I have been working on selecting a new textbook for high school Biology for next year, and I have chosen Prentice Hall Biology by Miller and Levine. When asked why I chose this book over others, including books from Christian publishers, I gave the following reasons:

• Most Christian textbooks include what I consider to be weak apologetics presented dogmatically as the foundation for Christian faith. If we raise our kids on weak apologetics, we can expect a crisis of faith in some when they discover that foundation isn’t solid; and we can expect ineffective witness in others.
• Most Christian textbooks are written from a strongly anti-environmental standpoint that I do not share.
• Some Christian textbooks get the concept of Biblical integration all wrong. For instance, I don’t think it is helpful to have to bring the blood of Jesus into the discussion of the circulatory system. Good Biblical integration helps the students to see the interaction of a Christian worldview with science on topics such as ethics and origins.
• I find it easier to undo bad science and philosophy taught out of a secular textbook than to undo bad science and philosophy taught out of a Christian textbook.
• I know of other Christian schools who use this book.
• The Miller and Levine book is well-written by scientists, not by editors. Yes, I will have to elaborate from time to time on issues such as evolution, but this is the best I can do right now.

The Christian science textbook publishers I am most familiar with are Abeka, Bob Jones, and Apologia. I found each one to be deficient or seriously deficient.

What are your thoughts on this? Do you know of other textbooks written from a Christian perspective?