A small community in southwest Michigan has been witness to a significant cultural divide within its school system. An influential church has permeated school leadership and in many cases has overstepped the proverbial "wall separating church and state." A fairly high-profile case saw the Sixth Circuit Court enjoin the district to remove…

Very few elementary public school teachers in the United States expose their students to religion and spirituality in an in-depth way. Even when they have the necessary knowledge base, they shy away from so dangerous an enterprise. They might fear provoking a challenge from parents who are irreligious and are shocked to find religion being…

Discusses "Mozert v. Hawkins County Public Schools" (Tennessee), a case involving a controversial reading textbook offending fundamentalist parents of six middle school children. The Court of Appeals reversed a district court ruling, holding that uniform use of the Holt textbook was not essential to the state's goals to teach reading.…

Regarding Catholic parents' suit against a suburban New York district for promoting occult activities, a federal court ruled in May 1999 that parents had failed to prove existence of the so- called Bedford program. This Solomon-like ruling also rejected First Amendment religious claims and 14th Amendment privacy claims. (MLH)

Advocating the complete separation of church and state, the author outlines the history of the present debate over the school-religion controversy. Includes a detailed discussion of interpretations of the First Amendment (especially the establishment clause) and Supreme Court decisions relating to the issue. (MD)

The role of religion in American society has been ignored by textbook publishers and is not being taught in U.S. schools. The support for the separation of church and state is eroding as a result. Includes a sidebar providing supplementary resource materials on religion for use by teachers. (MD)

Catholic, Protestant, and Jewish parochial schools have always had religious studies as part of their curriculum, but there has been the question about whether public schools can also. "In 1962 two U.S. Supreme Court cases (Abington School District vs. Schempp and Engle vs. Vitale) prohibited the practice of Bible reading in public schools.…

This booklet is part of a series of units designed to encourage students to take positions on issues of religious freedom. In an introductory section, the document provides background information on the series and on the history of religious freedom in the United States, then explains how students should approach the issues raised in the text. The…

Observes the U.S. Supreme Court rulings on religion have been fairly consistent, but controversies arise from judicial interpretations of the Constitution's religious clauses. Traces history and development of major court decisions and religious issue rulings for both the Establishment and Free Exercise clauses. States religion in public schools…

Presents three law-related education lesson plans discussing the relationship between church and state. The first two lessons, establishment of religion and free exercise of religion, culminate in the third, a round table discussion. The students research, role play, and argue hypothetical and real court cases. (MJP)