Abby has been listening to various lectures from "The Great Courses" series, where renowned professors from colleges around the country are taped giving their best classes. We have usually been quite pleased with these courses, so it was a surprise when the past few have begun with a detailed discussion of evolution.
Abby commented the other day that, if evolution is a solid fact, why is it that each professor has a different explanation of how life began? She said some of the explanations were impressive (!) but never answered the fundamental questions of where did it all come from.
It was interesting to me, having been fed this stuff throughout my public school life, because I just tuned it out and knew enough to regurgitate it for the test. My children do not learn about the theory of evolution until they reach junior high and by then the inconsistensies between scientists are clear. I think it is valuable to study these theories for many reasons, but what irks me is that in school, on the news, or in books, it is taken as a given, as if it has been proven and the argument is over.
I am grateful that Abby doesn't just accept information from others just because they have a few letters after their name, but that she thinks through things and wants to discuss it later. I hope she will always use her critical thinking skills in every area of her life so that she won't be easily led astray by others, no matter how impressive their arguments may sound.
