Evolution Korea
The economic crisis which swept Asia caused a major review of the old system of government and business alliances, as well as public management of risk. In Korea this required a change in the development model.
In a controversial move, South Korea's government has requested textbook publishers not to comply with calls to remove examples of evolution from high school science books. This includes the evidence for evolution of horses as well as the avian an ancestor Archaeopteryx.
1. Evolution and Religion
A South Korean creationist group has convinced textbook publishers to eliminate evidence of evolution from high-school science texts. The Society for Textbook Revise, an independent offshoot from the Korea Association for Creation Research that aims to cleanse biology textbooks of "atheist materialism," was behind the decision. The STR claims that this kind of materialistic thinking creates a negative picture for students and can lead to their eventual denial of faith.
When the STR's campaign hit the news, scientists across the world expressed alarm. Jae Choe, evolutionary biologist at Ewha Womans University, Seoul and wrote an open letter to Nature's editor that South Korea had succumbed to religious prejudice. He was backed by colleagues from across the country who formed an organization called Evolution Korea to organize an anti-textbook petition.
Some scientists are also worried about the possibility that the STR campaign could spread to other regions of the world where the belief in creationism is on the rise. The letter to Nature warned that the anti-evolution movement will increase pressure for textbook revisions in other countries, notably those with large Christian and Muslim populations.
South Korea's cultural background is particularly strong for the debate over evolution. 26 percent of South Koreans belong to of a religion with the majority of them practicing Christianity or Buddhism. Many Koreans also adhere to Ch'ondogyo - the philosophy based on Confucian principles, which emphasizes harmony in the social, personal self-cultivation, and self-respect. Ch'ondogyo teaches the human being is one with Hanulnim, the God of Sun, and that divine blessings are achievable by doing good deeds.
All of this has created a fertile ground. Multiple studies have shown students with a religious background to be more reluctant to learn about evolution than those who don't. The underlying causes of this phenomenon are unclear. One explanation is that students who have a religious background tend not to be as familiar with scientific theories and concepts and are therefore more susceptible to the influence of creationists. Another reason could be that students who have a religious background may view evolution as a belief system that is agnostic, making them less comfortable.
2. Evolution and Science
In recent times scientists have been concerned about anti-evolution efforts in schools. A survey conducted in 2009 revealed that nearly 40% of Americans believe that biological evolution is a lie and that believing in it could be in conflict with their convictions about religion. Many scientists believe that despite the popularity of creationism the best way to stop this movement is to educate the public about the evidence for evolution.
Scientists are responsible to instruct their students in science, which includes the theory of evolution. They should also inform people about the process of science and how knowledge from science is gathered and confirmed. They must also explain that scientific theories are often challenged and re-examined. However, misconceptions about the nature and purpose of scientific research can lead to anti-evolution beliefs.
For instance, some people confuse the term "theory" with the normal meaning of the word - a guess or a guess. In the field of science, however, an hypothesis is rigorously tested and empirical data is used to confirm it. A theory that is repeatedly tested and observed is then a scientific principle.
The debate over evolution theory is an excellent chance to discuss the importance of the scientific method and its limitations. It is essential to be aware that science does not provide answers to questions about life's purpose or meaning, but rather offers a way for living things to develop and adapt.
A well-rounded education should also include exposure to the major fields of science including evolutionary biology. This is especially important since the jobs that people hold and the decisions they make require knowledge of how science works.
The vast majority scientists in the world agree that humans have changed over time. In a recent study that predicted adults' views of the consensus on this topic those with higher levels of education and knowledge of science were found to be more likely believe there is a wide consensus among scientists on human evolution. The people with more religious faith and less science-based knowledge are more likely to disagree. It is essential that teachers emphasize the importance of gaining an understanding of this consensus, to enable people to make informed choices about health care, energy usage and other issues of policy.
3. Evolution and Culture
Cultural evolution is a cousin of the mainstream evolutionary theory. It focuses on how organisms like humans learn from one another. Researchers in this field employ elaborate tools and investigative models derived from evolutionary theorists and reach back to human prehistory to determine the origins of culture.
This approach also acknowledges the distinction between cultural and biological traits. Cultural traits can be acquired gradually while biological traits are usually acquired simultaneously (in the case of sexual species after fertilization). This means that the emergence of one cultural trait can influence the development of another.
In Korea, the adoption of Western styles in the latter part of the nineteenth and early 20th century was the result of a complex sequence of events. One of the most important was the arrival of Japanese occupation forces who introduced Western clothing styles and hairstyles to Korean society.
When Japan departed Korea in the 1930s, a few of these trends began reverse. At the close of World War II, Korea was once more united, this time under Choson dynasty rule.
Today, Korea is a vibrant economic and political power. Despite the current global financial crisis, the economy of Korea has grown consistently over the past decade and is poised to continue its healthy growth in the coming years.
However, the current administration faces numerous challenges. One of the most serious is the inability to come up with a consistent policy to tackle the economic crisis. The crisis has exposed shortcomings in the policies of the country, especially its over-reliance on foreign investment and exports that may not last.
The crisis has shaken the confidence of investors, the government has to review its economic strategy and find alternatives to boost domestic demand. It also needs to revamp the incentive monitoring, control, and discipline systems that are currently in place to ensure a stable financial environment. This chapter provides a variety of scenarios of how the Korean economy might develop in the post-crisis era.
4. Evolution and Education
The biggest challenge for evolution educators is how to present evolutionary concepts in a way that is suitable for students of different age groups and developmental stages. Teachers, for instance, must be sensitive to the religious diversity in their classrooms and create an environment where students with both secular and religious views feel comfortable learning evolution. Teachers should be able to recognize common misconceptions regarding evolution and be able to address them in the classroom. Additionally, 에볼루션게이밍 should have access to a variety of resources to teach evolution and be able locate them quickly.
In this regard, the Thinking Evolutionarily Convocation played a significant role in bringing evolutionary researchers and educators from various sectors to discuss the best methods of teaching Evolution. The participants included representatives from scientific societies and educational researchers, as well as government funding agency officials as well as curriculum developers. The convergence of these diverse stakeholders led to the identification of a common set of recommendations that will form the basis for future action.
One important recommendation is that the teaching of evolution should be included in all science curricula at any level. National Science Education Standards (NRC), which call for the integration of evolution across all life sciences, with an educational progression that is developmental appropriate, are a good way to accomplish this goal. A new publication from the NRC offers guidance for schools on how to integrate evolution into the life science curriculum.
Multiple studies have shown that a more comprehensive presentation of evolution leads to greater student understanding and belief in the existence of evolution. It is difficult to quantify the causal effects of evolution in the classroom because school curricula do not change on a regular basis and are dependent on the timing of state board of education and gubernatorial elections. To overcome this issue I utilize a longitudinal data set which lets me control for fixed state and year effects as well as individual-level variations in the beliefs of teachers about changes in the curriculum.
Another significant finding is that teachers who are more comfortable with teaching evolution report having less intrapersonal barriers to doing so. This is in line with the notion that a more experienced faculty is less likely to avoid discussing evolution subjects in the classroom. They also may be more likely to employ strategies like an approach to reconciliation that is known to increase undergraduate student acceptance of evolution (Harms and Reiss 2019; Tolman et al., 2020).