# Creationist Science Test from 4th Grade Science Class **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [April 22, 2013, 6:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/creationist-science-test-from-4th-grade-science-class/656421 "2013-04-22T18:49:16Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 5
**Author:** ![Gotterfunken](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/58956e/32.png) [@Gotterfunken](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gotterfunken)\ **Post date:** [May 1, 2013, 6:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/creationist-science-test-from-4th-grade-science-class/656421/81 "2013-05-01T06:09:44Z")
> [@DragonAsh](#): > > Why does the kid’s handwriting appear to change from the first to the second page? There’s not a whole lot to go on with the first page (just “6th” and “plants”), but what little handwriting there is seems consistent to me. She crosses her “t” the same way (kind of an equilateral cross), and her “s” (and other curvy characters) have a sharp, angular quality on both the first and second page. I’d guess that both pages were written by the same hand. That’s not proof that it’s genuine, of course. And I agree with **Doug K.** and others that Snopes’ sources at this point don’t amount to much more than a FOAF. To me, there’s not enough evidence to confirm it as true, nor enough evidence to dismiss it as a hoax. Having lived briefly in Upstate South Carolina (where this school is supposed to be located), however, I wouldn’t be all that surprised if it’s a real quiz. There’s a high concentration of Christian fundamentalists in that region (Bob Jones in Greenville is not an isolated example), and I can easily see a 4th-grade science teacher at a private religious school implementing his or her personal Creationist theology on their class, perhaps beyond what the other faculty at the school teach. Still, I think the jury’s out on the existence of this quiz, at least until further evidence comes forth. ---
**Author:** ![Moe](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/moe/32/2972_2.png) [@Moe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Moe)\ **Post date:** [May 1, 2013, 9:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/creationist-science-test-from-4th-grade-science-class/656421/82 "2013-05-01T09:28:55Z")
Well, [Answers in Genesis](http://www.answersingenesis.org/articles/2013/04/30/atheists-attack-christian-school?utm_source=aigsocial04302013brca&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=facebooktwittergooglelinkedin) seems to believe (heh) it’s real. And their response is of course absurdly laughable. ---
**Author:** ![Student\_Driver](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/3da27b/32.png) [@Student\_Driver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Student_Driver)\ **Post date:** [May 1, 2013, 11:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/creationist-science-test-from-4th-grade-science-class/656421/83 "2013-05-01T11:32:27Z")
> [@Running\_with\_Scissors](#): > > **Student Driver** , your school experience would make an interesting standalone thread. Consider starting one. I suppose I might do an AMA about it; my hours are strange, though, and I’m a little unsure that I might be able to devote the time needed to answer a bunch of questions. Then again, I write so dully that after a day or so, interest would drop dramatically. ---
**Author:** ![GuanoLad](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guanolad/32/42_2.png) [@GuanoLad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GuanoLad)\ **Post date:** [May 1, 2013, 12:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/creationist-science-test-from-4th-grade-science-class/656421/84 "2013-05-01T12:21:18Z")
> [@Moe](#): > > Well, [Answers in Genesis](http://www.answersingenesis.org/articles/2013/04/30/atheists-attack-christian-school?utm_source=aigsocial04302013brca&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=facebooktwittergooglelinkedin) seems to believe (heh) it’s real. And their response is of course absurdly laughable. It must be scary inside their heads. Or to even be near their heads. ---
**Author:** ![pythonzzz](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/9e8a1a/32.png) [@pythonzzz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pythonzzz)\ **Post date:** [May 1, 2013, 7:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/creationist-science-test-from-4th-grade-science-class/656421/85 "2013-05-01T19:41:37Z")
Last year, Ken Ham and his sheeple posted anti-Bill Nye videos as a response to Bill calling out creationism as child abuse. Note how the Hamlet’s vids have the comment section disabled. Also compare view counts… Bill vid: [Bill Nye: Creationism Is Not Appropriate For Children | Big Think - YouTube](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gHbYJfwFgOU) Ham vids: [- YouTube](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JxX11c1cSWU) ``` http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SgGwnbFJBNU http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r-AyDtD6sPA ``` ---
**Author:** ![Earl\_Snake-Hips\_Tucker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/earl_snake-hips_tucker/32/3269_2.png) [@Earl\_Snake-Hips\_Tucker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Earl_Snake-Hips_Tucker)\ **Post date:** [May 2, 2013, 8:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/creationist-science-test-from-4th-grade-science-class/656421/86 "2013-05-02T20:46:12Z")
[Identified!](http://www.wistv.com/story/22136794/upstate-schools-science-quiz-sparks-controversey?utm_source=buffer&utm_medium=twitter&utm_campaign=Buffer:%2Bwis10%2Bon%2Btwitter&buffer_share=248db) ---
**Author:** ![Left\_Hand\_of\_Dorkness](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/left_hand_of_dorkness/32/7156_2.png) [@Left\_Hand\_of\_Dorkness](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Left_Hand_of_Dorkness)\ **Post date:** [May 2, 2013, 8:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/creationist-science-test-from-4th-grade-science-class/656421/87 "2013-05-02T20:53:47Z")
“We teach from a Biblical worldview.” If there’s a better argument against private schools, I haven’t heard it. ---
**Author:** ![Alley\_Dweller](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alley_dweller/32/430_2.png) [@Alley\_Dweller](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Alley_Dweller)\ **Post date:** [May 2, 2013, 9:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/creationist-science-test-from-4th-grade-science-class/656421/88 "2013-05-02T21:08:53Z")
> [@Earl\_Snake-Hips\_Tucker](#): > > [Identified!](http://www.wistv.com/story/22136794/upstate-schools-science-quiz-sparks-controversey?utm_source=buffer&utm_medium=twitter&utm_campaign=Buffer:%2Bwis10%2Bon%2Btwitter&buffer_share=248db) Thank-you for posting the link. It contains the following quote from a school official: > [@](#): > > “We make sure students understand what the theory said and make sure they understand what the Bible said,” said BRCA Administrator Diana Baker. There’s no further explanation, but I am guessing that by “the theory” they mean evolution. So she might be claiming that they teach evolution and creationism, even though I’m sure they point out that evolution should not be believed because it contradicts the Bible. ---
**Author:** ![astro](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/9dc877/32.png) [@astro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/astro)\ **Post date:** [May 5, 2013, 8:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/creationist-science-test-from-4th-grade-science-class/656421/89 "2013-05-05T20:13:52Z")
[I would have lost that bar bet!](http://www.addictinginfo.org/2013/05/03/south-carolina-christian-school-is-the-source-of-the-crazy-4th-grade-science-test/) > [@](#): > > Today, it was in my Snopes report email so I clicked on the link to find out if my suspicions had been correct. I was surprised to find that the image was real. And there was another page to the test. So, it became legitimate news and here we are. > > The test was purported to be a 4th grade quiz from a private school in South Carolina. After some digging by Snopes and others, and a confirmation from Answers In Genesis president Ken Ham, we now know that the school is the Blue Ridge Christian Academy in the Greenville area. Our own Filthy Liberal, Justin Rosario wrote about the initial reactions to the picture and the story behind it. > [@](#): > > “The school administrator informed us she knew that the school would be involved in a spiritual battle after the quiz went public, but she was not expecting such ferocity. She told us she was shocked at the level of hate that the atheists poured down upon her, the teacher, and the school in general.” > [@](#): > > Relying on the usual rhetoric – and completely oblivious to the glaringly obvious projection he is practicing – Ham writes: > [@](#): > > It seems that since the last presidential election, atheists have grown more confident about having something of a license to go after Christians. These secularists want to impose their anti-God religion on the culture. They are simply not content using legislatures and courts to protect the dogmatic teaching of their atheistic religion of evolution and millions of years in public schools. There is something else on their agenda: they are increasingly going after Christians and Christian institutions that teach God’s Word beginning in Genesis. ---
**Author:** ![JackieLikesVariety](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jackielikesvariety/32/296_2.png) [@JackieLikesVariety](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JackieLikesVariety)\ **Post date:** [May 5, 2013, 8:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/creationist-science-test-from-4th-grade-science-class/656421/90 "2013-05-05T20:29:20Z")
those poor kids ☹ ---
**Author:** ![TriPolar](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tripolar/32/3008_2.png) [@TriPolar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TriPolar)\ **Post date:** [May 5, 2013, 8:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/creationist-science-test-from-4th-grade-science-class/656421/91 "2013-05-05T20:31:46Z")
I thought it was possible this test came from a private Christian school. Note how they call anyone who criticizes them an atheist. ---
**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\ **Post date:** [May 5, 2013, 9:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/creationist-science-test-from-4th-grade-science-class/656421/92 "2013-05-05T21:13:25Z")
If you follow the link in the OP, you can eventually get to [this statement](http://www.answersingenesis.org/articles/2013/04/30/atheists-attack-christian-school) from the guy behind Answers in Genesis. He claims that atheists “responded in rage and vehement attacks on the school.” Now, I only read about the story here, so perhaps some atheists somewhere were in fact attacking the school, but I thought most of the response was disbelief and laughter. ---
**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\ **Post date:** [May 5, 2013, 9:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/creationist-science-test-from-4th-grade-science-class/656421/93 "2013-05-05T21:20:21Z")
Also, [here](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=688899) is the earlier thread. ---
**Author:** ![BigT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bigt/32/12044_2.png) [@BigT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BigT)\ **Post date:** [May 5, 2013, 10:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/creationist-science-test-from-4th-grade-science-class/656421/94 "2013-05-05T22:01:40Z")
And now we know why [Snopes](http://www.snopes.com/photos/signs/sciencetest.asp) had labeled it “probably true” before. They got a letter from the father. ---
**Author:** ![MsWhatsit](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/eb8c5e/32.png) [@MsWhatsit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MsWhatsit)\ **Post date:** [May 5, 2013, 10:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/creationist-science-test-from-4th-grade-science-class/656421/95 "2013-05-05T22:04:09Z")
> [@Dewey\_Finn](#): > > If you follow the link in the OP, you can eventually get to [this statement](http://www.answersingenesis.org/articles/2013/04/30/atheists-attack-christian-school) from the guy behind Answers in Genesis. He claims that atheists “responded in rage and vehement attacks on the school.” Now, I only read about the story here, so perhaps some atheists somewhere were in fact attacking the school, but I thought most of the response was disbelief and laughter. I can believe they’re getting rageful missives. Pretty much any time any person or institution goes viral for any reason whatsoever, they’re going to catch a bunch of bullshit from the public at large. The Internet is big, dumb, and stupid. Characterizing this as some kind of coordinated atheist attack is just ridiculous, though. ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_L.A](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_l.a/32/1084_2.png) [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)\ **Post date:** [May 5, 2013, 10:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/creationist-science-test-from-4th-grade-science-class/656421/96 "2013-05-05T22:10:51Z")
Look at the bright side. Children who attend this school are unlikely to succeed in college. Since science is anathema to them, they will tend to gravitate toward jobs where rational thinking is not all that important. So there will be more slots available for other kids to attend college, and better jobs for the other kids too. 😛 ---
**Author:** ![MEBuckner](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mebuckner/32/2896_2.png) [@MEBuckner](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MEBuckner)\ **Post date:** [May 5, 2013, 10:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/creationist-science-test-from-4th-grade-science-class/656421/97 "2013-05-05T22:57:45Z")
> [@Johnny\_L.A](#): > > Look at the bright side. > > Children who attend this school are unlikely to succeed in college. Since science is anathema to them, they will tend to gravitate toward jobs where rational thinking is not all that important. So there will be more slots available for other kids to attend college, and better jobs for the other kids too. 😛 There are [colleges](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Regent_University) those kids can go to where they’ll [fit right in](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Patrick_Henry_College). Note the emphasis both those institutions place on journalism…and government. ---
**Author:** ![twickster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/ec9cab/32.png) [@twickster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/twickster)\ **Post date:** [May 5, 2013, 11:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/creationist-science-test-from-4th-grade-science-class/656421/98 "2013-05-05T23:45:53Z")
Merged duplicate threads. ---
**Author:** ![TonySinclair](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/49beb7/32.png) [@TonySinclair](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TonySinclair)\ **Post date:** [May 6, 2013, 1:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/creationist-science-test-from-4th-grade-science-class/656421/99 "2013-05-06T01:57:33Z")
> [@MEBuckner](#): > > There are [colleges](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Regent_University) those kids can go to where they’ll [fit right in](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Patrick_Henry_College). Note the emphasis both those institutions place on journalism…and government. Didn’t the Bush administration give all kinds of plum jobs in the Iraqi reconstruction to kids whose only credential was a degree from a super-patriotic, super-religious excuse for a college? ---
**Author:** ![Locrian](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/locrian/32/14146_2.png) [@Locrian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Locrian)\ **Post date:** [May 8, 2013, 3:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/creationist-science-test-from-4th-grade-science-class/656421/100 "2013-05-08T03:04:39Z")
Well, I Fucking Love Science and of course, [Snopes,](http://www.snopes.com/photos/signs/sciencetest.asp) is saying this is a REAL FUCKING QUIZ! It appears it may have been given at Blue Ridge Christian Academy, though they didn’t respond to a Snopes inquiry. However, Ken Ham and Mark Looy form Answers In Genesis say they provided materials for the quiz and that it indeed did originate from this school. If this is really true, I can’t decide whether to leave this country or open a school who teaches how Chutulu created the dinosaurs. Heck, if these guys can get away with fairy tales… [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/creationist-science-test-from-4th-grade-science-class/656421.md?page=4) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/creationist-science-test-from-4th-grade-science-class/656421.md?page=6)