[The post that I'm replying to appeared on <wikiEN-L>.
Replies whould go to <textbook-L.>]
Anthere wrote in part:
Maveric149 wrote:
>Same thing is true for a section of a medical
textbook on abortion ; we leave
>out most of the history and the different political views on the subject and
>just talk about the procedure itself and maybe have a single paragraph at the
>end sating something about access to the procedure and that risks doctors
>face when they choose to specialize in this area.
There are some aspects, even of technical education,
that require understanding of politics, that require
ethical information. A book limiting itself to the
pure technical gestures to apply is *bad*. Very bad.
This is particularly true in the biological domain you
cite. Teaching abortion just from the technical
procedure is an error. If only because abortion is
allowed in some places, not allowed in others, and
this should be known. Also because an abortion is a
terrible act for most women to undergo, and *no*
doctor should know it only from the tech point of
view. He should be aware of the psychological impact
of such a gesture, if he wants to propose and to
proceed with such an act with the physical and
psychological consent of the mother-to-be. Also
because he should be aware of all the limits to such
an act from a religious point of view.
Medical ethics is important in medical education.
Thus any medical textbook should speak of (or refer to)
discussion of the ethical concerns of a controversial procedure.
Abortion definitely qualifies for this
(even though /I/ have no ethical concerns about it).
Offering bare technical teaching is wrong.
Similarly, in agriculture, it makes no sense to *just*
understand how fertilization works, if you do not
understand the pollution it creates, the CAP rules
about N uses and the incentives. Just providing the
tech info is just giving enough information for
survival, not for thinking and making good decisions.
Similarly, the potential pollutive effects of agriculture
are necessary for any complete education in agriculture
(although I don't know if there's a professional history of this
as there is in the case of medicine).
These examples are not the same thing as creationism.
-- Toby