Religion in Schools - Entry #2 - 9/15/09

After reading two internet articles discussing court cases addressing issues such as students observing a moment of silence daily in school, the teaching of different theories of how humans came into existence, and certain individuals refusal to salute the American flag in public schools, my initial reaction is along the lines of "Why can't we all just get along?". I am an American-born individual who practices Christianity, believe in creationism, and believe in showing patriotism to my country;however, because of my background and my beliefs, I think that I also have to believe in the first amendment right to free speech and the right of everyone to believe as they choose. Having said that, I also believe that I am entitled to not have other people's choice to disagree with my views forced onto me either.


In January of 2009, a judge in Illnois ruled that it was illegal for schools to require students to observe a moment of silence each day because some groups felt that having a moment of silence was a way to camouflage religion and insert it into public schools. Around the same time, a school board in Texas considered whether or not the questioning of various theories such as evolution and creationism could be evaluated by students based on the strengths and weaknesses of each theory. While these controversial cases are recent, similar issues have been presenting themselves in public schools for many years. In 1940 and again in 1943 courts heard the case of the Gobitas children, both members of the Jehovah's Witness faith, who refused to salute the American flag. The original ruling stated that the children were required to salute the flag, while the later ruling overruled this decision and said that they did not have to salute the flag.


All of these cases are very similar in that parents of public school students have concerns about what is being taught to their children in schools. While I do believe it is the responsibility of every parent to be an advocate for his or her child, I also believe that public education is a democracy of sorts where the majority sets the status quo. All of these cases are also very similar in that they each argue on both sides of the religion in schools debate. They are different in that some parents do not want their students to participate in a moment of silence because it implies some sort of religious observation (from their perspective) and others do not want their children to participate in science discussions or saying the Pledge of Allegiance because they feel it threatens or challenges their religious observations.


Religion in schools is quite an interesting quandry from my perspective. Our country and our first schools were formed on the basis of freedom of religion and teaching people Christianity. Joel Spring (2008) discusses in The American School how the idea of teaching people to read in the first settled colonies was for the main purpose of settlers being able to read and subsequently to obey the word of God. However, in later years, separation of church and state was addressed in the sixth amendment to the U.S. Constitution, although it is very often a misunderstood concept, and that certainly changed the face of public education. It is interesting to see how times have changed over the years.



I am a person who feels very confident in my beliefs, and therefore, I do not feel threatened by others whose beliefs are not in agreement with mine. I also do not feel that my beliefs are going to be diminished by exposure to other views. It seems to me that people who are "extreme" in their beliefs are the people who feel that they must impose their views on others. Additionally, while I agree that in education, accommodations should be made for the special learning needs of students, I am not sure that accommodations are necessary for the differing social or religious beliefs of others. These cases seem to pertain to a small percentage of the overall public education population, so it seems to me that while exceptions can be made, changing the overall operations of the school to accommodate a few is a bit absurd.



In my six years as a classroom teacher I found that a moment of silence each morning was as much an opportunity for everyone to focus on the day as it was to say a silent prayer. Additionally, as I encountered students of the Jehovah's Witness faith, I would deal with each situation on an individual basis. While they were not forced to salute the flag or recite the Pledge of Allegiance, they were asked to stand during that time. Furthermore, if science is going to cover all theories of how humans came into existence, it seems only appropriate that all theories are equally analyzed and questioned, regardless of whether they are "religious" or not. While I do think that public education should always be available to all students, I also think that if parents have very "extreme" beliefs regarding religion, "non-religion", or other similar issues, private schools and homeschooling are always options.

All about history. (2002-2009). Retrieved September 19, 2009, from http://www.allabouthistory.org/separation-of-church-and-state.htm