Since September 11, 2001, the profile of religion's role in our global society has increased significantly. Religion has long been a force in people's lives as numerous studies and polls show, yet we continue to struggle with understanding differing religious traditions and what they mean for our common life. There are few places where Americans can meet together to learn about each other and to share in the common construction of our futures. One such place for many is public education. The purpose of this book is to illustrate the complexity of the social, cultural, and legal milieu of schooling in the United States in which the improvement of religious literacy and understanding must take place. Public education is the new commons.We must negotiate this commons in two meanings of that term: first, we must come to mutual understandings and agreement about how to proceed toward a common horizon of a religiously plural America; second, we must work our way through the obstacles in these settings in practical ways to achieve results that work.

Explains what the law is on common religious liberty and church-state questions in the public school context. Covers: prayer in the schools; teaching about religion; use of classroom space for student-initiated religious activities; holiday observances; released time programs; physical facilities; dual enrollment; distribution of Gideon bibles or religious literature; scientific creationism; curriculum content; secular humanism; compulsory attendance and religious holidays; dress codes; vaccination requirements; and teachers' rights and responsibilities.

The fight over the role of religion in public schools is far from finished, and the last and final words have not been written. This collection of original essays reveals and updates the battlefield. Included are essays on school prayer, the evolution/intelligent design debate, public funding of religious groups on university campuses, religious themes in school-taught literature, and more. With diverse tones and points of view, these essays offer quality scholarship while revealing and honoring the heat these themes generate.

Provides divergent views on the issue of religion in public schools in the United States.

Since children spend a great deal of their productive hours each day in the school setting, the propagation or non-propagation of religious ideas is a legitimate issue. Many parents, especially those located outside the coastal elite states, believe that religious acts belong in schools as a crucial part of child-rearing. This book examines the core questions of what is and what is not permitted regarding prayer and religion in the public schools as of the latest rulings and presents a selective bibliography of the book and journal literature for further analysis and reading.

This text presents a comparative, cross-cultural analysis of the legal status of religion in public education in eighteen different nations while offering recommendations for the future improvement of religious education in public schools. Offering rich, analytical insights from a range of renowned scholars with expertise in law, education, and religion, this volume provides detailed consideration of legal complexities impacting the place of religion and religious education in public education. The volume pays attention to issues of national and international relevance including the separation of the church and state; public funding of religious education; the accommodation of students’ devotional needs; and compulsory religious education. The volume thus highlights the increasingly complex interplay of religion, law, and education in diverse educational settings and cultures across developing and developed nations. Providing a valuable contribution to the field of religious secondary education research, this volume will be of interest to researchers, academics, and educators with an interest in religion and law, international and comparative education, and those involved with educational policy at all levels. Those more broadly interested in moral and values education will also benefit from the discussions the book contains.

In 1947, the United States Supreme Court took a sharp left turn in its interpretation of the Establishment Clause of the First Amendment to the United States Constitution as it was applied to public schools in America. Since then, students, teachers, school officials, parents, and local religious leaders have been struggling to understand the parameters of the Establishment Clause as it relates to religious expression in public schools. This resource is intended to help individuals understand their rights to exercise their faith in the public school arena. It is also designed to help families, students, teachers, school officials, and community leaders sort through the current legal maze of religious expression in America’s public schools.

This book examines corporal punishment in United States public schools. The practice—which is still legal in nineteen states—affects approximately a quarter million children each year. Justification for the use of physical punishment is often based on religious texts. Rather than simply disregarding the importance of religious commitment, this volume presents an alternative faith-based response. The book suggests the “hermeneutical triad,” of sacred text, tradition, and reason as an acceptable approach for those seeking to be faithful to religious text and tradition.