A No-Holds-Barred Evolution Curriculum for Elementary and Junior High School Students |
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Authors: | Joseph Fail Jr |
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Institution: | (1) Department of Natural Sciences, Johnson C. Smith University, Charlotte, NC, USA;(2) Sabbatical Scholar, National Evolutionary Synthesis Center, Duke University, Durham, NC, USA |
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Abstract: | Understanding the basic mechanism of evolution by natural selection together with examples of how it works in nature is crucial
for explaining and teaching the workings of biology and ecology to young students. Dobzhansky said it best in his advice to
educators of biology: “Nothing in biology makes sense except in the light of evolution.” This premise is true at all levels
of biology but especially so in the elementary years where foundations of science knowledge are laid. Elementary students
are capable of learning cohesive and connected stories of biological principles and learning them within a no-holds-barred
arena wherein concepts and processes usually reserved for high school years are taught with special care, appropriate exercises,
and patient explanations. This story must include solid introductions to the fundamental principles of evolution by natural
selection that are threaded within and alongside those of basic biology and ecology. This paper attempts to make the case
for the inclusion of connected stories of biology in the earliest years of education and to include within that education
the unifying theme of all biology and ecology studies—evolution. |
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Keywords: | Elementary evolution education Evolution education Elementary science education Elementary biology education |
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