The ignorant, irrational, evil Christians of Western Civilization today often say, with disarming simplicity: "Teach the controversy." On August 1st, 2005, U.S. President George W. Bush said: "Both sides should be properly taught" so "people can understand what the debate is about." What Christians mean by this is that current government-run, or communist, schools in the West should present the twin frauds of "creationism" and "intelligent design" side-by-side with the laws of evolution in otherwise-legitimate science classes.
These religious propagandists want creation "science" and the mere "theory" of evolution to be presented to uneducated, trusting, naive, easily-fooled schoolkids as if they were of roughly equal plausibility, validity, and potential truth. Then, after hearing all the facts and opinions of "both sides" of this "controversy" kids are to be allowed to freely make up their own minds about creationism/intelligent design vs. evolution.
The supposed key to resolving this impassioned public issue, and to getting the truth to the public schools, is to present students with a full, open, balanced, fair debate by the government school teachers and in the government school books. Hopefully the results of the frank discussion will be accurate, objective, and scientific, because the debate is aiming at the pure truth. About equal weight and time will to be given to both sets of ideas and beliefs.
It all sounds pretty good on the surface, but the fact is: irrationality, supernaturalism, superstition, mysticism, mythology, religion, Christianity, creationism, and intelligent design simply don't belong in a class or book of actual science. They don't anywhere near merit such a high and accepted status by rational authorities. One might as well teach alchemy, astrology, phrenology, numerology, palm reading, and tarot cards in a class on biology or chemistry.
The empirical evidence, and reasoned scientific arguments, for creationism and intelligent design are just like that for the existence of "god" and the "afterlife": there is none. It's all fiction, invention, and delusion unfit for a science class.
So there really is no "controversy" to teach; no "debate" to hold. If you really want to be pedagogically just, objective, and scientific, then you need to teach monotheism, Christianity, creationism, and intelligent design alongside the pseudo-sciences above, along with other similar religions and myths, such as Judaism, Islam, Mormonism, Hinduism, Buddhism, Manicheanism, Mithraism, Zarathustraism, Gnosticism, Isis worship, Horus worship, various mother goddesses, and different fertility cults.
You also probably need to "teach" such alternative belief-systems as Satanism, Santeria, witchcraft, voodoo, and various death cults (like Jim Jones' People's Temple, David Koresh's Branch Davidians, and the Heaven's Gate/Hale-Bopp comet folks). Add to this various tribal beliefs and superstitions, as well as the beliefs of the Moonies, Lyndon LaRouchies, Scientologists, and Randroids. (Yes, I said it.) It might also be wise, fair, insightful, and useful to teach the Jesus stuff next to popular urban myths, widespread delusions, and conspiracy theories, such as the belief that Elvis and Hitler are still alive, the Holocaust and moon landings never happened, and AIDS and 9/11 were perpetrated by the CIA or Jews (which is a kind of historical poetic justice for them). And true educators should maybe also teach creationism and intelligent design alongside ESP, UFOs, Big Foot, Sasquatch, the Loch Ness monster, chupacabra, crop circles, ancient astronauts, the Bermuda Triangle, vampires, werewolves, and so on.
If some teacher wants to be truly rational, logical, fair, and open-minded then this is the only way to genuinely educate young, impressionable, ignorant minds. This is the only way to be legitimately scientific and genuinely true in the class rooms. Only in this manner can one "teach the controversy."
It's also worth noting here that if people want a proper and full education then the schools must also teach religion. This is important and mandatory; it can not be "skipped." Religion has been a part of Western culture, history, and intellectualism for 2500 years now -- ever since Pythagoras and the first Eleusinian mystery cults. And it became massively powerful by 400 AD in Rome. Monotheism and "god" must not be ignored. Educators must teach the controversy.
Students need to realize that religion is 100% false and 100% evil. They need to learn that belief in god has been devastating cultural greatness, social harmony, and progress toward individual happiness in a truly monstrous way for two-and-one-half millennia now. This must be stated and taught in school. Just as virtually all current schools at least attempt to teach the the evils of mankind's long legacy of wars, crime, traditional racism, traditional sexism, the Salem witch trials, black slavery in America's South, the Great Depression, the religious crusades, Nazism, communism, jihadism, etc., so too true teachers and worthwhile schools must do exposés on monotheism in general, and the dominant Western one of Christianity in particular.