Saturday, June 24, 2017

Turkey Removes Evolution From High School Curriculum

The New York Times reported yesterday that in Turkey the Education Ministry has decided to eliminate the teaching of evolution to ninth graders, removing the chapter on the topic from ninth grade text books because it is controversial.  A government spokesman said:
Our students don’t have the necessary scientific background and information-based context needed to comprehend [the debate about evolution].
Critics see this as the latest step by President Erdogan's government to move away from the secular character of the state and give more recognition to concerns of religious Muslims.