Schools can navigate through the controversy over origins by teaching about the controversy.
In the summer of 1999, the news was filled with reports on the controversial decision of the Kansas state school board which decided that, while increasing state standards regarding evolution, it would not go as far as the science establishment wanted it to. Instead, the standards allow local school districts greater latitude in what they teach. What happened in Kansas is only the latest outgrowth of an interesting, albeit still-emerging trend, in the field of science instruction. A growing number of scientists are advancing what they call the Theory of Intelligent Design to explain the origin of life. Critics argue that this is merely a slick repackaging of the biblical account of Genesis and brings religion into the science classroom.