All public schools and academies in the United Kingdom teaching Creationism as an evidence-based scientific theory will now be ineligible for funding, because the practice is now banned in the UK. According to clauses 2.43 and 2.44 of the funding agreement from June, all academies and free schools were told by the UK Department for Education that Creationism is not a majority-view in the church of England and in the Catholic Church and is no longer acceptable curriculum for science classes. According to Yahoo News , the update states, “The requirement on every academy and free (public) school to provide a broad and balanced curriculum in any case prevents the teaching of creationism as evidence based theory in any academy or free school.”
Any school that chooses to teach Creationism as a theory in science class would break its agreement and lose its government funding. This update amends a 2012 rule that required any future schools to withhold teaching Creationism as a valid scientific theory to include all academies and existing free schools. Creationism will still be permitted to be taught in classes about religions, but it may not be taught within a religion class as though it is an alternative to scientific theory.
In contrast, in the U.S., private schools in 14 states receive nearly a billion dollars in taxpayer funding. Inquisitr recently reported that over 70 percent of Americans believe in some form of Creationism. According to Politico, these private schools include hundreds of religious schools that teach creationism as a scientific theory. Moreover, in the U.S., Louisiana and Tennessee allow Creationism to be taught in public schools’ science classes. Missouri, according to PolicyMic, is considering a bill that would alert parents prior to any discussion about evolution in school. Politico wrote about the faith-based curriculum practice in the states:
“Their course materials nurture disdain of the secular world, distrust of momentous discoveries and hostility toward mainstream scientists. They often distort basic facts about the scientific method — teaching, for instance, that theories such as evolution are by definition highly speculative because they haven’t been elevated to the status of ‘scientific law.’”
The updates in the UK have been praised by the British Humanist Association (BHA). BHA Head of Public Affairs Pavan Dhaliwal wrote in a statement , “We congratulate the Government on its robust stance on this issue.” The BHA head continued, “However, there are other ongoing areas of concern, for example the large number of state financed creationist nurseries, or the inadequate inspection of private creationist schools, and continued vigilance is needed in the state-funded sector.”
What do you think of the Creationism ban in UK public schools and academies?
[ And Elohim Created Adam featured image by William Blake]