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Just to play devil's (no pun intended) advocate.  I wonder if instead of worrying so much about creationism and ID, that we should be reevaluating the ways that we talk about evolution to see if we are unintentionally pushing some people into these pseudo-sciences.  As someone who believes in both God and evolution, I get frustrated by people on both sides who set up a false dichotomy between these two.  I have read plenty of texts, graphics, exhibits, etc on evolution that while scientifically accurate are written in such away that they carry an underlying message of "because there is no God - stupid!"  I can see how some of these messages could make people who believe in God but have only a superficial interest in science decide that they won't "believe" in evolution regardless of the evidence.    

I'm not sure I have a solution to offer here - but I think we need to consider carefully the rhetoric we use when "defending" evolution.  Maybe a few ground rules:

Stick to facts and avoid conjecture - There is plenty of scientific evidence to back up evolution that should be emphasized(the fossil record, embryology, comparative anatomy, etc...)  but a statement such as "all life can be explained by evolution" is inaccurate and unnecessarily hackle-raising.

Don't assume ignorance - The ID movement has many more respected and well educated followers than traditional creationism (mostly because it dropped creationism's insistence on a "young earth").  Many of these people have read up on evolution and know what they are talking about (even if we may disagree with their conclusions).  Making fun of or insulting the intelligence of people who believe in ID gets us nowhere and may end up turning off people who are sympathetic to some aspects of the ID movement.  

Acknowledge faith issues - This may be easier on a personal level than an institutional level, but I have had a lot of success at explaining evolution to people suspicious of it - simply by telling them that I do believe in God.  This instantly removes a large source of their fear (that I am an atheisit trying to convert the world) and lets them lower their barriers while I talk through the scientific evidence.   I also had a great experience with my high school biology teacher (15 years ago) who started our evolution unit by saying that nothing in the theory of evolution proves or disproves the existence of God.  A simple statement such as this can do a lot to make people more receptive.

Just a few thoughts - obviously they represent my views and not those of my institution!

Grant Spickelmier
Education Programs Supervisor
Minnesota Zoo
13000 Zoo Blvd
Apple Valley, MN 55124
952-431-9226
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