"I don't believe that it's the role of government or the role of schools to settle controversial issues."
That's what doctor, state legislator, and losing gubernatorial candidate Jim Barnett says about his views on teaching evolution. He also thinks that there are two "sides of the issue" to be presented in science class.
Barnett, of course, thinks that government policy should be based on the controversial position that human life begins at the moment of conception. One only hopes that he thinks it's OK to address only one side of the controversial issue of the earth's motion around the sun.
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I am a 7th grade Earth Science teacher, and one of the topics I teach is Astronomy, the Big Bang theory, and how the solar system was formed. One of the first questions I am asked is, "do I believe god?" This is a natural question to hear if I am telling my students something that does not readily fit into the time frame of the Bible.
I inform them that none of what they learn is an exact science and that in a few years what we believe is correct may change; an example of this is Pluto is no longer considered a planet. I encourage them to search out information and come to their own intepretations of what they believe the information may mean.
It is good for the students to learn information from different sources, science, religion, and their cultures. Let them learn as much as than can about every subject, but leave it up to their families and themselves to decide the relevance. I certainly do not want the government or a teacher telling me what is moral, right, or wrong; just give me the information.