The authors feel there is a need of a new and different kind of classroom conversation about free speech--one that not only considers the legal and aspirational dimensions but also weighs the practice and impact of speech in daily life. Two factors make this new conversation particularly urgent. First, the avalanche of social media communication,…

Academic freedom means that both social studies educators and students have the opportunity to engage in intellectual debate without fear of censorship or retaliation. Academic freedom gives both social studies educators and students the right to express their views--in speech, writing, and/or through electronic communication without fear of…

In recent years, LGBT case law and legislation has evolved in ways that significantly impact the everyday experiences of students and employees in the K-12 context. However, uncertainties remain and the fight for full equality continues. Understanding the legal landscape is crucial to being an effective advocate for change. This article examines…

This article describes a lesson in which students will examine several views expressed by the founders to understand the context for including freedom of the press in the First Amendment. Students will be asked to think about the role that the news media and the need to be an informed citizen continue to play in our democracy. Students will…

Of the three branches of government, the Supreme Court usually receives the least national attention. Not so this year. In addition to another changing of the guard with the retirement of Justice Stevens and the nomination of Elena Kagan, the 2009-2010 term generated a great deal of controversy. And in a number of instances, the public's keen…

Federal law had long prohibited corporations and unions from using general treasury funds to make either direct contributions to candidates or independent expenditures that expressly advocate the election or defeat of a candidate. It didn't matter where the ads appeared--print, online, or TV. The rationale for these restrictions was plain:…

The First Amendment's guarantee of an independent press that may freely collect and disseminate news is often considered the bedrock of American democracy. Yet more than a century and a half after the "New York Herald's" John Nugent became the first American reporter jailed for refusing to identify a confidential source, reporters…

Growing up in an era when protest at national political conventions is carefully contained in "free-speech zones" (often physically removed from the site of the official conventions), students today may have a difficult time conceptualizing the tumultuous scene that was the 1968 Democratic National Convention (DNC) in Chicago. Fueled by…

This article presents the Supreme Court's preview. As the 2005 term neared its June 30 end date, the Supreme Court, still adjusting to its first membership change in 11 years, had yet to decide dozens of cases that had defied quick resolution throughout the term. But with the last-minute release of seriously fractured decisions in many of the…

A simulation/game examining the issue of academic freedom through a mock trial of the Parducci v. Rutland case is provided. (DE)

Community reaction to an address by a speaker for Gay Liberation at Schroeder High School, Webster, New York is described. (DE)

The right to discuss controversial issues in public schools is examined in the court case of Keith Sterzing against the Stafford, Texas, School Board. The court ruled that the school board was wrong to fire Sterzing for teaching about race relations with controversial materials. (DE)

Images of heretics burning at the stake or of traitors being drawn, hanged, and quartered for disloyalty to the king seem well removed from twenty-first century America. Yet the laws that defined these offenses--which included heresy and blasphemy, sedition and treason--were at the heart of some of the most significant debates defining the shape…