Public schools should not be able to teach evolution if the schools do not teach creationism.

Public schools should be able to teach evolution while not teaching Creationism. There are several reasons for this. Before I begin, I would like to state that I will be referring to evolution as a theory. My referring to evolution as this does not mean that evolution is not fact; in fact, a "theory" is a well-substantiated, well-supported and well-documented explanation for observations [1]. It can be argued that a theory is, in fact, higher than a law in the scientific world [1]. With that out of the way: 1.) Evolution is well-substantiated, especially in comparison to Creationism. The proofs that evolution has occurred can be seen in four different ways [2]; through the fossil record of change in earlier species, the chemical and anatomical similarities of related life forms, the geographic distribution of related species and the recorded genetic changes in living lifeforms over many years. All of these are hard scientific facts pointing towards the theory of evolution being the true creation of humanity. Evidence for Creationism, on the other hand, mainly tends (but not always) to center around the Bible [3], or using the evidence for evolution and attempting to twist it or shift it into a new viewpoint [4]. In other words, there is not as much hard, scientific evidence for Creationism than there is for evolution. It makes little sense to teach young people something that has little scientific bearing. 2.) Evolution is well-supported, by both scientists and religious organizations, while Creationism has little scientific support. The majority of scientists support the theory of evolution over the theory of Creationism [5] [6]. In fact, many in religious groups support evolution over the idea of Creationism. A poll conducted in the United States [7] found that the majority of Catholics, Orthodox Christians and Mainline Protestants favor the theory of evolution over the theory of Creationism, along with the vast majority of Buddhists, Hindus and Jews. Even the head of the Vatican Observatory states that there isn't any scientific evidence in Scripture and that scientists must accept evolution as fact [8]. It, again, makes little to ignore the pleas of science and numerous members of religious groups to teach Creationism in schools, even if evolution is taught alongside it. 3.) Separation of church and state forbids Creationism from being taught in schools, other than in a secular setting. Even if one were to ignore numerous scientists and numerous pieces of evidence, it is a violation of the First Amendment to teach Creationism as fact in schools. The First Amendment explicitly forbids the government establishing a system of religion [9], including in public schools. Students are still free to study religion on their own time and with their own resources, but schools--and the government--are not allowed to endorse a religious viewpoint or specific religion. Since Creationism is based almost entirely around religion, mainly Christianity, it cannot be allowed in public schools. In conclusion, evolution should be allowed to be taught in schools while Creationism is excluded because a.) the majority of scientific evidence points to evolution, not Creationism, b.) the vast majority of scientific experts as well as a great percentage of religious favor evolution over Creationism and c.) it is forbidden by the Constitution to be taught, even when coupled with evolution. I strongly urge a ballot in negation of the resolution. Thank you. Sources: [1] http://www.notjustatheory.com... [2] http://anthro.palomar.edu... [3] http://www.creationism.org... [4] http://www.answersingenesis.org... [5] http://scienceblogs.com... [6] http://nihrecord.od.nih.gov... [7] http://en.wikipedia.org... [8] http://www.youtube.com... Video in upper right corner (0:58-1:44, 2:13-3:01) [9] http://archive.adl.org...