Don’t let politics stifle evolution debate

I’ve been following with interest the issue of teaching evolution in high schools in Nunavik as reported and commented on in Nunatsiaq News in recent weeks. I would like to offer the following thoughts.

People often confuse the concepts of fact (or observation) and theory. “Theory” is often used colloquially (and incorrectly) to indicate the possibility of something being true or having happened (e.g., “it is my theory that…”). In science, a theory is a testable framework or proposal to explain a set of facts or observations. This failure to properly distinguish fact and theory leads many people to think that when scientists talk about the “theory of evolution,” they are referring to the possibility of evolution having occurred.

This is not what scientists are talking about. Few scientists today would dispute the “fact” of evolution, which has been solidified through intensive scientific study, research, and thinking since Charles Darwin published The Origin of Species in 1859. In his book, Darwin put forward his theory of natural selection to explain the myriad of facts and observations he had assembled about the natural world. So a (not “the”) theory of evolution is a proposal to explain the processes of evolution, or how evolution has occurred (and is occurring). It is not the idea or fact of evolution which scientists are debating. Natural selection is one theory of evolution, and it has been tested, refined, modified and elaborated through scientific study of the natural world ever since Darwin’s time. Scientists continue to creatively debate “the theory of evolution”.

To find their place in modern society, students need to develop the critical, creative, and rational thinking skills, which the study of science can help to provide. Therefore, I think it would be a grave mistake to deprive them of the opportunity to learn about and debate the theory of evolution in order to serve the interests of certain politically-motivated ideologues who want to extend their sphere of influence through mind-control and brainwashing.

Keith Hay
Regina, Sask.