Paper 4

Courtney Abadie
English 1310
Micah Robbins
30 October 2007
Word Count: 759
Religion in Public School
In today’s American Society, Christian beliefs are prevalent in many areas of public life. Expression of these Christian beliefs can be seen in many aspects of the public education system. Some of these expressions include: a moment of silence, core curriculum and athletic activities. These aspects in public schools play a role in shaping the American public life.
Many schools begin each day with a moment of silence in which students are allowed to pray, meditate, or reflect. Each state has individual ways of governing the moment of silence. In Texas, for example, the law states that each student has the right to pray or mediate in a non-disruptive atmosphere. In Ohio, the moment of silence allows students the time to mediate “upon a moral, philosophical, or patriotic theme” (law.jrank.org). Some states, such as Montana and Kentucky, encourage prayer at the beginning of the school day. In Montana, it is legal for an administrator of the school to start the day with a prayer. Also, in Kentucky, the Lord’s Prayer can be recited to teach the country’s history, only if it is authorized by the local school district. The participation in both Montana and Kentucky are voluntary, though it’s encouraged for most students. Nineteen out of the fifty states do not have a policy with the moment of silence. That is only thirty-eight percent of the nation either not participating with the moment of silence or not having specific laws (law.jrank.org). Without religion present in public school, a moment of silence could not be observed; the principal could not allow time for personal reflection. Without religion, during a normal school day people would not be offended.
Christian beliefs are also evident in the public school core curriculum. It can be found amid the on-going debate over whether Biology classes should teach evolution or creationism. The main difference between evolution and creationism is the science versus religion. The general law states that “Evolution must only be taught as scientific fact. Creationism may not be taught as science under any circumstance (www.adl.org/religion). In 1998, a Minnesota science high school teacher, Rodney Le Vake, educated his students on the subject of creationism. Le Vake also “told a colleague that he had scientific doubts about Charles Darwin’s view” of evolution (Cline, Austin). This case sparked the idea of Le Vake wanting to teach his own students the idea of creationism. His argument was supported by the First Amendment, later dismissed by Minnesota appeals court, and then appealed to the Supreme Court. The Supreme Court ruled he should teach the curriculum of evolution without creationism. This ruling stands today because Biology teachers are only allowed to teach evolution, although the students are allowed to discuss creationism outside of the classroom setting (Cline, Austin). If religion was not present in public core curriculum, Supreme Court cases over Biology would not exist.
Christian beliefs are present in public school athletic activities, such as the organization of the Fellowship of Christian Athletes. This organization supports “See you at the Pole” in which students meet at the school’s flag poles in the early morning to pray. There are certain regulations to this activity as stated on www.ed.gov. Although this activity is permitted, “school officials, acting in an official capacity, may neither discourage nor encourage participation in such an event.” This is a religious activity that is observed by all religions. Another athletic activity that is affected by religion is the presence of Christian beliefs at sporting events. In March of 1991, a lawsuit was filed by a Mormon and Roman Catholic family because Galveston’s Santa Fe Independent School District allowed students to pray before a football game over the PA system. This case was taken to the Supreme Court in 1995, and in 2000, the court concluded that including prayer during a state sponsored activity was unconstitutional. The school tried to support their prayer by stating that it was not mandatory to attend or participate in the invocation before the game. The Supreme Court denied this statement on the grounds that it might have personally offended students’ religious beliefs (religioustolerance.org). Without religion, there would not be Supreme Court cases over public prayer at football games or “See you at the Pole” gatherings. Religion is present in many aspects of the public school system including: a moment of silence, core curriculum, and athletic activities. It is clear that religion has an impact on students of the public education system no matter what their religion is. This impact can be positive or negative based on the personal beliefs of each student.