Written by On Thursday and Friday of this week, I was at the Education Law Conference held by the Commonwealth Educational Policy Institute at VCU (my U.). It was a really well run conference. On Friday, I live blogged the session on Religion in Schools. It was my first attempt at live blogging. You can see the replay at the link below.
I have seen some issues regarding religion play out recently. I was talking to colleagues in another school who were dealing with a teacher who was asking her students “WWJD?” to correct behavior, and yes, this was in a public school. When challenged by administration after his had become known, they asked her about ‘separation of church… and public instruction?’ and she volunteered that this issue, no moral religious education in schools, was precisely what was wrong in schools, today.
My ignorance of the law in this respect questions what might happen next – could this person be released? Or only if parents complain? Does there need to be policy involved for that district?
JB – I haven’t had the need to use a “Live Blog.” Where were you that you had this discussion/seminar?
Released? Don’t know about that. But, certainly reprimanded and told to stop. That’s a fairly clear case of a violation of the Establishment Clause. There’s no need for policy; it’s codified in the First Amendment.
So what is the rule on using the term “liveblogging?” How live does it have to be? When I “liveblogged” AERA I would frequently post the blog entry in the evening when I was done with the sessions for the day, but while AERA was still going, on my main blog page. You went with “live” as in before the session was even over! (which I guess actually fits the term, live) – So, is there a rule for this stuff?
How did the rest of the conference go?
Different people seem to do it differently. Some will just take notes real time and then post it to the blog. Others will do as you did. I used a program called Cover It Live (http://www.coveritlive.com) which is wonderful and free. The software can be integrated with any blog that supports iframes (which, of course, WordPress.com does not do). The nice thing about doing it the way I did it is that Cover It Live actually functions like a chat room. Readers can watch me essentially taking notes and can actually comment or chat synchronously.
I don’t know that we need a rule, but I do tend to think that if you’re not allowing for comments synchronously, it’s not really live. But, that’s just my opinion.
Jon, I enjoyed reading this. I’m thinking of using Cover It Live for some upcoming workshops. What did you think of the tool?
It worked great for me (other than the fact that WordPress.com doesn’t support iframes). I literally signed up for Cover It Live as the session was being set up, got started and linked it to my blog all within about 5 minutes. It’s got some interesting functionality, including the ability for readers/viewers to comment as you’re posting/blogging.
Religious promotion in schools, through teachings, clubs, and other aspects of school….should it be allowed, or should neutrality be more stringent on this subject? By neutrality, I simply mean the equal treatment and behavior to everyone at school so no person, group, or religion stands above another. I think the key points in any argument regarding religion being in schools is: “Is it needed,” “Does it stand against what America represents,” or “Does it hurt us as a country?”
According to the First Amendment of the Constitution, “Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof.” Simply put, religion hasn’t many bounds in society, as the Supreme Court shows us with the many laws passed protecting students’ abilities to exercise their freedoms openly. The guidelines issued in 1998 by the department of education also show the religion is allowed within school curriculums as long as it is relevant to the curriculum itself. More background information on the subject can be found here: http://www.edweek.org/rc/issues/religion-in-schools/.
Based off of personal belief, I feel that any religious aspect is not needed in any part of life (unless you claim religion to control your spiritual side). Religion doesn’t help get jobs, it doesn’t help making friends, it doesn’t help with loved ones, it doesn’t help with death, and it doesn’t control your existence. That is an unbreakable truth that is only fought with belief, “faith”, and opinion. You are in charge of everything you do in life, but strangely people have the outstanding capability to connect everything to religion. If you make a mistake, “It’s because that’s what God planned,” but if you’re happy and doing well, “It’s all in God’s good grace.”
Religion has served its purpose in society….simply as a crutch for those who need it. Religion, however, is not evil. It is a very healthy practice that makes us feel better, and therefore, live better. Unfortunately, it seems something of greater importance to those close to death rather than those who are just starting in life, and need to focus. We have to make sure that we have a focused future, no longer debating the stance of religion and its’ separation to state.
The Department of Education is the one advocating this promotion of religion within schools, but we are the ones letting it slip as our children learn things we don’t want them to, or lose focus of their education because of what they learned in school. Sure, many will argue that religion brings about a peace to our youth that will help them in their growth, but even religion cannot determine or change human nature. Someone will be the way they were meant to be for the rest of their lives. Children are naturally harmless, thus the peace people see in them. It’s not till they grow older that they strafe away from their parents’ beliefs and make irrational decisions for themselves that we see religion being of no affect on the minds of our youth.
There is a space for religion in society, the place where religious teachings, gatherings, and offerings are held – Church (or any other religious gathering places). School is not the place for religious promotion. Saying religion should be promoted in areas other than church makes religion itself seem like a car company – just trying to get people to buy their cars.
Children who don’t want to endure, or their parents don’t want them to endure, excess information about something they don’t believe or shouldn’t be focusing on, are being subject to withstand something against their will. That is against the constitution and the law of the land – even against the standards of human life.
We need to express our rights and concerns for the lives of our children. Focusing on what is needed to be done and what should be done is much more important that focusing on religion. Let children do what they have to do first, then push your beliefs on them when they have solidified theirs.
Write letters to your congressmen, or any high representative of the government, and let them know how you feel on the subject. Organize small gatherings to talk about the problem, and act on it. Decide for yourself what the outcome should be, and then initiate the spark that causes the wildfire of controversy and ideas on how to make a better tomorrow.
-Mike S.