(Response to an e-mail query about material suitable for government (public) schools, 12/96)
You asked about educational material suitable for 8th graders regarding the creation model (scientifically rather than biblically based). I've listed my recommendations below; being a single adult I'm afraid I don't have a lot of material for that age range personally, and 8th grade is tricky in general because it falls between the high school and elementary age ranges for which most of the material I've seen is developed. I've also listed sources for at least most of the material down at the bottom. I hope this helps!
If you want second opinions or more advice, I'm sure my friend Doug Sharp (revev@sojourn.com) would help. He also has a friend who is student teaching and planning to write curricula from a creation perspective, so they might be a big help.
(Top choices listed with a *)
BOOKS:
*Darwin's Engima by Luther Sunderland (Colorado Springs: Master Books, 1988), 180 pages.
*Creation: Facts of Life by Gary Parker (Colorado Springs: Master Books, 1994), 215 pages.
Both these books (in my ignorant judgment!) are probably at the right reading level. Both are enjoyable, well written and accurate, and stick to scientific data without reference to the Bible. Darwin's Enigma deals with the fossil record, and revolves around a series of very revealing interviews of five of the worlds leading paleontologists, conducted by the author on behalf of the New York State Board of Regents. If you want to talk about fossils, this would be a great choice.
For biology, Dr. Parker's book would be a good choice. Essentially an adaptation of his half of What is Creation Science (also a completely secular book and a possible alternative), it discusses the most common claims of evidence for evolution, etc. It is written in a very friendly, personable fashion. Both books are well referenced for further study, and transcripts of the interviews Mr. Sunderland conducted are available to the public.
*Of Pandas and People: The Central Question of Biological Origins by Dean Kenyon and Percival Davis (Dallas: Haughton Publishing Company, 1993), 170 pages.
This was written for the high school student, but you may find it a perfect text to use. Dr. Kenyon first formulated the "biochemical predestination" model for the evolutionary origin of life before becoming a creationist, and this model remains at the heart of model abiosynthesis scenarios today. The textbook comes with a teachers guide, is hardcover, and discusses most of the major elements of evolution and abiosynthesis and what we would expect as creationists. The book has reportedly well received in public classrooms, I believe I heard some time back that school districts from virtually every state have placed orders. If you want something "safe" this would probably be it. Personally I don't think it is as hard-hitting as it should be, Parker's book being the more persuasive in its arguments.
The Illustrated Origins Answer Guide by Paul Taylor (Mesa, AZ: Eden Communications, 1992, reported to be a newer 1995 edition), 128 pages.
If you are looking more for reference material for adaptation to classroom use, or just need a good fact-filled resource, this book probably has more info-per-page than virtually anything else out there. It was designed as a complement to the Origins six-video series featuring the late Dr. A.E. Wilder-Smith but stands well on its' own.
This also has virtually no mention of the Bible, with the exception that if you dig carefully through it on p. 75 there is a section entitled "Earth's Age - Some Creationists Suggest Another Possibility" that goes into Genesis a little bit. Still, the book is _tremendously_ informative and well-referenced, relies exclusively on science data (with the exception noted above) and would be a great tool.
Evolution: The Fossils Still Say NO! by Duane Gish (El Cajon, CA: Institute for Creation Research, 1995), 391 pages.
Probably too much for an 8th grader to handle, this is still an excellent resource and sections of it might be adapted for classroom use. Covers virtually every aspect of the fossil record in some detail (this is an enlargement of Evolution: Challenge of the Fossil Record, itself an enlargement of Evolution: The Fossils Say NO!). Much more detail than in Sunderland's book, and very well documented (as is the case for ALL the books listed here.)
In the Minds of Men: Darwin and the New World Order by Ian Taylor (Toronto: TFE Publishing, 1992), 498 pages.
Like Gish's book, this is probably too much for an 8th grader but would be a good library addition and general resource. Taylor (no relation to Paul above) has made himself an expert at digging up old and obscure sources and tracing historical ideas to their roots. As such his book is superbly referenced. He manages to cover virtually the full scope of the creation/evolution debate in a smoothly professional, unemotional fashion. He's a bit of a conspiracy theorist, but whether you share that position or not it doesn't detract from the content of the book.
VIDEOS:
Evolution... Fact or Belief? (Colorado Springs: Creation-Life Publishers, 198?)
I have a poor quality copy which probably biases me against it (and I can't stand narrator Peter Wilder's British pronunciation of "ee-volution" :-) but this was produced for public schools so it is an obvious choice. 60 minutes. Features Drs. Roberto Fondi (Italian paleontologist), Giuseppe Sermonti (Italian microbiologist/geneticist), Edward Boudreaux (American organic chemist), Macierj Giertych (Polish geneticist) and Guy Berthault, a French sedimentation expert.
The Grand Canyon Catastrophe: New Evidence of the Genesis Flood (Cleveland: Keziah and American Portrait Films, 1996)
Around 30 minutes. If the kids don't mind the native American music and drums in the background :-), this is a good choice for introducing them to geological catastrophism. Discusses the breached dam model for the formation of the Grand Canyon (during the post-flood Ice Age in the creation model), even interviewing several old-earth geologists who have adopted the breached dam hypothesis. Creationists featured include geologists Dr. Andrew Snelling of Australia, Dr. Steve Austin and Dr. John Morris of the Institute for Creation Research, and ICR vice-president Dr. Duane Gish.
Focus on Darwinism series (Interviews w. Michael J. Denton, Phillip Johnson, etc.) (Colorado Springs: Access Research Network, 1993) Time ?
These interviews might be good material for the classroom. Dr. Denton is the non-creationist, non-Christian author of Evolution: A Theory in Crisis, and law professor Johnson is author of Darwin on Trial and a nominee for the 1997 Templeton Prize (the world's largest annual cash award, greater than the Pulitzer or Nobel prizes). The content for both is secular and enlightening...
The Young Age of the Earth (Cleveland: Alpha Productions, 1994) 79 minues.
Features Dr. Robert Gentry and his son with host Lonnie Melashenko, as well as appearances by Dr. Andrew Snelling and Dr. Walter Brown (retired Colonel, air force, former Chief of Science and Technology Studies, Air War College). This is very good and covers a wide range of some of my favorite geological sites and arguments. The only difficulty might be the mention of the Bible a couple of points in the film. Since it is too long for a class period anyway, you might just use sections of this. I'd definitely skip the interview with Dr. Dmitri Kouznetsov (a Lenin Komsomol prize winner), as the material will just produce glazed looks on all the kids faces....
The Great Debate: Evolution vs. Creation (McHenry, IL: Creative Media, 1989) 54 minutes.
I haven't actually viewed this so I'm just throwing it in as a suggestion. The same guy plays dual roles, as a creationist and evolutionist scientist in a mock debate. That strikes me as a bit odd but I've heard some positive comments about it. Their address is 6305 Ojibwa Lane, McHenry, IL 60050. (815-344-9435)
Other resources from which you could adapt material: Creation Ex Nihilo magazine and Creation Ex Nihilo Technical Journal are excellent resources and you might be able to copy articles from them for use. Their web site is part of the www.ChristianAnswers.Net complex at http://www.ChristianAnswers.Net/aig/. Many of the Impact articles from the Institute for Creation Research (www.icr.org) could also be useful.
Sources:
Films for Christ (Eden Communications, some books, also on the ChristianAnswer.net site): 1-800-332-2261
Answers in Genesis (Creation Ex Nihilo magazine and many books): 1-800-778-3390
Institute for Creation Research (Many books, videos and a lot of classroom material I'm not familiar with): 619-448-0900
Master Books (like ICR above): 1-800-999-3777
They all have full-color, glossy catalogs you can request.
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