POSITION PAPER ASSIGNMENT
THE SCOPES TRIAL
Darwin’s theory of evolution created a furor that was
eventually felt by students and teachers as it entered
the school system. In 1925 the Tennessee state
legislature passed a law banning the teaching of
evolution in public schools. When John T. Scopes
challenged the law by continuing to teach evolution he
was charged, found guilty, and fined $100. The trial
drew national attention as Clarence Darrow and
William Jennings Bryan debated the states’ role in
education. Darrow, acting in defence of Scopes, argued
in favour of intellectual and religious freedom and
against the states’ interference. Bryan, an evangelical
Christian and opponent of evolutionary theory, argued that evolution was not fact and that it undermined
students’ faith in Christianity and their Christian morals. Below are excerpts from the arguments
presented by both Darrow and Bryan.
Your Task
You will read the excerpts below and write a position paper of approximately 2 double-spaced pages on
any aspect of the excerpts below. You may choose to argue against either man’s position or respond to
aspects of both. You are not expected to do additional research for this assignment. Consider context
when you’re reading the following excerpts. Neither man could have known of our current
understanding of genetics and DNA at the time.
Format
The position paper is to be written in proper APA format. As for the specific format for the position
paper, you may organize your thoughts in whatever way you prefer as long as you have a brief
introduction and conclusion.
Requirements
- At least 2 pages in length, typed, and double spaced
- APA Format (12 point font, 1 inch margins)
Tips to Earn a Level 4 Grade
- Take some time to think about the topic before you start writing.
- Proofread to ensure that all spelling and grammar errors are corrected.
- Proofread again.
DUE DATE: _______________________________
CLARENCE DARROW
“The Bible is not one book. The Bible is made up of 66 books written over
a period of 1,000 years, some of them very early and some of them
comparatively late. It is a book primarily of religion and morals. It is not a
book of science. Never was and was never meant to be. Under it there is
nothing prescribed that would tell you how to build a railroad or a
steamboat or to make anything that would advance civilization. It is not a
textbook or a text on chemistry. It is not a book on geology; they knew
nothing about it. It is not a work on evolution; that is a mystery… And
along comes somebody who says “we have got to believe it as I believe it.
It is a crime to know more than I know.”
And they published a law to inhibit learning. Now, what is in the way of it?
First, what does the law say? This law says that it shall be a criminal
offense to teach in the public schools any account of the origin of man that
is in conflict with the divine account in the Bible. It makes the Bible the yardstick to measure every man’s
intellect, to measure every man’s intelligence, and to measure every man’s learning. Are your
mathematics good? Turn to Elijah 1:2. Is your philosophy good? See II Samuel 3. Is your astronomy
good? See Genesis 2:7…”
WILLIAM JENNINGS BRYAN
“Evolution is not a theory, but a hypothesis. Today there is not a scientist
in all the world who can trace one single species to any other, and yet they
call us ignoramuses and bigots because we do not throw away our Bible
and accept it as a proved that out of two or three million species not one is
traceable to another. And they say that evolution is a fact when they
cannot prove that one species came from another, and if there is such a
thing, all species must have come [from] that one lonely cell down there in
the bottom of the ocean that just evolved and evolved until it got to be a
man. And they cannot find a single species that came from another, and yet
they demand that we allow them to teach this stuff to our children that
they may come home with their imaginary family tree and scoff at their
mother’s and father’s Bible.
How can any teacher tell his students that evolution does not tend to destroy his religious faith? How can
an honest teacher conceal from his students the effect of evolution upon Darwin himself? And is it not
stranger still that preachers who advocate evolution never speak of Darwin’s loss of faith, due to his
belief in evolution? The parents of Tennessee have reason enough to fear the effect of evolution on the
minds of their children… It is belief in evolution that has caused so many scientists and so many
Christians to reject the miracles of the bible, and then give up, one after another, every vital truth of
Christianity.”
POSITION PAPER RUBRIC
CRITERIA
Knowledge &
Understanding
Understanding of
issues, terms and
concepts associated
with topic.
Thinking &
Inquiry
Relevant use of
information to prove a
clearly stated position.
Communication
Use of format,
grammar and
language conventions.
Application
Makes logical
conclusions,
generalizations and
predictions with
respect to the topic.
LEVEL 1
LEVEL 2
LEVEL 3
LEVEL 4
(50-59%)
(60-69%)
(70-79%)
(80-100%)
Demonstrates a
limited
understanding of
the associated
issues, terms
and concepts.
Demonstrates some
understanding of
the associated
issues, terms and
concepts.
Demonstrates a
considerable
understanding of
the associated
issues, terms and
concepts.
Demonstrates a
thorough
understanding of the
associated issues,
terms and concepts.
Demonstrates a
limited ability to
develop relevant
information to
support a clearly
stated position.
Demonstrates some
ability to develop
relevant
information to
support a clearly
stated position.
Demonstrates a
considerable ability
to develop relevant
information to
support a clearly
stated position.
Demonstrates a high
degree of ability to
develop relevant
information to support
a clearly stated
position.
Uses proper
format, grammar
and language
conventions with
limited
effectiveness.
Uses proper format,
grammar and
language
conventions with
some effectiveness.
Uses proper format,
grammar and
language
conventions with
considerable
effectiveness.
Uses proper format,
grammar and language
conventions with a
high degree of
effectiveness.
Makes logical
conclusions,
generalizations
and predictions
with respect to the
topic with limited
effectiveness.
Makes logical
conclusions,
generalizations and
predictions with
respect to the topic
with moderate
effectiveness.
Makes logical
conclusions,
generalizations and
predictions with
respect to the topic
with considerable
effectiveness.
Makes logical
conclusions,
generalizations and
predictions with
respect to the topic
with a high degree of
effectiveness.
MARK
/10
/10
/10
TOTAL MARK
/10
/40