Religious Expression through Assignments

For appropriate classroom assignments students may express their religious beliefs in homework, artwork and speeches. Students must work within the guidelines for specific assignments. The following examples should clarify.

If an English teacher assigned students to write and present a speech on the person who has had the most impact on their lives, a student could choose to write about Jesus Christ.
Furthermore, if a teacher allows students to write a persuasive speech on a subject of the student’s choosing, then he or she could write a speech in an effort to persuade their classmates about why they should believe in the Bible! Note: Just because an individual student is giving a speech to a class full of peers about his or her religious viewpoint, is NOT ground for censoring the speech. Student expression of religious viewpoints is covered under the constitution in the same manner as secular viewpoints. A religious viewpoint cannot be singled out from the rest.

Students have a great deal of flexibility to express themselves through art projects in the public school system. Even the ACLU claims to stand for the “unrestricted freedom of expression through art.” Therefore, if an art teacher allows his or her students to create an abstract painting of a non-specific theme, then students could choose a religious topic. For instance, a student could decide to create an abstract painting of the last supper or the crucifixion of Christ.

Conversely, if a history teacher wants his or her students to write a paper on the great minds in physics history, then students don’t have the right to compose an essay on the history of the Christian Church. Similarly, if a teacher asks students to present an informational speech on the history of an individual, writing a persuasive speech on Jesus Christ would not be constitutionally covered.

The content on this page has been reviewed by The Rutherford Institute.