Ken Ham Says Teaching Only Evolution and Not Creationism in Schools Is 'Indoctrination,' as Scottish MP Proposes Teaching Both
Answers in Genesis CEO and President Ken Ham has said that students in the western world who are taught only evolution and not creationism are being indoctrinated rather than given a proper education.
"Currently in the USA and virtually all the western world, students are just being taught one side of the story and teachers aren't even allowed to present the grave problems with evolution to their students! In reality, western public schools have told teachers that they must protect evolutionary naturalism. This is not education; this is indoctrination," Ham wrote on the AiG blog.
The creationist reflected on proposals made by Scottish Parliament Member John Mason, who has argued that since the belief that God created the world cannot be "proved or disproved by science," then it needs to be taught alongside evolution.
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"The Bible says Jesus turned water into wine. Science can look at that wine but, assuming that miracle happened, science could not tell us whether that wine was five minutes or five months to make," Mason has said.
"If God creates miracles, science is out of its depth. I don't think science can make a statement on where we've come from, it is based on the assumption that God hasn't created a miracle."
The British government has banned the teaching of creationism as a scientifically valid theory in public-funded schools.
The Department of Education said in June 2014 that creationism, tied to a literal interpretation of Genesis, "does not accord with the scientific consensus or the very large body of established scientific evidence; nor does it accurately and consistently employ the scientific method, and as such it should not be presented to pupils at the Academy as a scientific theory."
U.K. creationist groups, such as Creation Science Movement, have criticized atheistic campaigns that they say seek to take away "the right of Christian parents to have their children educated in a way that respects their faith."
Ham, who's also the CEO of the Creation Museum in Kentucky, clarified that his organization does not advocate for forcing teachers to teach creation in public schools, as they are likely not to present it fairly or accurately.
"Students deserve to be able to see both sides and be able to make a decision for themselves. At the very least, teachers should be able to point out problems with evolution. But ideally teachers should have the freedom to allow their students to think about the two different worldviews of creation and evolution and decide for themselves," he added.
"Students deserve to be able to develop critical thinking skills by having the freedom to think and chose as they weigh the evidence. They also need to be taught the difference between observational and historical science and how this difference applies to the topic of origins (specifically, creation vs. evolution)."
