Evolution fight moves to Britain

LONDON, March 10 (UPI) -- The fights over evolution have moved to Britain with a new biology syllabus that includes discussion of alternatives to evolution.

The syllabus for the General Certificate of Secondary Education exam does not require teachers to explain creationism or intelligent design, The Guardian reports. But it does ask students to "explain that the fossil record has been interpreted differently over time (e.g. creationist interpretation)."

School Standards Minister Jacqui Smith, in an answer to a parliamentary question, said that the curriculum encourages students to explore different views in many subjects.

"Creationism is one of many differing beliefs which pupils might discuss and consider, perhaps when they learn about another aspect of science," she said.

In the United States, legal battles have centered around the public school curriculum. In Britain, some religious schools receive public funds, but all students must take the GCSE.

Darwin and evolution still dominate the biology syllabus, The Guardian said, with students required to examine both the fossil record and other evidence for evolution like the adaptation of bacteria to antibiotics.