Taiwan high school biology teachers' acceptance and understanding of evolution and the nature of science

Evolution is the cornerstone of biological sciences, but anti-evolution teaching has become a global controversy since the introduction of evolutionary ideas into the United States high school science curricula in 1914. It is suggested that teachers' attitude toward and acceptance of the theory of evolution will influence their effect of teaching of evolution. There are numerous studies suggesting that a lack of understanding of evolution and the nature of science will undermine their acceptance of the theory of evolution. Research regarding acceptance of and understanding of evolution and the nature of science has been widely investigated in many countries, but none has been done by Taiwanese educational researchers.;The purpose of this study was to describe Taiwanese high school biology teachers' acceptance of evolution and understanding of evolution and understanding of the nature of science. Demographic variables and academic variables thought to influence the acceptance of evolution and understanding of evolution and understanding of the nature of science were also examined. A 68-item questionnaire was used to collect data from 302 Taiwanese high school biology teachers who taught at least two hours of high school biology during the school year 2014-15. The response rate was 41.4%.;Teachers showed high levels of acceptance and understanding of evolutionary theory. Their understanding of the nature of science was moderate. The data revealed significantly positive relationships in teachers' acceptance of evolution and understanding of evolution, and understanding of the nature of science. Among the variables examined, teachers' total number of credit hours in biology at university level had significant effects on teachers' understanding of evolution and understanding of the nature of science.;The regression analysis revealed that teachers' religious beliefs, understanding of evolution, gender, understanding of the nature of science, and completion of a course in evolution were significantly predictive of teachers' acceptance of evolution. Christianity and female gender were negative predictors; while academic variables, understanding of evolution and understanding of the nature of science, and completion of a course in evolution could foster acceptance of evolution.