Alternate theories could be taught in Cobb schools

MARIETTA - The Cobb County school board is considering allowing the teaching of alternate theories other than the one that considers evolution as the origin of life. <br> <br> All students in Cobb high schools already have biology texts that say biological evolution is a theory, not fact. <br> <br> Several board members said they are responding to parent and community pressure to start teaching alternative ideas in science class. <br> <br> The board unanimously asked its attorney Wednesday to prepare a policy that keeps the district within legal bounds. <br> <br> The issue has divided Americans since 1925, when John Scopes was tried in Tennessee for teaching Charles Darwin&#39;s theory of evolution. <br> <br> Darwin&#39;s theory believes that all living things developed from earlier forms through slight variations over time and that natural selection determines which species survive. <br> <br> The teaching of alternative theories, including ``intelligent design,&#39;&#39; holds that the variety of life results from a purposeful design, rather than random mutation, and that a higher intelligence guides the process.