The Great Debate schools programme

Plunge your students into the historic debate surrounding Darwin's theory of evolution with the galleries as their stage. Students are introduced to the history of the debate during a lively tour. They are then divided into groups and use exhibits to prepare presentations representing the views of the debate's key characters.

Use the evolution pages below to support classroom learning before and after your Great Debate experience. These pages can also be used independently to reinforce understanding of how natural selection works.

This activity is free and has curriculum links appropriate for KS4 students.

What is evolution?

Evolution can loosely be defined as genetic change over time, but there is much more to it than that.
What is the evidence?

Both fossils from long ago and organisms alive today provide evidence for evolution and help us to better understand how the process works.
How did evolutionary theory develop?

Like many new ideas, the theory of evolution was not immediately accepted by everyone when it was proposed. Discover who was for and against the theory and why.