Evolution Education and the Rise of the Creationist Movement in Brazil

Edited by Kristin Cook and Alandeom W. Oliveira - Contributions by Leonardo A. Luvison Araújo; Nelio Bizzo; Adam Oliver Brown; Ana Maria de Andrade Caldeira; Beatriz Ceschim; Kristin Cook; Rita Tatiana Cardoso Erbs; Ana Maria Santos Gouw; Gerda Maisa Jensen; Olma Karoline Cruz de Medeiros; Helenadja Santos Mota; Eduardo F. Mortimer; Voltaire Dutra Paes Neto; Alandeom W. Oliveira; Graciela da Silva Oliveira; Ronaldo Antonio Paesi; Ana Júlia Pedreira; Maria Elice de Brzezinski Prestes; Giuliano Reis; Delano M. S. Silva; Heslley Machado Silva and Pedro Teixeira

Evolution Education and the Rise of the Creationist Movement in Brazil examines how larger societal forces such as religion, media, and politics have shaped Brazil’s educational landscape and impacted the teaching and learning of evolution within an increasingly polarized discourse in recent years. To this end, Alandeom W. Oliveira and Kristin Cook have assembled a number of educational scholars and practitioners, many of whom are based in Brazil, to provide up-close and in-depth accounts of classroom-based evolution instruction, teacher preparation programs, current educational policies, and commonly used school curricula. Contributors also present information on Brazilian teachers’ and students’ attitudes toward—and understanding of— evolution, emergent (mis)conceptions of evolution, and international comparisons of evolution acceptance and understanding in Brazil compared to other countries. Across the three sections of this book, readers see a nation navigating the complexity of multiple spheres of thought about evolution and its role in the K-12 and postsecondary curriculum. Suggesting the rise of an influential creationist movement in Brazil, this book illuminates the dynamic sociological processes at play in the educational sphere of Latin America in a globalized era that allows for rapid worldwide travel of competing ideologies. Scholars of Latin American studies, religion, education, sociology, and political science will find this book especially useful.

Lexington Books

Pages: 260 • Trim: 6¼ x 9

978-1-7936-0148-3 • Hardback • September 2019 • $117.00 • (£90.00)

978-1-7936-0149-0 • eBook • September 2019 • $111.00 • (£85.00)

Subjects: Religion / Education, Social Science / World / Latin America, Education / Curricula, History / Latin America / General

Evolution Education and the Rise of the Creationist Movement in Brazil

Hardback

eBook

Summary

Evolution Education and the Rise of the Creationist Movement in Brazil examines how larger societal forces such as religion, media, and politics have shaped Brazil’s educational landscape and impacted the teaching and learning of evolution within an increasingly polarized discourse in recent years. To this end, Alandeom W. Oliveira and Kristin Cook have assembled a number of educational scholars and practitioners, many of whom are based in Brazil, to provide up-close and in-depth accounts of classroom-based evolution instruction, teacher preparation programs, current educational policies, and commonly used school curricula. Contributors also present information on Brazilian teachers’ and students’ attitudes toward—and understanding of— evolution, emergent (mis)conceptions of evolution, and international comparisons of evolution acceptance and understanding in Brazil compared to other countries. Across the three sections of this book, readers see a nation navigating the complexity of multiple spheres of thought about evolution and its role in the K-12 and postsecondary curriculum. Suggesting the rise of an influential creationist movement in Brazil, this book illuminates the dynamic sociological processes at play in the educational sphere of Latin America in a globalized era that allows for rapid worldwide travel of competing ideologies. Scholars of Latin American studies, religion, education, sociology, and political science will find this book especially useful.

Details

Lexington Books

Pages: 260 • Trim: 6¼ x 9

978-1-7936-0148-3 • Hardback • September 2019 • $117.00 • (£90.00)

978-1-7936-0149-0 • eBook • September 2019 • $111.00 • (£85.00)

Subjects: Religion / Education, Social Science / World / Latin America, Education / Curricula, History / Latin America / General

Author

Alandeom W. Oliveira is associate professor of science education at the State University of New York at Albany.

Kristin Cook is associate professor of science education and associate dean of the School of Education at Bellarmine University.

Table of Contents

Introduction: Historical Background and the Brazilian Educational Context

Chapter 1: Rescuing Darwin in Brazil: How a General Population Sample Views the Teaching of Creationism and Biological Evolution

Chapter 2: Creationists or Evolutionists? High School Students’ Conceptions on the Origin and Evolution of Life

Chapter 3: Brazilian High School Biology Teacher’s Perception on Evolution and its Teaching

Chapter 4: Brazilian High School Teachers’ Approaches and Departures from Scientific Knowledge when Teaching Evolutionary Theories

Chapter 5: Pedagogical Strategies for the Problem of Teleology in the Teaching of Biological Evolution

Chapter 6: Darwin’s Discussion on the Origin of Fish Electric Organs: A Pedagogical Intervention in the Youth and Adult Education

Chapter 7: Challenges of Understanding Macroevolution among Brazilian Biology Students and Continuing Education Efforts

Chapter 8: What is the Role of Sound Evidence in Evolution Education? A Research Program Following Students' Narratives in Brazil and Elsewhere

Chapter 9: Comparative Studies of Students’ Beliefs and Understandings in Brazil, Italy and Galapagos Islands

Chapter 10: The Perils of the Evolution-as-progress Metaphor: Challenging Ideals of Naturalness, Normalcy and Adequacy in Brazilian and Canadian Science Education

Evolution Education and the Rise of the Creationist Movement in Brazil

Evolution Education and the Rise of the Creationist Movement in Brazil

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