In Debunking Evolution, John and Jane host a series of video presentations that address major problems with the theory of evolution. This mini-course is designed to be presented in six lessons, with twelve video segments, a student guide, and a companion book. The companion book and student guide, both edited by Daniel A. Biddle, Ph.D., are in PDF format and are found on the DVD with the videos.
Hosts John and Jane interact with one another, often in goofy scenarios. Despite the goofiness, the segments cover a lot of solid content. Illustrations and graphics are interwoven with the hosts’ conversations to educate viewers in a light-hearted manner.
While the course debunks evolution, it simultaneously tries to build the case for belief in biblical creation, including a young earth. The tone is purposely slanted strongly in favor of the biblical creationist viewpoint, so it would probably come across as offensive to those who believe in evolution at present.
The best audience for Debunking Evolution is Christian students who believe in the Bible and need to become familiar with the most current scientific evidence that undermines evolution and supports a creation model. The use of quotes from Scripture assumes that the audience respects the authority of Scripture. While the course is advertised for students in junior high through college, it might also be used by adults beyond college level.
Current biology textbooks are used as the source for current evolutionary teaching, and it would be ideal if students have already studied or are studying biology. If they are in public school, students will likely encounter some of the examples shown in the video segments. Even if students attend Christian schools or homeschool, Debunking Evolution should help them better understand arguments for and against evolution. You might also use this course with a Sunday school class, even for adults.
The topics covered were selected by students themselves. As the authors explain on page 16 of the companion book,
“The topics included in this book were selected by reviewing the evolutionary topics covered in most high school and college biology and earth science textbooks, then surveying Christian students on the topics that seemed to be most convincing. There are many other important topics that could be included in a book like this, but we let the students choose (by survey) which ones were most important to them.”
The 356-page companion book, written by a number of authoritative authors, covers more topics than do the video segments. It has more extensive explanations of topics presented on the videos as well as additional topics such as the reliability and truth of Scripture, the different races of people, and the Cambrian explosion which are only briefly mentioned in the video segments. The companion book is not required reading for the course, but I think that giving course participants access to the book would be a great idea in most situations. (The book might be a fantastic reading and reference book even aside from this course!)
Material is presented in six lessons, with one, two or three video segments used with each lesson. The lesson breakdown of topics is as follows:
Lesson 1: Why does it matter?
Lesson 2: Radiometric dating and Uniformitarianism
Lesson 3: Human evolution and Vestigial structures
Lesson 4: Adaptation and Natural selection
Lesson 5: Common ancestors / branching and Homologous structures
Lesson 6: Fossils, Whale evolution, and Extinct species
On pages 17 and 18 in the student guide you will find “Guidance for Facilitators” that explains how the course works. Student will first watch the video(s) for that lesson. While watching, students will fill in the blanks on note-taking pages from the student guide. (An answer key is at the end of the book.) A summary follows each section of note-taking for a video segment.
The summary might be read to reinforce or review information presented in the video segment. Facilitators might read the summary in advance so they know what the video covers.
Discussion questions follow. One set of questions is biblically oriented. “Application” questions deal more with the origins debate and personal application. For example, a question on page 33 asks, “Can you explain in your own words why uniformitarianism can’t explain the ancient ages of things like the formations of canyons, rock formations, or fossilization?” Another question on page 34 challenges students to go beyond the video presentation by asking, “Many Christians put millions of years of animals living and dying before Adam and Eve had a chance to sin. Why is that a problem?” Some of the discussion questions draw from the companion book rather than the video segments, which would be another reason to provide access to that book for each participant.
The discussion section of the student guide also features sidebars with real life examples that are quite interesting.
Students need printed pages to write on for notetaking, so at least some pages need to be printed. However, students don’t need all of the pages, so it might be fine to print pages for each lesson as needed rather than giving students the entire book.
Debunking Evolution is actually even more flexible than it sounds. You might skip the note-taking with an older audience if that seems more appropriate. You might require older students to read sections in the companion book prior to each class meeting. You might have some lively discussions from the questions in the student guide as well as those that arise from participants themselves. Homeschoolers might have students watch the video segments and take notes on their own, then meet with parents or a facilitator for discussion.
You can order the DVD by itself, printed copies of the books, or sets of the DVD with printed books, but I was amazed to discover that all of the course components are available free through the publisher’s website. You will need a high-speed internet connection to stream the videos and download the books. This makes it easy for you to check out the course before using it. If you find it useful, you might consider making a donation to Genesis Apologetics.
