Attitudes towards creationism and evolutionary theory: the debate among secondary pupils attending Catholic and Protestant schools in Northern Ireland

A sample of 2129 pupils in the third through sixth years of Protestant and Catholic grammar schools in Northern Ireland completed an index concerned w ith attitudes towards creationism and evolutionary theory. The data demonst rate that among this age group in Northern Ireland, 48 percent accept the v iew that "God created the world as described in the Bible" while 33 percent accept the view that "Science disproves the biblical account of creation." Support for creationism is stronger among girls than boys, among Protestan ts than Catholics, and among third and fourth year students than fifth and sixth year students. The results have implications for understanding the co nflict between science and religion and for both science educators and reli gious educators.