Brunswick County considers creationism

Some members of the Brunswick County School Board think it's time to bring creationism to science class.

But they will have to fight the American Civil Liberties Union of North Carolina before they can do so. The ACLU received an anonymous request for intervention from a Brunswick County teacher said Katy Parker the legal director for the N.C. chapter.

Parker has contacted a school board attorney to discuss the issue.

Within the next few days she will deliver a letter to the school board that alludes to the 1987 U.S. Supreme Court case Edwards v. Aguillard. That case ruled that teaching creationism is unconstitutional.

Edd Dunlap section chief for the N.C. Department of Public Instruction" said they would prefer an advocacy group like the ACLU to take on the issue because DPI doesn't have the authority to impose its wishes on the school board.

""If they wanted to pass that" we would have no authority to enforce policy" Dunlap said. But you would probably see … certain repercussions from the state board. There is state funding that goes to these schools systems.""

The State Board of Education is DPI's last resort for blocking the Brunswick County board's efforts.

Shirley Babson" chairwoman of the Brunswick County Schools Board of Education" said that she is sympathetic to parents who want creationism included in the science curriculum.

""(Students) have freedom to express their opinions if they have an alternative opinion to what is being taught now"" Babson said.

Although she supports creationism in the classroom, Babson said evolution must be studied for students to pass their end-of-grade exams and to graduate.

Evolution fails to teach students about the importance of the mind and soul, she said. It is also being presented to students as fact and not as theory.

But in Edwards v. Aguillard, the majority opinion said that introducing creationism into a school's curriculum is unconstitutional because it advances a particular religious viewpoint.

Dunlap said creationism is a theory probably best discussed in a religion or philosophy course in which the subject matter is the discussion of different theories. Although evolution is only a theory, he said, it has a scientific evidence to provide it with some validity.

Dunlap said that creationism versus the big bang theory isn't a new debate, especially since state science standards come up for revision so often.

The last time the standards were revised was 2004, and they will probably change again within the next two years, he said.

Eugenie Scott, the executive director of the National Center for Science Education, said that she's seen these cases in various states and she expects the N.C. case to be over quickly.

What we're seeing in other states is an approach to smuggle creationism into the curricula under academic freedom for teachers" she said.

Babson is aware of the strength of the opposition.

I do not expect to win this battle Babson said. But since the spirit came and opened up an avenue to talk about it" it is good to talk about it .""



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