Fun(?) facts from my niece's science class

[bookitty]

My niece goes to a private Christian School. This is what she gets to learn this week:

The Origins of Man: Creationists
• 1. The Fossil Record...Evolutionists have constructed the Geologic Column in order to illustrate the supposed progression of "primitive" life forms to "more complex" systems we observe today. Yet, "since only a small percentage of the earth's surface obeys even a portion of the geologic column the claim of their having taken place to form a continuum of rock/life/time over the earth is therefore a fantastic and imaginative contrivance.

• 2. Decay of Earth's Magnetic Field... Dr. Thomas Barnes, Emeritus Professor of Physics at the University of Texas at El Paso, has published the definitive work in this field. Scientific observations since 1829 have shown that the earth's magnetic field has been measurably decaying at an exponential rate, demonstrating its half-life to be approximately 1,400 years. In practical application its strength 20,000 years ago would approximate that of a magnetic star. Under those conditions many of the molecules necessary for life processes could not form. These data demonstrate that earth's entire history is young, within a few thousand of years.

The Origins of Man: Creationists
• 3. The Global Flood... The Biblical record clearly describes a global Flood during Noah's day. Additionally, there are hundreds of Flood traditions handed down through cultures all over the world. 5 M.E. Clark and Henry Voss have demonstrated the scientific validity of such a Flood providing the sedimentary layering we see on every continent. 6 Secular scholars report very rapid sedimentation and periods of great carbonate deposition in earth's sedimentary layers..7 It is now possible to prove the historical reality of the Biblical Flood.8

The Origins of Man: Creationists
• 4. Population Statistics...World population growth rate in recent times is about 2% per year. Practicable application of growth rate throughout human history would be about half that number. Wars, disease, famine, etc. have wiped out approximately one third of the population on average every 82 years. Starting with eight people, and applying these growth rates since the Flood of Noah's day (about 4500 years ago) would give a total human population at just under six billion people. However, application on an evolutionary time scale runs into major difficulties. Starting with one "couple" just 41,000 years ago would give us a total population of 2 x 1089. 9 The universe does not have space to hold so many bodies.

----

She and I are going to have so much to talk about this year.

[ravdin]

:mad:

I'm sure you don't think this is funny and neither do I. These kids will have to compete in a global marketplace someday, and the school is doing a serious public disservice by teaching propaganda instead of the real world skills they will very much need as adults.

[bookitty]

:mad:

I'm sure you don't think this is funny and neither do I. These kids will have to compete in a global marketplace someday, and the school is doing a serious public disservice by teaching propaganda instead of the real world skills they will very much need as adults.

Exactly! Attitudes toward women in maths and science is becoming increasingly more welcoming and these dipsticks are trying to make it impossible for her to take advantage of that.

No, I don't think it's funny. When I first read it I was so furious that my hands were shaking. I have fantasies of suing this school for keeping my brilliant niece from achieving her full potential. (Yes, I know it'll never happen. It's just a daydream.)

[Weak Kitten]

I know that some people may argue with me but I don't think that the important part of this is Creationism vs. Evolution. I think the most important part is teaching children skepticism and the scientific method which is (in my opinion) the core of a good skeptical view of the world. With the rise of the internet there is more bad information out there than ever before, children have to learn how to check sources and understand what is reliable information.

By the way, did you type out that bit about the "Geologic Column" correctly? I could barely understand it and I've never even heard about a "Geologic Column" before!

[bookitty]

I know that some people may argue with me but I don't think that the important part of this is Creationism vs. Evolution. I think the most important part is teaching children skepticism and the scientific method which is (in my opinion) the core of a good skeptical view of the world. With the rise of the internet there is more bad information out there than ever before, children have to learn how to check sources and understand what is reliable information.

By the way, did you type out that bit about the "Geologic Column" correctly? I could barely understand it and I've never even heard about a "Geologic Column" before!

Actually, I have decided not to attack creationism at first but rather to teach her skepticism using pop-culture references. I don't want her to feel like she has to choose between her school and her aunt.

Ugh! It's so unfair! I have to say things like "I respect your faith and don't expect you to follow mine. I only expect you to give me a rational answer." and they get to tell nonsense from a position of authority without any disclaimer.

I cut and pasted the above exactly as I received it.

[Weak Kitten]

I'm so sorry Bookitty. I know it can be rough, I once had a young cousin who tried desperately to convert me because she was honestly scared I was going to go to hell.

Maybe you can show her to some fun sites like snopes.com, they do urban legends and explain their research in their write ups. Those could be good for some conversation and a light introduction to fact checking.

[RecoveringYuppy]

How old is your niece and can she do things like use Google and read wikipedia? It would be pretty easy to guide her to some stuff that should get most peoples attention without having to actually tell her yourself.

The wikipedia article about Barnes labels him as an opponent of Einstein and a pseudo scientist for example.

[bookitty]

How old is your niece and can she do things like use Google and read wikipedia? It would be pretty easy to guide her to some stuff that should get most peoples attention without having to actually tell her yourself.

The wikipedia article about Barnes labels him as an opponent of Einstein and a pseudo scientist for example.

She's 14, well versed in Google. (Although I constantly pound "Google is your friend...who lies." into her head.) Luckily she's got a contrary nature. It's pretty easy to point her at facts and let her do her thing.

The problem is that she's 14, the opinions and regard of her peers are important. There is no way that she would ever expose herself to the embarrassment of calling out a teacher. Not that I expect her to, it's just an example.

I've already gone through this with my nephew but he was reading Dawkins before I even found out what the school was teaching. Plus with him it was all hypothetical. I never saw his actual homework. I should be used to it by now but man! it just gets me!

[RecoveringYuppy]

Oh, I certainly wouldn't encourage her to speak out. She's in the best position to decide if she wants to do that.

[stup_id]

If this helps, I have an anecdote of one of my best friends' girlfriend. She received christian education (the fundiest kind of it...) up until college, she actually went to that north carolina university which is rooted on christian fundamentalism (the one that Richard Dawkins has a famous video debating, can;t remember the name).

To sum up the story, my friend was a Rev. son, he was also highly religious, without having an agenda or forcing him to anything, he eventually became agnostic and then as atheist as myself, and the changes in his viewpoint made his girlfriend to part ways.

Aproxx 2 years ago, she started talking with him, first trying to "save him" then just listening to his reasons and the advances in science, eventually, she would mention things they where tought in college (eerily similar to those you mentioned for your niece), and ask us about how to debunk those claims that now sounded fishy to her.

They are marrying next year, living together in Madrid, and she's become a skeptic and rational person still considering the basis of her faith, but she did tell us that she felt freed when she admited to herself she was being fed lies.

So, if the material is good :) and there-s someone to point the right direction, not even a lifetime of misseducation necesarily has to spoil things

[RecoveringYuppy]

She received christian education (the fundiest kind of it...) up until college, she actually went to that north carolina university which is rooted on christian fundamentalism (the one that Richard Dawkins has a famous video debating, can;t remember the name).
You probably mean Bob Jones University in South Carolina. Easy name for me to remember (see my sig).

[Zep]

Question, Bookitty: Has your niece expressed any doubts herself about this rubbish? If she is Internet-savvy, she will be finding debunking info on this as a matter of course - it's unavoidable, actually. She's 14 - so maybe she is already treating it as a Dr Seuss story already.

So what is her own view on this?

PS> Good book to give her as a present: Telling Lies For God, by Ian Plimer.

http://www.amazon.com/Telling-Lies-God-Reason-Creationism/dp/009182852X

[bookitty]

Question, Bookitty: Has your niece expressed any doubts herself about this rubbish? If she is Internet-savvy, she will be finding debunking info on this as a matter of course - it's unavoidable, actually. She's 14 - so maybe she is already treating it as a Dr Seuss story already.

So what is her own view on this?

PS> Good book to give her as a present: Telling Lies For God, by Ian Plimer.

http://www.amazon.com/Telling-Lies-God-Reason-Creationism/dp/009182852X

Thanks for the book reference. I hadn't heard of that one and it looks very interesting.

My niece is in a weird position. She considers herself a Christian but has wondered (without prompting) if that is the result of peer-pressure. At the same time, she gets some sort of comfort from sharing the faith of her friends. I respect that, she has her entire life to figure out her views on religion.

She has been taught and believes that Evolution vs Creationism is a valid argument. She wants to find some happy medium. I'm ok with that IF the happy medium is learning to think for herself and not some lazy "I'll believe this much and no more." Getting her to the point where she isn't just spitting out factoids is tough. Sometimes she just wants to talk about handbags, how some girl is stupid this week or how some guy said something funny on Scrubs.

[KingMerv00]

My niece goes to a private Christian School. This is what she gets to learn this week:

The Origins of Man: Creationists
• 1. The Fossil Record...Evolutionists have constructed the Geologic Column in order to illustrate the supposed progression of "primitive" life forms to "more complex" systems we observe today. Yet, "since only a small percentage of the earth's surface obeys even a portion of the geologic column the claim of their having taken place to form a continuum of rock/life/time over the earth is therefore a fantastic and imaginative contrivance.

Talkorigins.org (http://talkorigins.org/indexcc/CD/CD102.html) covered that...

• 2. Decay of Earth's Magnetic Field... Dr. Thomas Barnes, Emeritus Professor of Physics at the University of Texas at El Paso, has published the definitive work in this field. Scientific observations since 1829 have shown that the earth's magnetic field has been measurably decaying at an exponential rate, demonstrating its half-life to be approximately 1,400 years. In practical application its strength 20,000 years ago would approximate that of a magnetic star. Under those conditions many of the molecules necessary for life processes could not form. These data demonstrate that earth's entire history is young, within a few thousand of years.

and that... (http://talkorigins.org/indexcc/CD/CD701.html)

The Origins of Man: Creationists
• 3. The Global Flood... The Biblical record clearly describes a global Flood during Noah's day. Additionally, there are hundreds of Flood traditions handed down through cultures all over the world.

and that... (http://talkorigins.org/indexcc/CG/CG201.html)

5 M.E. Clark and Henry Voss have demonstrated the scientific validity of such a Flood providing the sedimentary layering we see on every continent. 6 Secular scholars report very rapid sedimentation and periods of great carbonate deposition in earth's sedimentary layers..7 It is now possible to prove the historical reality of the Biblical Flood.8

and many sedimentation myths (http://talkorigins.org/indexcc/list.html#CD)

The Origins of Man: Creationists
• 4. Population Statistics...World population growth rate in recent times is about 2% per year. Practicable application of growth rate throughout human history would be about half that number. Wars, disease, famine, etc. have wiped out approximately one third of the population on average every 82 years. Starting with eight people, and applying these growth rates since the Flood of Noah's day (about 4500 years ago) would give a total human population at just under six billion people. However, application on an evolutionary time scale runs into major difficulties. Starting with one "couple" just 41,000 years ago would give us a total population of 2 x 1089. 9 The universe does not have space to hold so many bodies.

and that too (http://talkorigins.org/indexcc/CB/CB620.html).

Wow. Talkorigins is the best site ever.

[bookitty]

Wow. Talkorigins is the best site ever.

It is! Thank you, thank you, thank you!

I was going to start on the Google this AM but you've beaten me to it. This is exactly what I was I looking for.

[Emet]

While this site does not compare to Talkorigins, it is nice in that it is titled

Welcome to Understanding Science and Evolution,
and includes this:
Many scientists, who accept the theory of evolution, are devout Christians, Muslims, Hindus, etc. They practice methodological naturalism at work, but in their private lives have many different philosophical and religious views, and have no internal or external conflict with this. Something to keep in mind is that just because life may have evolved, and just because we may have evolved from primates, does not mean there is no God, or no values or morals, etc.

http://www.wiu.edu/users/mfb100/evolution.php

[EeneyMinnieMoe]

Sometimes she just wants to talk about handbags, how some girl is stupid this week or how some guy said something funny on Scrubs.

Not that your interest in her life isn't very commendable- everyone should be close to their aunt because aunts and uncles are so wonderful to have- and not that it isn't great that you want to educate her but, erhm, she's 14. That's what she's interested in.

That's what she should be interested in.

If she wasn't into this stuff and didn't behave like this, then you'd have a problem. A big problem.

She'd have a really tough time with her peers if she wasn't like them.

And if you try to argue evolution vs. creationism with her and she wants to talk about handbags and TV with you, well, that's probably a sign that she's just not interested- one way or the other. She doesn't want to know about either science or pseudoscience.

[bookitty]

Not that your interest in her life isn't very commendable- everyone should be close to their aunt because aunts and uncles are so wonderful to have- and not that it isn't great that you want to educate her but, erhm, she's 14. That's what she's interested in.

That's what she should be interested in.

If she wasn't into this stuff and didn't behave like this, then you'd have a problem. A big problem.

She'd have a really tough time with her peers if she wasn't like them.

And if you try to argue evolution vs. creationism with her and she wants to talk about handbags and TV with you, well, that's probably a sign that she's just not interested- one way or the other. She doesn't want to know about either science or pseudoscience.

Oh believe me, I know. Is there anything more subtly dismissive than a bored teenager? And is there any greater joy than being trusted with all those seemingly-small but incredibly vital details? My job is to be her aunt i.e. the slightly less authoritative adult who cares about everything. No matter how important this is to me, I need to keep it at the same level of importance that it actually is in her life.

Yes, it does get a bit frustrating to bite my tongue when we've already talked about science, and that came out in my post. Probably because it's safe to express it here, where she won't be affected.

[Dr. Keith]

My job is to be her aunt i.e. the slightly less authoritative adult who cares about everything. No matter how important this is to me, I need to keep it at the same level of importance that it actually is in her life.

Yep. I'm sometimes envious of how my kids view my "wild" brother with a sense of awe and feel comfortable that they can tell him anything without fear of judgment.

But, I'm their dad, not their best friend. And that is pretty cool, too.

[Dr. Keith]

Yes, it does get a bit frustrating to bite my tongue when we've already talked about science, and that came out in my post. Probably because it's safe to express it here, where she won't be affected.

When you first mentioned this it seemed that your sister was not a creationist, or at least not a young earth creationist, but was just sending her kids to this school because of of its other qualities. Does she not temper this stuff at home?

I ask because my mom is a very a-religious theist who would always temper our church attendance with her own philosophical musings about the church being a human institution that should only be tolerated so long as it is helpful. Dad is very pro-church, so he was typically at some church meeting while she was driving us home and sharing her anti-church message. ;)

Best of luck with this and thanks for being a cool aunt. Every child should be so lucky.

[bookitty]

When you first mentioned this it seemed that your sister was not a creationist, or at least not a young earth creationist, but was just sending her kids to this school because of of its other qualities. Does she not temper this stuff at home?

I ask because my mom is a very a-religious theist who would always temper our church attendance with her own philosophical musings about the church being a human institution that should only be tolerated so long as it is helpful. Dad is very pro-church, so he was typically at some church meeting while she was driving us home and sharing her anti-church message. ;)

Best of luck with this and thanks for being a cool aunt. Every child should be so lucky.

My sister is an atheist but, as there are no secular private schools in her area, she feels it is better to send the kids to a Christian school and use their teachings as a point to start a conversation. She also feels that the kids will need to relearn everything in college anyway, so why bother getting all uptight about it now. All the evidence points to her being right.

Until the kids hit high school, I wasn't very involved in the creationism debate. I live in LA, it didn't hit me personally and there were more immediate concerns. Honestly, I was incredibly ignorant about it. Now it's personal and I'm getting a crash course. Had I been involved all along, perhaps I wouldn't be so stunned by the homework in my OP.

As an outsider, I have the luxury of focusing on specifics. I can spend 4 hours researching every detail of my niece's incredibly scary science homework because I don't need to simultaneously cook dinner, make sure she's done her other homework, etc.

[C_Felix]

My sister is an atheist but, as there are no secular private schools in her area, she feels it is better to send the kids to a Christian school and use their teachings as a point to start a conversation. She also feels that the kids will need to relearn everything in college anyway, so why bother getting all uptight about it now. All the evidence points to her being right.

Until the kids hit high school, I wasn't very involved in the creationism debate. I live in LA, it didn't hit me personally and there were more immediate concerns. Honestly, I was incredibly ignorant about it. Now it's personal and I'm getting a crash course. Had I been involved all along, perhaps I wouldn't be so stunned by the homework in my OP.

As an outsider, I have the luxury of focusing on specifics. I can spend 4 hours researching every detail of my niece's incredibly scary science homework because I don't need to simultaneously cook dinner, make sure she's done her other homework, etc.

Hopefully in the conversations, the kids are being schooled in "what facts are" and "how to back them up" and hopefully "their BS detectors are being fine tuned"

[ZirconBlue]

That's what she should be interested in.

If she wasn't into this stuff and didn't behave like this, then you'd have a problem. A big problem.

She'd have a really tough time with her peers if she wasn't like them. .

This sounds like you're saying that 14-year-old girls should be vapid and conformist.

[BigBird]

This is basically how I learned it.. ;)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n_kN0BSqkD8

[themusicteacher]

:mad:

I'm sure you don't think this is funny and neither do I. These kids will have to compete in a global marketplace someday, and the school is doing a serious public disservice by teaching propaganda instead of the real world skills they will very much need as adults.

How many people have made it through life not only being completely scientific illiterates but just plain hostile toward science? How many have become rich by being totally opposed to intellectual pursuits that don't jibe with their worldview or by exploiting the dimwits who believe this nonsense? "Competing in a global marketplace" is a catchphrase dreamed up in boardroom's and PAC meetings. There are plenty of loons who buy this garbage. Are they not part of the "global marketplace"? How about they just need to learn the truth because it's the truth and ignorance should be unacceptable?

[Dr. Keith]

As an outsider, I have the luxury of focusing on specifics. I can spend 4 hours researching every detail of my niece's incredibly scary science homework because I don't need to simultaneously cook dinner, make sure she's done her other homework, etc.

Quite.

I may not agree with your sister's approach, but then she never asked me! It is so hard to unlearn something, much less a whole area of science.

It is good that you take an interest in the kids first and their education second. It is more important that they have a cool aunt to talk to and trust. That will be priceless as they try to unravel all of these lies in biology 101.

[Madalch]

She also feels that the kids will need to relearn everything in college anyway, so why bother getting all uptight about it now. All the evidence points to her being right.

Unless the kids are so convinced that science is useless that they don't go to college.

Even though college instructors (like myself) spend a good deal of time re-teaching what student should have learned in high school, if the students have no grasp of the basics, they cannot succeed in college. They just can't. I do some review of the basics at the beginning of the semester, but I can't squeeze two years' worth of high school level science into those two or three weeks of review.

[A Christian Sceptic]

:mad:

I'm sure you don't think this is funny and neither do I. These kids will have to compete in a global marketplace someday, and the school is doing a serious public disservice by teaching propaganda instead of the real world skills they will very much need as adults.

It probably depends on their career field they choose. Because in a huge percentage of jobs your beliefs in the origins of man and the age of earth are completely irrelevant.

The school is apparently teaching what the parents want - otherwise they'd have no customers.

[A Christian Sceptic]

Exactly! Attitudes toward women in maths and science is becoming increasingly more welcoming and these dipsticks are trying to make it impossible for her to take advantage of that.

No, I don't think it's funny. When I first read it I was so furious that my hands were shaking. I have fantasies of suing this school for keeping my brilliant niece from achieving her full potential. (Yes, I know it'll never happen. It's just a daydream.)

The school is apparently teaching what your nieces parents (or parent) want.

[A Christian Sceptic]

Ugh! It's so unfair! I have to say things like "I respect your faith and don't expect you to follow mine. I only expect you to give me a rational answer." and they get to tell nonsense from a position of authority without any disclaimer.


It's fair.
Who is paying for her education? They've agreed to pay for this schools services based on the criteria they value. All schools speak from a position of authority - do all schools need to make a disclaimer of some sort?

[A Christian Sceptic]

My sister is an atheist but, as there are no secular private schools in her area, she feels it is better to send the kids to a Christian school and use their teachings as a point to start a conversation. She also feels that the kids will need to relearn everything in college anyway, so why bother getting all uptight about it now. All the evidence points to her being right.


OK - so you're an atheist and your sisters an atheist. Your sister, your nieces mother, sends her to a private fundamentalist Christian school where they teach exactly what they advertise they teach. The fact they teach this puts you into a tizzy because it's so wrong. But you don't know what to do to counter balance this teaching because you're the aunt?

I think you should talk to your sister about how you feel. She obviously won't be in a disagreement with you or be offended by your feelings.

I'm surprised she doesn't balance what they learn if she disagrees with what the school teaches.

[MarkCorrigan]

It's fair.
Who is paying for her education? They've agreed to pay for this schools services based on the criteria they value. All schools speak from a position of authority - do all schools need to make a disclaimer of some sort?

Some schools shouldn't be allowed to issue actual qualifications. They should be the educational equivalent of Sweet'N Low.

[jiggeryqua]

Exactly! Attitudes toward women in maths and science is becoming increasingly more welcoming and these dipsticks are trying to make it impossible for her to take advantage of that.

It frightens me a little that, for you, this is about female children, not young people as a whole being taught nonsense. Is it an all girls school? Is there not an equivalent all boys school? There really aren't very many 'gender issues' at all and this isn't one of them. (Those that there are are pretty evenly split between the genders, funnily enough).

[Madalch]

It frightens me a little that, for you, this is about female children, not young people as a whole being taught nonsense.

No, it's a particular female child.

[jasonpatterson]

If your niece is feeling youtube-ish, there are several good channels about this stuff. Potholer54 and cdk007 come to mind immediately as two that aren't offensive in particular and that tend to address evolution and the origin of life and the universe fairly well. Potholer54 has a second channel (potholer54debunks) on which he recently posted a video dealing with both the population and magnetic field claims.

w5eFM6C3lfc

[Mister Earl]

Reading the OP makes me sad.

[godless dave]

The school is apparently teaching what your nieces parents (or parent) want.

True, but how is that relevant to this thread?

[bookitty]

It frightens me a little that, for you, this is about female children, not young people as a whole being taught nonsense. Is it an all girls school? Is there not an equivalent all boys school? There really aren't very many 'gender issues' at all and this isn't one of them. (Those that there are are pretty evenly split between the genders, funnily enough).

I have posted two different threads on this topic. The first was about discovering that my nephew (a boy) was being taught creationism and why my atheist sister wasn't too bothered.

This thread has to do with specifically my niece's homework because it is the first actual homework I have seen. For the first time, I know exactly what is being taught. Had I seen the homework last year, it would have been my nephew's.

[bookitty]

OK - so you're an atheist and your sisters an atheist. Your sister, your nieces mother, sends her to a private fundamentalist Christian school where they teach exactly what they advertise they teach. The fact they teach this puts you into a tizzy because it's so wrong. But you don't know what to do to counter balance this teaching because you're the aunt?

I think you should talk to your sister about how you feel. She obviously won't be in a disagreement with you or be offended by your feelings.

I'm surprised she doesn't balance what they learn if she disagrees with what the school teaches.

For the record, I am an agnostic, my sister is the atheist.

She and I have discussed this quite often. She feels that the amount of time spent on creationism is minimal, that she can make sure the kids get the right facts and that it doesn't matter because you relearn all the sciences in college anyway.

My concern is that teaching creationism leads to lazy thinking. Also, the brain latches on to odd factoids and they tend to stick. Even if my niece understands that creationism is not a scientifically sound idea, there may be smaller ideas that stay with her. Perhaps she'll always think carbon dating is useless, something like that.

Teaching a teen to think critically isn't always easy. They've got a pretty good built-in BS detector but they are also easily distracted and a bit of drama attracts them. It's almost as if the school is teaching about bigfoot. They've got the mysterious hairy woodland critter, plaster casts, grainy film and all that. I've got the buzzkill stats about the potential for any large mammal to feed, reproduce & stay hidden in an increasingly shrinking and well documented area of wilderness.

[TubbaBlubba]

... because you relearn all the sciences in college anyway.

What kind of college would this be, exactly...? Generally, you focus on one or a few sciences in college...

[godless dave]

Your sister is doing her children a grave disservice. It doesn't seem like she values education very much. The amount of class time spent on creationism isn't the sole issue. If they are willing to lie to children about that, how committed are they to teaching well in math, English, history, or languages?

And does she really expect them to get into a competitive college with a subpar high school education?

[bookitty]

Your sister is doing her children a grave disservice. It doesn't seem like she values education very much. The amount of class time spent on creationism isn't the sole issue. If they are willing to lie to children about that, how committed are they to teaching well in math, English, history, or languages?

And does she really expect them to get into a competitive college with a subpar high school education?

As far as I can tell, the kids excel in English and History. They have both interjected with trivia from many different historical eras, they have an understanding of politics and have both requested books to further their understanding of a certain time (Currently Plato for the nephew, and "everything you can find" on the French Revolution for the niece.)

If you read her facebook entries, my niece comes across as a 14 year old. It's frankly awful. However, I have requested that her emails to me include proper spelling, punctuation, salutation, complimentary closing and signature. She complied without complaint and is starting to develop an incredibly gripping and entertaining style. Some of her missives could be enjoyed by a complete stranger. I don't ever correct her on details (getting red-penned when you've got something important on your mind would be insulting.) but she knows that it is expected and used it almost effortlessly from the beginning.

This school has an impressive college entry rate. They do push Christian Universities but given the number of children graduating from Christian high schools, I don't think that gives them much of an edge.

Just because they have a sub-par teaching for two-weeks out of the year, doesn't automatically mean that the rest of their program is poor. In this case, I think my sister made the best choice in a less-than-perfect situation.

[bookitty]

What kind of college would this be, exactly...? Generally, you focus on one or a few sciences in college...

That was a very general statement. In this specific case, the nephew is interested in becoming a marine biologist and the niece is leaning towards law. (She is on the Mock Trial team and this school is one of the top contenders.)

[Checkmite]

:mad:

I'm sure you don't think this is funny and neither do I.

Actually, I must confess that I found that "decaying magnetic field" thing rather funny. Hilarious, in fact. I'm ashamed. :(

[The Fallen Serpent]

These types of schools tend to teach a very solid work ethic in regards to learning. The educational system tends to favor effort over knowledge as it is easier to measure effort. That and coupled with the work ethic habits learned at these types of schools can lead to very well educated children that do well at the college and univsersity level. Essentially, it comes down to the methods they teach rather than the facts they teach. As said above, this can still lead to detrimental holes in the education. Evolution is not exactly a very detailed subject for younger students as is. Not until the more advanced biology classes in high school. So on average a creationist based academic profile is not losing out on much compared to the average secular public based academic profile with regards to evolutionary knowledge.

Critical thinking and the scientific method are not cornerstones of public education in the K-12 time frame. So a private religious school can avoid the uncomfortable truths of those areas without losing out on much competitively. Communication and work habits do not interfere with their message and so can be quite excellent programs. The historical education might be biased but it should at least be throrough. A few mandated areas incorrect information will generally out perform a general ignorance in such a field. A number of these schools even have quite excellent argumentation and general logic programs.

So as mentioned there could be some side effect issues such as a distrust in carbon dating, the poor state of science education in general mitigates the loss of educational opportunity these types of schools represent.