The evolution of textbook misconceptions about Darwin

Abstract

Textbooks for GCE Advanced Level Biology have provided over-simplified and inaccurate accounts of Charles Darwin's contribution to the study of evolution over a period of many decades. They have credited him with field skills and insight that he did not possess, and repeated several historical inaccuracies. Darwin's strength was as a synthesiser of information but, at least in his early life, he was not a particularly observant or careful field biologist. The specimens collected onhis voyage on HMS Beaglewere largely identified and analysed by others, but this is rarely acknowledged. This article crit-icises the historical accuracy of the treatment of Darwin and his ideas in a range of A-level textbooks, and notes a worrying absence of references to Darwin in current A-level Biology specifications and some texts.

Keywords:

• A-level
• Darwin
• Evolution
• Textbooks