It is true that if prayer in school is not done properly it can lead to students feeling uncomfortable. For there to be true freedom of religion all faiths must be represented equally. If this is done correctly no student will feel uncomfortable or embarrassed. Instead, there will be a feeling of peace and unity where all students feel comfortable sharing their religious exercises with others. If there are still one or two students who feel uncomfortable hearing the prayers of their peers is that enough to make the whole class stop? Loconte brought up the idea that if a prayer is said by a different faith each day in class the students would begin to feel like all prayers are equally relevant, therefore, offsetting the religious instruction …show more content…
Many of the students who participated claimed that the prayer helped direct their attention to what needed to be accomplished in class that day. In addition, he found that having a teacher pray for his or her students, or having a student pray for the other students, can produce a sense of unity in the classroom. Students will feel loved and cared for resulting in a classroom atmosphere that exudes positivity. One student said, “I am not a religious person by any means (I 'm an atheist), but I appreciated the way a prayer at the beginning of class ended all conversations and focused the students on the subject at hand. I equate it to turning down the house-lights at a concert hall to make the audience shut up and listen” (Grenardo, 2014, p. 50). This is an excellent example because the student is not religious at all, but he or she felt like the prayer really got the class’s attention focused on the upcoming tasks. This student was not offended by the prayer because it was not said in a way that made him or her feel excluded or unloved, it was a simple prayer that expressed a wish for the students to be able to learn and succeed. Prayers not only help focus the students’ attention, but evidence has been shown that it also has positive effects on their …show more content…
When pupils are allowed to practice prayer at school the way they are taught at home, they are able learn about others religions and become open minded. This notion of knowing and accommodating every person’s religion is imperative to our nation’s survival. It is said that all religions should be studied in school, and David Warren, the director of education in the Anti-Defamation League, said, “Every effort should be made to obtain accurate information about different religions” (2013, p. 3). What better way to learn about religions then to discuss classmate’s different religions in an open and supportive manner? You could have a different child lead the class each day in one of their religious exercises. If a student doesn’t belong to the religion when it’s their turn they could choose to do an activity of something they do believe in. This way the teacher isn’t forcing a religion upon any of the children, but they are encouraging their students to understand that everyone is different, and that’s okay. Religion is a huge part of most people’s lives. It’s what they use to make everyday decisions, and it shapes how they see the world. If we take that away from children in school we are missing a huge opportunity to teach tolerance and
The intercom comes on in a classroom first thing in morning and says “now kids, it is time for our prayer”. Every kid in the class joins hands and starts to respectfully pray. Once the prayer is finished, they all go back to work and are more unified together, right? That is usually not the case. More likely than not, only several kids in the class joins the prayer. Most kids then laugh at the others praying, breaking the bonds between the two. With religion being brought up in school, there are more possibilities for debate between children ending in violence. Three fourths of kids at my high school will not even recite the pledge of allegiance just because it says god in it. Public schools should not have any impact on religion. Christian Groups are sneaking religion into high schools.
Praying in school was first addressed in the Supreme Court in 1962 in the Engle v. Vitale case. The Establishment Clause emerged and stated Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion. The court ruled the Union Free School District in Hyde Park, NY had violated the First Amendment by directing the principals to cause the following prayer to be said aloud by each class in the presence of a teacher at the beginning of each school day: “Almighty God, we acknowledge our dependence upon Thee, and we beg thy blessings upon us, our parents, our teachers and our Country” (Longley, "Public"). I agree with the courts ruling because not all students in a classroom share the same beliefs. To cause everyone to say this prayer surely violates their rights.
The removal of prayer from public schools is a very controversial and misunderstood debate. This paper will address the history of the debate, common myths and misunderstandings, and the current trends.
An issue that has been constantly debated for years is whether voluntary prayer in public schools should be permitted. A student should be allowed to pray voluntarily at the beginning of each school day based on many reasons. Prayer based on moral beliefs reinforce good citizenship as defined by our forefathers. A daily reminder of a need for the belief of good over evil is a necessary part of this society. Daily voluntary school prayer should be re-instated in public schools due to three reasons, the historical basis of the beginning of the United States government, the serious moral decline since prayer has been outlawed, and the government infringement on the constitutional guarantee of individual freedom of personal beliefs.
The pros of prayer in school are that prayer would fit the needs of the whole person. Schools must do more than train student’s minds with academics they should also care for their spiritual needs and boost the values taught at home and in their community. School prayer would allow religious students an opportunity to observe their religious beliefs during school (Pros and Cons of Prayer).Public schools should have religious groups before or after school so they can still keep in touch with their spiritual side. Taking prayer out of schools is taking the students’ rights of religious freedom away from them. If p...
Those in favor of prayer in school pose several arguments. They say it will increase tolerance in schools, as children learn of different religions and how they practice. Many feel it will bring to surface the personal questions kids have about god and religion and allow them to search for their own belief system. The most common however is the argument that bringing prayer back to schools will help reverse the moral degragation of this country. As the Reverend Jeffery L. Osgood, pastor of the First southern Baptist Church in Dover wrote, "Back in 1962, when prayer was removed by the Supreme Court, something happened to America's soul and America's schools. Our nation became increasingly secular and less tolerant of moral standards and values. Since America became to proud to pray to the God of Heaven who created us, we have been reaping the rewards. Crime is way up. The family has broken up. The test scores of students have taken a submarine dive. Its time for a change!"
It is argued that there isn’t a way for every religion to be recognized within the public schools to accommodate everyone without offending anyone. It just isn’t a possibility to incorporate a sense of a “prayer service” that meets everyone’s needs without completely throwing off the school day’s curriculum and without making a form of an offense.
This plainly states that public school teachers, principals, and boards are required to be religiously neutral. They may not promote a particular religion as being superior to any other, and may not promote religion in general as superior to a secular approach to life. They also may not promote secularism in general as superior to a religious approach to life, be antagonistic to religion in general or a particular religious belief, be antagonistic to secularism, and they must neither advance nor inhibit religion (Religion in Public).
"I do not believe that any type of religion should ever be introduced into the public schools of the United States." -Thomas Edison. Religion and prayer in public schools is a big controversy for schools in the United States. School officials cannot take sides on religion since it will violate the first amendment which states, “Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof.” Establishing a specific religion in public school violates the first amendment, therefore public schools have to remain neutral when it comes to the matter of religion. Some people believe that teaching about religion should not be allowed considering it violates the separation of church and state, but that is not true. There are many issues regarding religion in public schools, however exercising your personal religion independently is not one of them. (Leitch, 1)
The issue of prayer in school cannot be dealt with in a manner that will please everyone. The main thing that needs to be stressed is that tolerance of other people and their beliefs is the only true way to ensure that everyone has freedom and equality in America. Until that day comes there will always be groups of people who cause disruption in our schools and take away from what the focus really should be: quality education and an understanding of others as well.
Prayer is a touchy subject these days. If one were to see an Islamic man kneeling towards Mecca in a public place, say a grocery store or on a sidewalk or a school, it would cause no little fuss. It would be a strange sight indeed. People would certainly stare and talk; some might even take offence. There has been much controversy concerning the issue of public prayer. Most of it pertains to the conduction and leading of a prayer, especially in instances where school is the setting. Many individuals are ignorant of the actual laws in our country regarding the matter of prayer in schools: there are no laws against individual prayer. That would be extremely unconstitutional. There are, however, laws against involuntary prayers. Here is what the Bill of Rights has to say about it: “Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof…” (1). It is well known that The United States allows individuals to have freedom of religion; however, since this rule was established, there has been some confusion revolving around it. One major difficulty is the difference of interpretations. Some say that prayer should be totally eliminated from schools, while some suggest that prayer should be mandatory. Neither of these proposals are acceptable; a balance is needed, freedom is needed. Prayer should be allowed in schools because individuals should have total religious freedom.
In 2002 Jonathan Zimmerman wrote a book Whose America: Culture Wars in the Public School, which dissects how religion was taught in the classroom in the past, why it has not worked and thus why we should not allow prayer back into the classroom today. During the common and progressive school eras, the battle in America was whether or not to teach religion in schools, but by the 1940s the questions changed to which religion schools should teach. Therefore, Protestants, Catholics, Jews and Evangelicals
The choice of prayer should be given to each and every person, just as the choice of religion is given to them. The ability to perform their own religious activities, as long as they are not disruptive, should not be stripped from the schools. In fact, the Supreme Court did not ban prayer or religion from public schools. It only restricted the ability of government officials to invoke government-initiated worship. Public school students have the right to pray on their own time, so it should not be frowned
Dan Dennette 's speech about teaching all religions in schools has some truth to it. I do think that all schools should teach about religion. It is critical for students to learn about their religion
School prayer is a very controversial issue in today’s society. This issue has been a problem since America was first founded, in that the country was founded on religious beliefs. The Pilgrims wanted to be able to express their beliefs freely, but in England this freedom was not found, so they decided to come to the Americas, where their beliefs could be expressed freely. As time passed they realized that having this kind of freedom caused problems between different belief systems. Many people started questioning the founding of their nation and what the foundation was made of. This questioning is still going on today and people are torn between letting prayer in to the public school system or keeping it out.