Natural Science - Year II
Unit 43: Darwin and Natural Selection
Parents Guide for Unit 43
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Parent's Notes to Unit 43: Darwin and Evolution
Preparation
Below are notes on the main points of each assignment.
- History Web Lecture: We now look at Darwin's theories as he developed them, first proposing the idea of natural selection and ultimately moving to the idea that man descended from apes, as fossil evidence supported the descent of many modern species from earlier species that no longer existed. Darwin did not have access to genetic theories proposed by Mendel, so he had no mechanism to explain how mutations could occur to change individuals in species. Modern evolution theories are often called "modified Darwinism" because they include this idea.
This is one of the most controversial areas we discuss in this course, and students often come to the topic with ideas from sources that have very specific interpretations of the issue. Our goal here is to help students understand as far as possible what Darwin actually said (not what people thought he said), and what modern evolutionists actually mean by their own theory, so they are better prepared to take part in the inevitable discussions of religion "vs." science they will run into in college.
Please discuss with your student the study questions at the end of the web lecture.
- Science Web Lecture: Geological Forces
Here we look at the main areas modern evolutionists use to support the theory of evolution:
- fossils
- comparative anatomy (simularities and differences between species)
- embryological development (on the assumption that undifferentiated cells of different species are more alike and can provide clues to relationships between species)
- biogeogrphaphy, or the distribution of species across different regions of the earth
- genetic similarities, a study which has become possible only in the last few decades as we map the genetic code of different species, including our own.
We also look at the strict definition of the terms "evolution" and "species", as these are sometimes used differently in the debate over evolution and creation, leading to confusion rather than clarification of issues. Microevolution of species does not require any mutations, it simple requires a change in the occurance of one existing trait over another existing trait in response to several types of factors: genetic drift, gene flow, mutations, mating habits, and natural selection, all of which can be directly observed in current populations.
The primary area of controversy is over macroevolution, or the appearance of new species over time through actual genetic mutations. Here too there is some direct evidence (particularly among plant species).
- Homework:
The mastery exercise questions focus on key players in the development of different theories of evolution, and the key concepts students should understand in evolution theory as a result of the reading and discussion. Make sure that the student reads and attempts the mastery exercise chat, so that he can identify questions that need to be discussed in chat.
- Discussion:
Our discussion will focus on the definition of species and the application of the theory of natural selection, since many students find the concepts confusing.
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