MANCHESTER, New Hampshire (CNN) -- During the first GOP presidential debate last month in California, three Republican candidates raised eyebrows by indicating they did not subscribe to Charles Darwin's theoryofevolution.
But Prof Reiss argues that there is an educational value in comparing creationist ideas with scientific theories like Darwin's theoryofevolution because they demonstrate how science, unlike religious beliefs, can be tested.
The cabinets changed when Darwin's theoryofevolution became widely accepted in the late 19th century, with less emphasis on the exceptional, more on showing how each species fitted into the supposed scheme of things.
In a number of states, the struggle between religious and secular approaches to education has focused on the teaching ofevolution - with disputes over whether Darwin's theoryofevolution or the biblical creation story should be taught.