WEBQUEST

 

Prayer in Public Schools

 

By James Verhoff

 

 

Introduction

 

Prayer in public schools has been and continues to be a very controversial subject.  This topic contains a vast variety of points of view.  Some people feel that it is of absolute necessity to have prayers in public schools.  Some people maintain that according to the First Amendment there should be a strict and absolute separation of church and state.

 

Let us explore the legal issue to what extent should there be prayer in public schools.

 

 

Task

 

  1. Each student will research one Supreme Court decision regarding prayer in public schools.
  2. Each student will analyze the main ideas of the selected Supreme Court case.
  3. Each student will utilize critical thinking skills and New York State standards to present their own opinion of to what extent should there be prayer in public schools.

 

 

Process

 

  1. Each student will browse the Con Law website and select one Supreme Court case that refers to prayer in public schools.
  2. Each student will write an approximately 500 word thematic essay describing their selected court case.

a)      Who are the people involved in the case?

b)      What are the arguments for and against prayer in public schools?

c)      What was the decision of the Supreme Court?

d)      What was the minority opinion?

  1. Each student will include in their essay there own refection and point of view.

 

 

Resources

 

http://www.maxwell.syr.edu/plegal/tips/conlaw.html

http://www.maxwell.syr.edu/plegal/related.html

http://www.maxwell.syr.edu/plegal/tips/tutorials.html

 

Evaluation

 Each  thematic essay will be evaluated according to the New York State Regents Rubics for marking a thematic essay. Students will be given a hard copy of these rubics.

 

Conclusion

Prayer in public schools will continue to be a controversial topic. It is imperative that we continue to analyze our views of the role of prayer in our public schools.

 

The Standards of New York State for Social Studies

 

  1. Standard 5.1 The study of civics, citizenship, and government involves learning about political systems; the purposes of government and civic life; and the differing assumptions held by people across time and place regarding power, authority, governance, and law.

 

  1. The state and federal governments established by the Constitutions of the United States and the State of New York embody basic civic values (such as justice, honesty, self-discipline, due process, equality, majority rule with respect for minority rights, and respect for self, others and property), principles, and practices and establish a system of shared and limited government

(Adapted from The National Standards for Civics and Government, 1994)