So, is there any reason to teach creationism in school, alongside evolutionary theory? I say no. No, because we can allow students and their families to reconcile what scientific evidence has to do with their faith, outside of school. No, because no lesson on creationism is even going to cover all the creation beliefs of the religious students present, so it won’t fulfill its purpose. And no, because it puts teachers in an unfair position. They weren’t trained to teach religious material, and they likely have a unique belief system themselves – how is religious freedom to require a teacher to teach something he or she doesn’t believe?

If it’s really essential to compromise in some way so as to assure parents that nobody is trying to brainwash kids out of believing in God, how about distributing a pamphlet at the start of the unit that states that the teacher is focusing on scientific evidence in this class, but that teachers in no way intend to negate personal beliefs, and maybe encourage kids to talk to their parents?