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Evolution Korea

The economic crisis that hit Asia required a major review of the old system of business-government alliances and public management of private risks. In Korea, that meant an evolution of 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 supporting the evolution of horses and the bird ancestor Archaeopteryx.

1. Evolution and Religion

A South Korean creationist group has persuaded textbook publishers to remove evidence of evolution from high school science texts. The Society for Textbook Revise, an independent branch of the Korea Association for Creation Research that aims to cleanse biology textbooks of "atheist materialism," was behind the decision. The STR asserts that such materialism creates a negative image for students, leading them to lose faith.

Scientists around the globe expressed worry when the STR campaign gained attention. In a letter addressed to the editor of Nature, evolutionary biologist Jae Choe from Ewha Womans University in Seoul complained that South Korea had given in to religious prejudice. He was backed by colleagues across the country, who set up an organization called Evolution Korea to organize a petition against the changes to the textbooks.

Some scientists are worried that the STR will expand to other parts of the world, where creationism is on the rise. The letter to Nature warned of the anti-evolutionist campaign putting pressure on textbook revisions, particularly in countries with large Christian and Muslim populations.

South Korea has a particularly strong cultural background for the debate about evolution. 26 percent of the nation's citizens are members of one of the religious groups, and most practice Christianity or Buddhism. In addition, many Koreans adhere to the philosophy of Ch'ondogyo. It is that is based on Confucian principles that emphasizes social harmony and individual self-cultivation. Ch'ondogyo is a way of teaching that the human being is one with Hanulnim, the God of Sun, and that divine blessings are achievable through the good works of one's.

All of this has created an ideal environment for the spread of creationism. A number of studies have demonstrated that students with a religious background tend to be more uncomfortable about learning about evolution than students without religion. The causes behind this are not clear. One explanation is that students with religious backgrounds tend to be as knowledgeable about scientific theories and concepts, which makes them more vulnerable to the influence of creationists. Another factor could be that those with a religious background may view evolution as a concept that is agnostic, making them feel less comfortable.

2. Evolution and Science

In recent times scientists have been concerned about anti-evolution initiatives in schools. A survey in 2009 revealed that 40% of Americans believed that biological evolution was not true and that it would be in conflict with their religious beliefs. Many scientists believe that, despite the fact that creationism has been successful the best way to counter this belief is to educate the public on the evidence for evolution.

Scientists are required to teach their students about science and the theory of evolution. They should also inform the public about the process of scientific research and how knowledge is validated. They must explain how theories of science are frequently challenged and modified. However, misconceptions about nature and purpose of research can lead to a negative view of evolution.

For example, some people may confuse the word "theory" with the normal meaning of the word - a hunch or a guess. In the field of science, however, an hypothesis is rigorously tested, and empirical data is used to prove it. A theory that is able to withstand repeated testing and observation becomes a scientific principle.

The debate on the theory of evolution is a wonderful opportunity to discuss both the importance of the scientific method and its limitations. It is essential to be aware that science is not able to provide answers to questions about life's purpose or meaning, but allows living things to develop and change.

Moreover, a well-rounded education should cover all major fields of science including evolutionary biology. This is essential because a variety of jobs and decisions require people understand how science works.

The vast majority scientists in the world agree that humans have evolved through time. In a study that predicted the views of adults on the consensus on this topic people with higher levels of education and scientific knowledge were found to be more likely believe that there is wide consensus among scientists on the evolution of humans. The people who have more religious beliefs but less scientific knowledge tend to be more divided. It is crucial that teachers insist on the importance of knowing the consensus on this issue to ensure that people have a solid foundation for making informed decisions regarding their health care, energy use and other issues of policy.

3. Evolution and Culture

A close cousin to mainstream evolutionary theory, cultural evolution studies the numerous ways that organisms, including humans, learn from and with one another. Researchers in this area use explanation tools and models that are adapted from evolutionary theorists. They also go back to prehistoric times to determine the earliest sources of culture.

This approach also acknowledges the difference between cultural and biological traits. While biological traits are generally inherited all at once (in sexual species, at fertilization) but cultural traits can be acquired over a long period of time. In the end, the emergence of one cultural characteristic can affect the development of another.

In Korea, the adoption of Western style elements in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries was the result an elaborate sequence of events. One of the most important was the appearance in Korea of Japanese occupation forces that introduced Western hairstyles and clothes.

After that, when Japan left Korea in the 1930s, some of those trends began to revert. By the end World War II, Korea was once more united and again under the Choson dynasty rule.

Today, Korea is an economic and political power. Despite the financial crisis of recent Korea's economy has been growing at a steady pace over the past decade. It is expected to keep this trend going in the coming years.

The current administration is faced by a myriad of problems. The inability of the government to develop a coherent plan to deal with the current economic crisis is among the biggest challenges. The crisis has revealed the shortcomings of the country's economic policies, particularly its dependence on foreign investment and exports that may not be sustainable over the long term.

The crisis has shaken the confidence of investors, the government has to rethink its economic strategy and look for alternative ways to boost domestic demand. To ensure a stable economic climate the government needs to reform its incentive, monitoring and discipline systems. This chapter outlines several scenarios of how the Korean economy could develop in the post-crisis period.

4. Evolution and Education

The challenge for evolution educators lies in how to teach evolutionary concepts that are appropriate for different ages and stages of development. For instance, teachers need to be aware of the religious diversity in their classrooms and create an environment that students who have secular and religious views feel comfortable learning evolution. Additionally, teachers must be aware of common misconceptions about evolution, and how to deal with these in their classrooms. Finally, teachers must have access to a range of resources available to teach evolution and be able to find them quickly.

In this regard, the Thinking Evolutionarily Convocation had a key role in bringing evolutionary researchers and educators from various sectors to discuss best practices for teaching about Evolution. Attendees included representatives of scientific societies and educational researchers, as well as government funding agency officials, and curriculum developers. The convergence of these diverse stakeholders helped to identify a shared set of recommendations that will form the foundation for future actions.

One important recommendation is that the study of evolution should be integrated in all science curricula at any level. To achieve this the National Science Education Standards (NRC) require that evolution be taught in a unified way across the life sciences with a progression of ideas that are developmentally appropriate. A new publication from NRC provides guidance for schools on how to integrate evolution into the life science curriculum.

Numerous studies have shown that a more comprehensive teaching of evolution is linked to greater student knowledge and belief in the existence of evolution. However it is difficult to determine the causal effect of evolution in the classroom is difficult due to the fact that school curriculums are not assigned randomly and evolve over time because of the predetermined timing of gubernatorial elections and appointments to the state board of education. To overcome this issue I use an ongoing dataset that gives me control for state and years fixed effects as well as individual-level differences in the beliefs of teachers regarding 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 hypothesis that faculty who are more confident are less likely to be hesitant about questions about evolution in the classroom, and could be more inclined to use strategies such as a reconciliatory approach which is used to increase the acceptance of undergraduate students of evolution.