The Pot-Stirrer: Teaching Evolution In The South

Although evolution is overwhelmingly accepted by scientific communities, it remains a taboo and often misunderstood subject for much of the rural American South. Amanda Glaze, a science teacher at Jacksonville High School in Jacksonville, Alabama and a member of graduate faculty at Texas A&M University-Commerce, studies this deeply rooted cultural sentiment and its religious and societal influences in universities, schools and communities throughout the Southeastern United States. Using both quantitative surveys and qualitative interviews, she strives to understand the experiences and perceptions of her fellow teachers and the community around her to better inform science teaching and teacher education nationwide. She also teaches evolution-based science courses to high school and college students in the hopes of shifting the next generation’s views on the subject.