CAN STUDENTS BE TAUGHT TO DISTINGUISH BETWEEN TELEOLOGICAL AND CAUSAL EXPLANATIONS?

The article reports on the result of the study on the possibility of teaching students how to distinguished between teleological and causal explanations in a biology class in the U.S. Based on the study, special treatment is needed and consequently should be given in order to develop the ability of discrimination between causal explanations and teleological and anthropomorphic explanations. Examination papers in biology for an evaluation of the students' achievements of this instruction objective, items of Test On Causal and Teleological Relationships and similar test questions should be included.