Spradling was denied a recommendation based entirely on the fact that he did not accepted Darwinism as a fact.
A note: a teacher is within his rights to recommend, or not, whever he likes. Someone whom he feels has failed to learn the subject or the methodology... well, too bad.
There is a huge difference between learning a subject and accepting it as truth. I can show proficiency in the subject matter without agreeing with it. This is a perfect example of our institutions of learning teaching 'what to think' instead of 'how to think'. Welcome to '1984'.
> Spradling was denied a recommendation based entirely on the fact that he did not accepted Darwinism as a fact.
The course was pre-med. Which is based on biology. A teacher is within his rights to expect a student of biology to understand and accept the basic precepts of biology. If the students doesn't... why is he studying biology? Maybe he'd be happier peddling magic elixers made from alcohol and Radium.