Many States Include Evolution Questions on Assessments

None surveyed addresses 'intelligent design' on tests.

State science tests differ greatly in what they expect students to know about evolution, with some asking no questions about the theory and others including more than a dozen items related to it, an Education Week review has found.

Responses from more than 20 states to a survey on high school science assessments show that the vast majority of those states include at least one question that specifically refers to the term “evolution.” Just three states responding—Alabama, Ohio, and South Dakota—indicated that their exams offered no questions using that word.

The theory of evolution, pioneered most famously by Charles Darwin, posits that humans and other living creatures have descended from common ancestors over time through a process of random mutation and natural selection. It is widely considered to be a pillar of modern biology. Over the past year, however, public education has been roiled by high-profile disputes over whether schools should subject evolution to greater criticism or promote purported alternative explanations for life’s development,...