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Hot Topics for Public Schools Related to Religious Liberty

Finding Common Ground in Public Schools on the Difficult Issue of Student Sexual Orientation Policy

http://ca3rsproject.org/pdfs/Hot Topics.pdf

This document was written by CA3Rs Project staff to assist school districts in beginning the process of setting up policy to implement SB48. It is based on similar consensus documents written earlier by the First Amendment Center under the leadership of Charles Haynes, Senior Scholar at the First Amendment Center and Wayne Jacobsen, Director of BridgeBuilders.

SB48 Doesn’t Have to Tear Your District Apart

Written by conflict mediator Wayne Jacobsen, this 3Rs Bulletin from February 2012 addresses how school districts can effectively approach the implementation of the anti-bullying and curriculum inclusion aspect of SB48.

http://ca3rsproject.org/pages/bulletin.html

Anti-Defamation League http://www.adl.org/main_Education/default.htm

ADL addresses the proper role of religion in the public schools by providing an online handbook on the key issues. ADL also has resources for schools on bullying prevention and a new offering developed in collaboration with GLSEN and StoryCorps related to LGBT issues that high schools may want to review as they implement SB48.

The Bully by Paul Langdon Student Guide

www.attucksmiddle.com/The%20BULLY.pdf

In the United States, bullying among children and teenagers has often been dismissed as a normal part of growing up. Little attention has been paid to the devastating effects of bullying, or to the connection between bullying and other forms of violence. In recent years, however, students and adults around the country have begun to make a commitment to stop bullying in their schools and communities.  This novel and guide are one step to take.

Teaching Tolerance: Bullied: A Student, A School, and a Case that Made History

http://www.tolerance.org/bullied

Teaching Tolerance program works to foster school environments that are inclusive and nurturing and classrooms where equality and justice are not just taught, but lived. Bullied is a 40-minute documentary film that chronicles one student’s ordeal at the hands of anti-gay bullies and offers an inspiring message of hope to those fighting harassment today. It can become a cornerstone of anti-bullying efforts in middle and high schools.

A Guide to the Film BULLY: Fostering Empathy and Action in Schools

http://www.facinghistory.org/resources/publications/guide-film-bully

The film BULLY follows stories of five children and families who are affected deeply by bullying within the course of the school year. With intimate glimpses of the homes, classrooms, cafeterias, and principals’ offices, the film gives insight into the lives of bullied, ridiculed children. The Guide, developed by Facing History and Ourselves, offers ideas and suggestions for film viewing, discussion, and responsive action.

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Online Opportunities

Tony Blair Face to Faith Foundation

http://www.tonyblairfaithfoundation.org/projects/facetofaith

Face to Faith brings students of different religions and cultures together using digital technology to connect schools in 17 countries.

           Model video conference

http://www.firstamendmentcenter.org/face-to-faith-videoconference-posted

Civic Action Project

http://www.crfcap.org/

The Constitutional Rights Foundation’s Civic Action Project  (CAP) is a project-based learning model for civics and government courses. It offers a practicum for high school students in effective and engaged citizenship and uses blended learning to engage students in civic activities both in and out of the traditional U.S. government classroom. By using web-based technology and civics-based instruction and activities, students exercise important 21st century skills in digital literacy, critical thinking, collaboration, self-direction, and learning to be an engaged, effective citizen in a democracy.

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Resources from the First Amendment Center and Its Religious Freedom Education Project

Finding Common Ground 2007

http://www.firstamendmentcenter.org/publications  

Written by Charles Haynes and Oliver Thomas, this online book provides scholarly overviews and reprints of consensus documents on the following topics:

Chapter 5: Teachers’ Guide to Religion in the Public Schools

Chapter 6: Student Religious Expression in Public Schools

Chapter 7: Student Religious Clubs

Chapter 8: Student Religious Practices

Chapter 9: Religion and the Public School Curriculum          

Chapter 10: Religious Holidays in Public Schools

Chapter 11: The Bible and Public Schools

Chapter 12: Public Schools and Religious Communities

Chapter 13: Public Schools and Sexual Orientation

Chapter 14: Character Education

Religious Liberty in Public Schools – First Amendment Center

http://www.firstamendmentcenter.org/category/religion

This section of the First Amendment Center website provides legal and scholarly research articles along with consensus documents as available on the following topics:

Teaching About Religion

http://www.firstamendmentcenter.org/teaching-about-religion

The Bible and Public Schools

http://www.firstamendmentcenter.org/bible-in-school

Teachers’ Religious Liberties

http://www.firstamendmentcenter.org/teachers-religious-liberties

Public Schools and Religious Communities

Student Religious Practices

http://www.firstamendmentcenter.org/student-religious-practices

Religious Holidays

http://www.firstamendmentcenter.org/religious-holidays

School Prayer

http://www.firstamendmentcenter.org/school-prayer

Released Time

http://www.firstamendmentcenter.org/released-time

Distributing Religious Literature

http://www.firstamendmentcenter.org/distributing-religious-literature

Religious Freedom Education Project at the Newseum

http://www.religiousfreedomeducation.org/

At the Religious Freedom Education Project directed at the Newseum find the latest religiously liberty news, consensus publications, and notice of programs on current hot topics.

Charles Haynes News Clips and Commentaries on the First Amendment

http://www.firstamendmentcenter.org/author/charleshaynes

Dr. Charles C. Haynes is director of the Religious Freedom Education Project at the Newseum and a senior scholar at the First Amendment Center. He writes and speaks extensively on religious liberty and religion in American public life.

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The following sites are not endorsed by the California Three Rs Project but have been recommended by scholars of religious liberties.

Other Resources

Guidelines for Teaching About Religion in K-12 Public Schools in the United States

http://www.aarweb.org/publications/Online_Publications/

This scholarly but highly readable booklet by the American Academy of Religions provides guidelines and examples of how to teach about religion in public schools.

The Pluralism Project at Harvard University

http://www.pluralism.org/

The Pluralism Project: World Religions in America is a decade-long research project, with funding from the Ford and Rockefeller Foundations, to engage students in studying the new religious diversity in the United States.

Religious Expression in American Public Life: A Joint Statement of Current Law-Wake Forest University

http://ca3rsproject.org/pdfs/ReligExpressionLawpdf.pdf

In this 36-page document a diverse set of religious leaders and First Amendment scholars examine how the law applies to religious expression in American public life. Though the drafters of this document often disagreed about how the law should address issues regarding the intersection of religion and government, they come together to provide a summary of how the law currently answers some basic questions regarding religious expression and practice in public life.

Religious Expression in American Public Life: PowerPoint

Adapted for Schools by the California 3 Rs Project, this powerpoint selects and explains parts of the Religious Expression in American Public Life document that directly relate to public schools.  

http://ca3rsproject.org/pdfs/ReligExpressPublicLife.ppt

Religion and Public Education Resource Center

http://www.csuchico.edu/rperc/index.shtml

The Religion and Public Education Resource Center provides general information about the ethical, legal, and educational issues that arise in connection with the topic of religion and public education. RPERC promotes the academic study of the world's religions in public schools as an indispensable contribution to historical and cultural literacy and an integral part of education for citizenship in a pluralistic democracy.

Religion and Ethics Newsweekly

http://www.pbs.org/wnet/religionandethics/

This PBS website is a rich resource of interviews on religiously related topics and video clips of religious practice by a wide ranging groups of believers across America.

Pew Forum on Religion and Public Life

http://pewforum.org/about/

The Pew Forum conducts surveys, demographic analyses and other social science research on important aspects of religion and public life in the U.S. and around the world. It also provides a neutral venue for discussions of timely issues through roundtables and briefings.

Americans for Religious Liberty

http://www.arlinc.org/index.html

Since it was founded in 1981 Americans for Religious Liberty has be a spokesman for separation of church and state as the indispensable guarantor of religious and intellectual freedom, religiously neutral democratic public education, and individual freedom of conscience.

Teaching About Religion…in Support of Civic Pluralism

http://www.teachingaboutreligion.org/

This site provides background information and classroom materials related to  teaching about religion in public schools in support of pluralism, acknowledging that public schools are for students of all worldviews, whether religious or nonreligious, and that public school teachers, as professionals, need to exercise a scrupulous neutrality regarding religion.

Bill of Rights Institute

http://www.billofrightsinstitute.org/

Find current event lessons, the founding documents, and other resources to teach about the Bill of Rights.

Constitutional Rights Foundation

www.crf-usa.org/

This site has a wealth of resource and lesson material on the constitution and constitutional aspects of controversial issues.

Center for Civic Education

http://www.civiced.org/

The Center for Civic Education’s curricula includes We the People: The Citizen and the Constitution; Project Citizen; the School Violence Prevention Demonstration Program; Representative Democracy in America; Citizens, Not Spectators; and Foundations of Democracy. In addition to the curriculum above, the Center also provides a variety of free, downloadable curricular resources for teachers.

The Religious Freedom Page

http://religiousfreedom.lib.virginia.edu

Among other resources this site has links to religious liberty related court decisions, a huge list of primary sources, and much more.

U.S. Department of Justice – Combating Religious Discrimination and Protecting Religious Liberty

http://www.justice.gov/crt/spec_topics/religiousdiscrimination/

The Civil Rights Division of the Department of Justice enforces a wide range of laws protecting religious liberty. This website provides information about these laws and examples of the types of cases brought by the Civil Rights Division.

First Freedom Center

http://www.firstfreedom.org/

The mission of the First Freedom Center is to advance the fundamental human rights of freedom of religion and freedom of conscience.  The site has primary documents, a few lesson plans, and instructions for a student competition.

National School Boards Association – School Law Issues

http://www.nsba.org/SchoolLaw/Issues/Religion

The religion page is devoted to First Amendment, Establishment, Free Exercise, and Free Speech clause issues related to the role of religion in public schools. Topics covered include: prayer, religious instruction, religious garb, religious observations, and religious displays. This page also looks at claims raised under the federal Equal Access Act.

Education for Freedom: Lesson Plans for Teaching the First Amendment

http://www.freedomforum.org/templates/document.asp?documentID=13588

These lessons address constitutional principles and contemporary issues involving the First Amendment. They draw students into an exploration of how their freedoms began and how they operate in today's world. Students discuss just how far individual rights extend, examining rights in the school environment and public places.

Exploring Constitutional Law

http://www.law.umkc.edu/faculty/projects/ftrials/conlaw/home.html

This site from the University of Missouri Kansas City explores some of the great issues and controversies that surround the US Constitution including a look at cases related to the First Amendment. Exploring Constitutional Law was created for use by law students.  

Beyond Tolerance - George Washington Institute for Religious Freedom

http://www.gwirf.org/

This site has teacher lesson resources on George Washington’s Letter to the Touro Synagogue in Rhode Island. There are also documents and background information related to many other religious groups whom he addressed in support of religious liberty.

Resources for Excellent Civic Education – The Annenberg Classroom

http://www.annenbergclassroom.org/

This site has much more than religion related topics but instead demonstrates how religious liberty is integral to the study of the Constitution.

Facing History and Ourselves – Linking History to Moral choices Today

http://www.facing.org/

This highly respected agency provides educational resources on a wide range of issues including religious liberty. Of particular interest is the support material they created for the documentary Bully.

Pros and Cons of Controversial Issues

http://www.procon.org/

The goal of this site is to present classroom usable arguments from both sides of controversial issues related to public policy, many of them with religious connections or implications.

Religious Tolerance.org – Ontario Consultants on Religious Tolerance

http://www.religioustolerance.org/