Introduction to Intelligent Design Controversy

Intelligent design is defined as “the assertion or belief that physical and biological systems observed in the universe result from purposeful design by an intelligent being rather than from chance or undirected natural processes” (The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language). Intelligent design is a theory that strives to explain the existence of humans and other life forms on Earth as the products resulting from the work of some ‘master designer’ (Strobel). Of Pandas and People, a textbook, claims that "Intelligent design is not a religious perspective at all, but a genuine scientific alternative to Darwinian orthodoxy, something that could be taught alongside evolutionary theory in the high-school biology curriculum without raising any anxieties about teaching religion, and that could even provide schoolchildren with an “exciting event” on their “educational journey”" (qtd. in Kitcher 5). In the United States, intelligent design is best known for evoking controversy in public school districts. Whether or not ID should be taught as a scientific theory in biology classrooms at public schools still remains a hot issue after years of debate.

Intelligent design, an “idea [that] suggests that an intelligent creator shaped the course of evolution,” is often considered by school boards of education as a theory of creation to potentially be added to science curriculums (Brumfiel). Seeing that the field of science is a constantly changing one, it is reasonable to enforce the inclusion of certain new material into curriculum. Science curriculums are always being added to in order to keep up with the ever-changing nature of the discipline. For instance, it used to be commonly accepted to view the universe using geocentrism—placing the Earth at its center. As science changed, though, the geocentric view was replaced with heliocentrism—which places the Sun at its center. This is only one example of science changing in history.

The first difficulty that arises in the case of intelligent design being added to science curriculums is the accuracy of the intelligent design theory as a concept of science. Is intelligent design a scientific matter? Upon what guidelines is something called scientific or not scientific?

Opponents of intelligent design argue that it is not a scientific topic. Intelligent design relies on the supernatural as evidence for its theory, and "[…] claims of supernatural intervention in the origin of life or of species are not science because they are not testable by the methods of science” (National Academy of Sciences).

For those who want intelligent design to become a concept that is taught in public high schools, the non-science of it is quite an obstacle. In Living with Darwin, the question of intelligent design’s ability to be scientific is referred to as the “status claim” (Kitcher 8). In order to deal with this problem in the theory, those who support intelligent design want to overwrite the fundamentals of science so that it will be compliant with the supernatural. Still, the new definition of science would not fix intelligent design’s problematic lack of science. Scholars, scientists, and teachers alike do not find the reshaping of science in order to acknowledge intelligent design as acceptable.