The First Amendment in Schools

A Guide from the First Amendment Center

Charles C. Haynes, Sam Chaltain

• Publisher: ASCD
• Year: 2003
• Print ISBN: 9780871207777
• eBook ISBN: 9781416612599
• Topic: Education
• Subtopic: Education General

What are the First Amendment rights? How do you resolve questions about the rights of students, educators, and parents in a school setting?

The First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution protects the most basic and cherished rights of society--religion, speech, press, petition, and assembly. Anyone who wants to know more about those freedoms in the context of schools will find The First Amendment in Schools a rich resource for study and application. The book includes

* An explanation of the origins of the First Amendment
* A concise, chronological history of 50 legal cases, including many landmark decisions, involving the First Amendment in public schools
* Answers to frequently asked questions about the practice of the First Amendment in schools, covering specific issues of religious liberty, free speech, and press as they affect school prayer, use of school facilities, dress and speech codes, student press, book selection, and curriculum
* General information on First Amendment expression and practice in schools
* Information on more than 60 educational and advocacy programs and organizations for First Amendment resources
* A profile of First Amendment Schools

This book provides a civic and legal framework for giving all members of the school community--students, parents, teachers, administrators, and community members--a real voice in shaping the life of the school.

Note: This product listing is for the reflowable (ePub) version of the book.

Part I
First Amendment Schools: Educating for Freedom and Responsibility

The nationwide initiative, "First Amendment Schools: Educating for Freedom and Responsibility," is designed to transform how schools model and teach the rights and responsibilities that frame civic life in our democracy.

Early in 2001, ASCD and the First Amendment Center joined forces to launch the project, which has four primary goals:

1. To create consensus guidelines for any school interested in creating and sustaining First Amendment principles in the school community.
2. To establish project schools at which First Amendment principles are understood and applied throughout the school community.
3. To encourage and develop curriculum reforms that reinvigorate and deepen teaching about the First Amendment across the curriculum.
4. To educate school leaders, teachers, school board members and attorneys, and other key stakeholders about the meaning and significance of First Amendment principles and ideals.

In its fulfillment of these goals, the First Amendment Schools (FAS) project serves as a national resource to all schools—K–12, public and private— committed to transforming how First Amendment principles are modeled and taught.

Vision Statement

First Amendment Schools are built on the conviction that the five freedoms protected by the First Amendment are a cornerstone of American democracy and essential for citizenship in a diverse society.

For more than 200 years, the First Amendment has been at the heart of history's boldest and most successful experiment in liberty. We readily acknowledge that the United States failed to live up to its founding principles in 1791, and that the nation still has a distance to go in the 21st century. But the history of the United States is the story of the ongoing struggle to extend the promise of freedom more fully and fairly to every citizen.

Today the need to sustain and expand our experiment in liberty is made more urgent by the challenge of living with our deepest differences in a diverse and complex society. The need to commit ourselves as a people to the rights and responsibilities that flow from the First Amendment has never been more vital—or more difficult. At a time in U.S. history when citizens most need to reaffirm what they share across their differences, the ignorance and contention now surrounding the First Amendment threaten to divide the nation and undermine our freedom.

The place to address this challenge is in our schools—the institutions most responsible for transmitting civic principles and virtues to each succeeding generation. Schools must not only teach the First Amendment, they must also find ways to model and apply the democratic first principles that they are charged with teaching. The rights and responsibilities of the First Amendment provide a much-needed framework for reaffirming and renewing the civic aims of education.

We envision First Amendment Schools as places where all members of the school community practice the civic habits of the heart necessary to sustain a free people that would remain free. Schools may carry out this mission in ways that vary greatly, depending on the age of the students, the size of the school, the needs of the local community, and whether the school is public or private. What unites First Amendment Schools is not one view of democratic education or the First Amendment, but an abiding commitment to teach and model the rights and responsibilities that undergird the First Amendment.

We propose the following four principles as foundational for creating and sustaining a First Amendment School:

I. Create Laboratories of Democratic Freedom

The future of the American republic depends upon instilling in young citizens an abiding commitment to the democratic first principles that sustain our experiment in liberty.

First Amendment Schools educate for freedom by providing students and all members of the school community with substantial opportunities to practice democracy. Knowledge of our framing documents and the structure and functions of government is important, but preparation for citizenship also requires virtues and skills acquired through participation in decision making. By practicing democracy, students confront the challenges of self-government, including the difficult task of balancing a commitment to individual rights with a concern for the common good.

First Amendment Schools create organizational structures, allocate time and resources, and develop policies and curricula designed to support and promote democratic learning communities. Pedagogical decisions, including instructional and assessment practices, extend opportunities for authentic learning that inform a citizen's understanding of the world beyond the classroom.

First Amendment Schools include administrators, teachers, staff, students, parents, and community members when making decisions about organization, governance, and curricula. When everyone is given a meaningful voice in shaping the life of the school, each has a real stake in creating and sustaining safe and caring learning communities. All members of the school community should have opportunities to exercise leadership, negotiate differences, propose solutions to shared problems, and practice other skills essential to thoughtful and effective participation in civic life.

II. Commit to Inalienable Rights and Civic Responsibility

Freedom of religion, speech, press, assembly, and petition are fundamental and inalienable rights. Every citizen has a civic responsibility to guard these rights for others.

First Amendment Schools are dedicated to educating for citizenship by teaching and modeling the democratic principles of the Constitution of the United States. Schools take this mission seriously by providing all members of the school community with daily opportunities to exercise their constitutional rights with responsibility.

First Amendment Schools uphold the principles of freedom and democracy when they protect religious-liberty rights, encourage freedom of expression, promote academic freedom, ensure a free student press, and support broad-based involvement in school governance. Acting responsibly, students, teachers, administrators, staff, parents, and community members can do much to uphold the rights of every citizen.

III. Include All Stakeholders

The First Amendment provides the civic framework of rights and responsibilities that enables Americans to work together for the common good in schools and communities.

First Amendment Schools affirm the importance of modeling the democratic process and upholding individual rights in the development of policies and curricula. Decisions are made after appropriate involvement of those affected by the decision and with due consideration for the rights of those holding dissenting views.

First Amendment Schools recognize that parents have the primary responsibility for the upbringing and education of their children. Everyone, however, shares an important stake in educating students for responsible citizenship in a free society. Students and schools benefit greatly when parents, students, educators, and community members work closely together to promote a shared vision of the First Amendment throughout the school culture and across the community.

IV. Translate Civic Education into Community Engagement

A society committed to freedom and justice for all requires citizens with the knowledge, virtues, and skills needed for active engagement in public life.

First Amendment Schools encourage active citizenship by giving students opportunities to translate civic education into community engagement. Active citizens are willing to participate in public life by addressing problems and issues in their communities, their nation, and the world.

First Amendment Schools provide opportunities for students to learn civic virtue and moral character throughout the school culture and across the curriculum. Students are encouraged to demonstrate an active concern for the welfare of others through service learning and civic problem solving. First Amendment rights are best guarded and civic responsibilities best exercised when citizens are actively engaged in building a more just and free society.

These guiding principles are offered as a shared vision for schools seeking to fulfill the promise of freedom under the First Amendment.

Learning about freedom and justice, however important, can never be enough; educating for democratic citizenship must be more than an academic exercise. If we are to sustain and expand the American experiment in liberty, young citizens must acquire the civic skills and virtues needed to exercise their freedom with responsibility.

We invite all schools and every citizen to join us in affirming these principles and putting them into action. The time has come for all citizens to work together to renew their shared commitment to the civic principles and virtues vital to democracy, freedom, and the common good.

Frequently Asked Questions

The following five questions are among the most frequently asked about the First Amendment Schools project.

1. How can the First Amendment Schools project serve as a national resource?

The project's Web site, www.firstamendmentschools.org, is designed to provide resources that can help all schools implement the guiding principles of the First Amendment. These resources include instructional materials designed to enhance the teaching of the First Amendment; helpful information about other civic-minded organizations and programs; strategies to promote active citizenship; and First Amendment research tools, complete with primary sources and U.S. Supreme Court opinions. Additionally, the Web site provides access to consensus guidelines that inform schools of the contours of First Amendment case law and suggest how student rights can best be understood and affirmed.

2. What is the First Amendment Schools Grant Award Program?

In spring 2002, the First Amendment Schools project awarded grants to 11 schools—K–12, public and private—from communities across the country to participate in a multiyear collaboration. These project schools are working to teach and model more completely the democratic principles of the First Amendment. The grant awards are designed to support these efforts and to promote the knowledge, skills, and virtues required for thoughtful and effective participation in civic life.

The first network of First Amendment Schools will work to generate models of educating for democratic citizenship that other schools can adapt to their own communities. Other project schools will be added through subsequent grant programs in the coming years. Visit www.firstamendmentschools.org to find out more information about future rounds of grant awards.

3. What is required to successfully implement the guiding principles of the First Amendment Schools vision statement?

A school's commitment to democratic first principles and its capacity to act in accordance with the vision statement are important indicators of success. Factors that provide evidence of a school's readiness to engage in the project include

• How closely the school's core values align with the vision statement,
• How well ongoing schoolwide initiatives complement the project, and
• How extensively diverse voices are heard.

For example, how well do the guiding principles align with existing school programs such as character education, law-related education, and service learning initiatives? In addition to capacity and commitment, schools need to have a supportive infrastructure to extend their efforts. For that reason, central office administrators and school board members need to endorse and support the school's work with the project.

Schools must also give voice to students and teachers. The project's guiding principles affirm the centrality of the perspectives of students and teachers on the important issues of teaching and learning, school governance, and community building. The project affords schools a vehicle to address student alienation; to challenge the achievement gap with schooling that relates to students' experiences; and to champion students, who too often are an untapped resource in the community.

4. What is the role of the community in a First Amendment School?

The community, especially the parents, must understand what it means to live up to the guiding principles of the vision statement. They must be involved in discussions that result in policy changes and new school practices. Setting the boundaries on student freedom, creating a climate of respect for the rights of others, and learning to live with deep differences cannot be an assignment left to the school alone. Rather, community support for First Amendment Schools must start in the homes of students and spread across the neighborhoods. Then a commitment to the civic framework that flows from the First Amendment can be widely shared.

5. What evidence demonstrates a First Amendment School's success?

There are multiple measures of success. Progress can be measured by members of a school community against goals they have set for themselves. Indicators of successful implementation of the guiding principles of the FAS vision statement include the extent to whic

• School policies align with the guiding principles.
• School leadership has been shared.
• Student exhibitions are part of a balanced assessment program.
• Service learning is a curriculum requirement.
• Survey results reveal both a heightened understanding of First Amendment principles and evidence of a deeper commitment to civic engagement.
• Parents and community members are involved in the life of the school.
• Students and faculty members value project goals.
• Central office administrators and school board members support the work of the school to model and teach First Amendment principles.

To realize success as a First Amendment School, all communities must be deliberate in their planning, execution, and evaluation. Schools need to organize a diverse FAS team that is dedicated to keeping the project moving forward amid the press of competing claims on time, energy, and resources. Schools must work to keep the community informed and engaged. And schools especially need to recognize that living up to the guiding principles of the vision statement requires focused leadership, broad-based support, and time.

For more information about "First Amendment Schools: Educating for Freedom and Responsibility," visit the project Web site at www.firstamendmentschools.org.

Project Schools

Here's a brief look at the first 11 First Amendment project schools.

Elementary Schools

Edith Bowen Laboratory School is a public school in Logan, Utah, with 299 students in grades K–5. Named for a state educator mentored by John Dewey, Edith Bowen, located on the campus of Utah State University, has always worked to expose its students to world and national issues. Taking advantage of Utah State's many departments to enhance its own course offerings, Edith Bowen has also benefited culturally from the university's partnerships with schools in Africa, China, and South America. The students have their own weekly TV show, and the school's curriculum has been designed to teach students about other cultures, values, and belief systems.

As a First Amendment project school, the school community looks forward, in the words of Principal Kaye Rhees, to "addressing areas of the curriculum which we have long felt were very important but sadly neglected." More specifically, the school plans to develop, in conjunction with Utah State's Elementary Education Department, a First Amendment Curriculum Resource Guide of replicable activities and lessons "to enhance our ability to disseminate to other elementary schools in the state."

As a lab school, Edith Bowen is in a unique position to do just that. In fact, Rhees is most excited about "tapping into the energy, creativity and enthusiasm of the approximately 600 preservice teachers training and teaching at our school each year. During their time with us, these teachers will have many opportunities to learn about what it means to model and apply First Amendment principles in classrooms. They would then be able to use this material as they begin their careers throughout the state and the nation."

"Not only will this project provide essential resources to make this vision a reality," said 5th grade teacher Dorothy Dobson, "but it will also provide the framework and the structures—planning, development, implementation and evaluation—to ensure it is done right."

Fairview Elementary School is a public school in Modesto, California, with 1,070 students in grades K–6. Imagine elementary school students dressed up as famous U.S. patriots and reading the Preamble to the Constitution on a late spring Friday morning, and you'll begin to gauge the mood at Fairview.

The occasion was a kickoff rally for the school's announcement as a First Amendment project school; in addition to the symbolic readings, the community planted a tree and held a rocket launch. Graduates came back to speak about their experiences, and everyone spoke about how they could live up to the spirit of the First Amendment.

The school's ideas range from the quaint to the controversial. For example, the administration will ask the students to identify a better way to distribute balls during recess. Yet the administration will also let the student body vote on the school uniform policy and inaugurate a Youth Court, where the kids themselves can take responsibility for settling their disputes.

"We want them to realize that they're part of a bigger picture," said Chano Flores, a 6th grade teacher at the school and the coordinator of the project on campus.

But the project isn't just about the students. ...

Table of contents

• Cover
• Table of Contents
• Note
• Foreword
• Acknowledgments
• How to Use This Book
• The Birth of the First Amendment
• Part I. First Amendment Schools: Educating for Freedom and Responsibility
• Part II. Core Issues for All Schools to Consider
• Part III. 50 Key Legal Cases
• Part IV. Resources
• About the Author
• Copyright