In a letter to the British Humanist Association it has been confirmed that evolution will now be included in the newly revised curriculum for Primary Schools.
This is really great news in a year which has already been great for media coverage of Darwin and his ideas. Natural selection is such a wonderfully simple and clear, yet ground-breaking and insightful idea. It’s just the sort of thing we should be teaching our children from a young age to encourage them think rather then just teaching them what to think.
Also very much needed given the reports that 54% of British adults want intelligent design and creationism taught alongside evolution in science lessons. Creationism and intelligent design have no place in science lessons except perhaps as a tool to demonstrate how not to do science.
In April this year the government began consultation on a new primary school curriculum, which like its predecessor, failed to make any mention of the theory of evolution or process of natural selection.
During the summer the BHA organised a public letter from a group of distinguished scientists and science educators, calling on government to include evolution in the primary curriculum. The BHA made its own submission to the consultation and encouraged members and supporters to do the same, as well as petitioning MPs and ministers on the issue.
In a letter to the BHA from the DCSF, minister Diana Johnson MP has now stated that ‘We have considered the consultation reports…and the views expressed on this issue by the BHA and members of the science community. As a result of the consultation you will be pleased to know that evolution is now included in the programme of learning for scientific and technological understanding.’
