Does “Worldview-Neutral” Science Exist? Part One

A few weeks ago, a homeschool mom gave me a flyer for a homeschool science curriculum that she had seen advertised. She thought I would find it “interesting.” And indeed I do! The curriculum is called Real Science-4-Kids and claims that it has a “focus on real science” and is “a worldview-friendly science curriculum without the spin.” What they mean by worldview-friendly is that those who believe in evolution, creation, or intelligent design can use the curriculum. The website for the curriculum states the following:

In order for science to be “scientific” it must not commit itself to any one worldview, ideology, philosophical or religious perspective. Science and scientists must be free to follow the evidence where ever [sic] it leads. Anything short of this is not real science.

I remember thinking something very similar eleven years ago when I first started researching the origins issue. The evidence would lead me to the truth, I just needed to follow. But what I discovered was that evidence (e.g., fossils, rocks, DNA) doesn’t talk! And while science may be objective, scientists are not—especially in the area of historical science (i.e., evolution and creation). The presuppositions of the scientists play a major role in determining how they interpret the evidence. If the presuppositions are based on the truth, that will lead to the truth about the past, and vice versa if the presuppositions are false. There is only one truth source for the past as it concerns the beginnings of the universe, earth, and life—and that is the eyewitness account of God given to us in the Bible. Everything else is merely man’s opinions, imaginations, and ideas.

As I looked through the content on the website, what I noticed was a mixing of observational science (what I call “here and now science” that gives us airplanes, vaccines, and computers) and historical science (creation and evolution). For example, one of the questions the author of the curriculum wants students to explore is “Did God create humans?” And she poses these follow-up questions, “Who discovered it? When was it discovered? What is the evidence?” These questions are not applicable because we can’t answer the question “Did God create humans?” using observational science. It was an event that happened in the past and cannot be repeated, whether a person believes God created humans or that humans evolved from an ape-like ancestor.

If she had said, “What is DNA?” then we could answer those questions very easily because DNA exists in the present and we can study it in the lab. Both creationists and evolutionists would approach observational science—such as the laws of physics, the periodic table in chemistry, and the laws governing genetic inheritance—very similarly. However, when it comes to how the laws of physics and genetics and the elements in the periodic table came into existence, the presuppositions of the scientists will govern their interpretations.

There is no such thing as being “worldview neutral” because that in itself is a worldview! Jesus dispelled the myth of neutrality when He stated, “He who is not with Me is against Me, and he who does not gather with Me scatters abroad.” (Matthew 12:30). Homeschool moms and dads, I challenge you to carefully evaluate the curriculum that is being sold at homeschool conferences and choose curriculum that has the Bible as its foundation and glorifies Jesus as the Creator. Please check out our homeschool science curriculum, including God’s Design for Science and our newest series by Dr. David Menton, Body of Evidence.

Since I don’t feel one blog can do justice to this particular topic and curriculum, be watching for part two in the upcoming weeks.