The question is, which position is more plausible? Another question is, who gets to decide which philosophical positions are presented as dogma in gov't schools? The most important question regarding the teaching of evolutionary theory is, who has the last word regarding schooling, the gov't or parents?
Good point. I say parents. And as a parent, I want my child to learn the science of evolution. So don't try to fill his head with your religious nonsense and superstitious mumbo-jumbo.
If "evolutionary theory is largely materialist dogma", then aren't the germ theory of disease, the theory of gravitation, astronomy, and the laws of aerodynamics equally "materialist dogma"?
"Another question is, who gets to decide which philosophical positions are presented as dogma in gov't schools? The most important question regarding the teaching of evolutionary theory is, who has the last word regarding schooling, the gov't or parents?"
There is a clear answer to this. We, as a society, believe it is important to educate children, and we voluntarily pay taxes--lots of taxes--for this purpose. Even people who do not have children pay.
We agree that there are definite limits as to what parents can do. Christian Scientist parents may not withhold medical attention from their children, despite their belief system. If a child dies as a result of "faith-healing" or "psychic surgery" attempts instead of utilizing recognized medical science, the parents will go to jail.
When our children go to science class, we want them to learn what previous humans have learned about the world--at great effort. We definitely reject teaching them superstitions as being equal to science. We could teach them that angels make the planets move and apples fall, and computers work via 'black magic'. We have good reason not to do this to them.