Creationism should be included in science lessons to reduce the confusion among the rising numbers of schoolchildren who have been brought up to reject the principles of evolution, one of the country's leading scientists said yesterday.
Citing evidence that more than one in 10 children in British state schools now believes in creationism, Professor Michael Reiss, the director of education at the Royal Society, called for such beliefs to be discussed and debated in class by science teachers, but not taught as a subject.
The professor, who is also an ordained Church of England clergyman, said the move would help pupils understand that such literal beliefs in religious scripture are not supported by scientific evidence.
The Qualifications and Curriculum Authority, the body responsible for the national curriculum, has ruled that discussion of creationism should be omitted from the science curriculum because creationism is "not a scientific theory".
But at the British Association's science festival at Liverpool University, Professor Reiss said it was necessary for this to change. "I'm trying to make it less likely that students will ignore science, that they will detach from it, because it makes them feel that they cannot continue with science because it conflicts with their beliefs... But I feel if a science teacher feels comfortable with it then it could reduce confusion."
Surveys show that more than 10 per cent of children believe that the Earth is only a few thousand years old rather than the four billion years or so accepted by science. An even greater proportion of schoolchildren does not believe that humans and all other species of life on earth evolved from common ancestors as a result of Darwinian natural selection, he said.
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While not as high as in America, more children are brought up in evangelical Christian and in Muslim households than in the past. "We have an increasing number of children in schools from Muslim backgrounds and a very high proportion of Muslim families have creationist beliefs," Professor Reiss said.
"Secondly, while Christianity as a religion is becoming less important in British society, within Christianity there is quite a high proportion of families that do hold fundamentalist beliefs, and that often means they are creationists."
Professor Reiss, who works for the University of London's Institute of Education, said he favoured a gradual approach to tackling the problem. "A better way forward is to say, look, I simply want to present you with the scientific understanding of the history of the universe and how animals and plants and other organisms have evolved."
His comments were criticised by other academics and teachers' unions. Martin Johnson, the deputy general secretary of the Association of Teachers and Lecturers, said: "Our feeling is that our members would need some convincing that creationism should be taught in science lessons – unless it is just as a theory whose validity can be debated."
Professor Lewis Wolpert, of University College London, said: "Creationism is based on faith and has nothing to do with science, and it should not be taught in science classes.
Following misleading reports that Rev Professor Michael Reiss had advocated that creation should be taught in science class, he left his post as director of education at the Royal Society, the UK's national academy of science.

Last week at the British Association's science festival Rev Professor Michael Reiss said that creation should not be ignored if it come up in class. Professor Reiss, who was director of education at the Royal Society, said that since a substantial number of pupils have concerns about the issue, they are likely to "detach from" science if their concerns and world view are not addressed. Creation should not be taught, he said, but if it comes up, teachers should be encouraged to explain the science of evolution. He also said that students should be taught the nature of a scientific theory - that it does not simply mean a hypothesis about the way things might work, but a rigorously supported system of ideas that fit with the available evidence.

The Times of London reported him as saying that Creationism should be taught in science classes as a legitimate point of view. This provoked a storm of protest from a group that included two Nobel Laureates and other scientists who strongly oppose the teaching, or even the discussion of creation in science class.

Yesterday the Royal Society said in a statement that some of Professor Reiss' comments had been "open to misinterpretation", and that this had damaged the Society's reputation. "As a result, Professor Reiss and the Royal Society have agreed that, in the best interests of the society, he will step down immediately as director of education." The Royal Society went on to say: "However, if a young person raises creationism in a science class, teachers should be in a position to explain why evolution is a sound scientific theory and why creationism is not, in any way, scientific."

The chief executive of the British Association for the Advancement of Science, Roland Jackson, said that the Royal Society should have supported Professor Reiss and used this opportunity to further a reasoned debate. "I was at the actual discussion, and what I heard him say, however it has been reported, was essentially the position advocated by the Royal Society," Jackson said.