial to include evolution in all science curricula, at every level. To accomplish this, the National Science Education Standards (NRC) require that evolution be taught in a seamless manner across all sciences with a progression of ideas that are developmentally appropriate. A new publication from the NRC provides guidance to schools on how they can integrate evolution into their life science curriculum.
Multiple studies have shown that a more thorough explanation of evolution can lead to greater student understanding and belief in the existence of evolution. However the estimation of causal effects in the classroom is a challenge due to the fact that school curriculums are not assigned randomly and change over time as a result of the predetermined dates of gubernatorial election and appointments to the state board of education. To overcome this issue, i use an ongoing dataset that gives me to control for the fixed effects of state and years as well as individual-level differences in teacher beliefs about evolutionary theory.
Another important result is that teachers who are more comfortable with teaching evolution report having fewer intrapersonal barriers to doing so. This is in line with the notion that more confident faculty are less likely to be hesitant about questions about evolution in the classroom, and could be more inclined to employ strategies like a reconciliatory method that is known to boost the acceptance of undergraduate students of evolution.