Scientific Worldviews and Education

My favorite pithy one-liner that I love to give is: “There has never existed a society where children are introduced to the world with the admittance that: ‘Welcome to life! We don’t know why we exist, or what happens when we die.’ Instead, children are introduced to rich narratives and worldviews that begin to color their behavior from a very early age. Usually, we call this religion, or culture. These worldviews are highly subjective, and almost always contradict one another. Today, in a globalizing world where public education is an internationally recognized human right, the question emerges: what sort of worldview should students be taught in public schools?

In my Master’s Thesis at Rice University, I investigate this question, and highlight many of the progressive attempts to provide students with worldview education. I am no longer exploring this topic, but am happy to discuss it with anyone who is interested. I am also open to sharing sections of the Thesis, under the assumption that it is not shared.