An update here on Scientific American from Jennifer Miller, one of the Dover, PA, science teachers who refused to read the statement undermining evolution and supporting "intelligent design" that the local school board had placed in the district's books. This, of course, led to one of ID's more highly publicized failures when Judge John Jones ruled that ID was not only nonscientific, but that the whole episode was simply a ruse to allow the advancement of a creationist agenda in public school science classrooms.
Miller talks about her experiences in the classroom since Judge Jones' ruling. She sounds like she's probably a very good science teacher. Her comments remind me of the atmosphere my college-level evolution classes - there's no controversy and very little skepticism. Once students have an understanding of how the process works, all but the most heavily propogandized are able to follow the weight of the scientific evidence.
More troubling is the discussion of what goes on in other classrooms. Many (most?) of our high school science teachers continue to avoid the topic of evolution or, worse, confuse their students with false information and flawed logic. Whatever your religion or philosophy, cowardice and hypocrisy are not admirable traits. If you're one of those science teachers, do your job. Or find another.
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