(During summer semester there is no Town Hall Meeting Key Quiz. Ignore.) To assure that students read the reading assignments -- and this page -- students must submit a quiz called the Town Hall "Key" Quiz (sometimes also referred to by the older name Evolution "Worksheet" Quiz). Because of problems with the new Blackboard platform STC started using 2012, the originally required longer quiz called the Evolution Worksheet Quiz has been replaced with the much shorter " Town Hall Key Quiz" , which must be passed with 100 before you can participated in the Town Hall Meeting. The Town Hall Key Quiz is located in the separate Town Hall Meeting course shell described in the Grading Criteria for the class. |
As I began with this course, I was not so sure if it was ok for me to be exposed to the theory of evolution. Being raised to only believe in the bible was something the caused such fear in me. I feared that I would be sinning if I began to believe in this theory. I was scared that this idea would drive me away from God, yet, now I comprehend that the theory of evolution was not invented so that people could stray away from God's word but only to inform us, educating us about our origins and for a better understanding of our surroundings. Evolution is defined as change over time and that is what it is. There is nothing wicked or evil about it. This course has not only helped me accept new ideas but has also educated me on this subject. I now know that there is nothing wrong with accepting the theory of evolution and that fearing this subject seems so ridiculous. Sanjuanita Environmental Biology student, Spring 2009 |
How could I have been so blind all this time? Why didn't my father, who has a degree in Biology and a Master's in Education, ever bother to teach me about the Theory of Evolution? What was he thinking he'd protect me from? Why does the government continue to choose to leave it out of our curriculum? I can't exactly answer these questions, but I know that religion has had something to do with it. It is no wonder that our world is in much danger. We don't take the time to educate ourselves about the real world. A quote from The Serve states, "But the message is that like an opium drug addict, religious believers are "blinded" by the "drug" and cannot deal with the real world." Disaster strikes and all we can do is sit back and pray? We need to take action. Part of taking action is educating ourselves on real-world issues and a real-world issue today is knowing where we actually come from...how we came to be. Acquiring knowledge in Environmental Science is like acquiring knowledge in a bundle of topics such as nature, culture and technology. If it were not for these, we would not be able to prove our existence. It is up to us (this class and our generation) to teach our children everything that we have learned in this class and more. I have learned that it is ok to have religion a part of your life and accept Evolution. I have also accepted that the Adam and Eve story, the talking serpent, the forbidden fruit, etc., are not actual occurrences but symbols of religion. Sure there are verses in the bible that can relate to real-life situations, but when it comes down to it, the bible is not a scientific textbook and it can only do so much for you, spiritually. Mentally, it takes an education to understand the REAL WORLD and everything that occurs in it. I now accept Evolution and all it took was getting EDUCATED on the FACTS! Vilma Environmental Biology student, Spring 2009. |
Challenge apple: Face the challenge of this class! Listen to what you are told about evolution! Pay attention to the class discussion postings! Argue against if you wish, but don't hide your head in the sand. Instead demonstrate that your faith is strong and that it can survive "the dangerous idea". Or -- and here is perhaps the real challenge -- is your faith so weak that it cannot survive hearing the current modern science-educated viewpoint accepted by the overwhelming majority of scientists in the world that humans have common ancestry with the Chimpanzee? Are you so afraid that you will loose your faith? If it isn't strong enough to hear about evolution without crumbling, then perhaps it is not worth defending. Or if it doesn't have anything to do with a weak faith, are you the perhaps ashamed that we all have common origin with the apes -- in fact, that we are apes? |
According to Gallup polls there is a relationship with education. The more education one has, the more likely one is to accept the theory of evolution. Percent YES to the question, "Do you, personally, believe in evolution, or not?" Post-graduate 74 percent, college graduate 48 percent, some college 50 percent, and high school or less 41 percent.) |
I'm the Teacher, You're the Student "The title refers to my belief that the teacher should take control in the classroom. The students come there not to be my friend but to learn [Environmental Biology]. I know it; they don't, so it's my responsibility to create conditions in which they can learn it. It is not a democratic or egalitarian situation. If they query my rules and regulations I sometimes say: "Ah well, I'm the teacher, you're the student, so you must put up with it." I've found that students are well-behaved and work hard if you make it clear to them right from the beginning that you have high expectations and high standards. They're very eager (at least here at Emory) to get good grades, and will strive to meet my expectations so long as I'm not unreasonable." Modified from Patrick Allitt (Professor of U.S. History at Emory University) in: Rosen, Christine. 2004. I'm the Teacher, You're the Student. National Review Online. (http://www.nationalreview.com) (Search URL: http://article.nationalreview.com/?q=ODVlMTllNDIwNjRhZjdkYTZkNjRiNDJjNTljOWE1ZDg=) |
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