You have a standard practice of displaying all student work in your classroom. Recently, you assigned students to write any word assignment and submit a pictorial depiction on the person they considered to be their hero. One of your students submitted a word assignment on Jesus and a drawing of the Last Supper.
Write a 500 word in which you discuss:
Any legal issues regarding the grading of your student’s word assignment and whether you could display the student’s work.
How does the First Amendment apply to this situation?
Include at least five references. At least three of the five references should cite U.S. Supreme Court cases.
Regarding the display of the student's work, a teacher can display the student’s work, but the context is critical. The display must be part of a larger, inclusive, and educationally-relevant collection of student work that is not focused on religious themes. The key is to avoid creating an impression that the school is endorsing or favoring a particular religion. If the teacher displays all student work, including the assignment on Jesus, alongside assignments on other heroes (e.g., Abraham Lincoln, a firefighter, a parent), the display is likely constitutional. This is consistent with the principle of neutrality, as upheld in McCollum v. Board of Education (1948), which prohibits a school from promoting religious instruction. The display becomes problematic and potentially unconstitutional if the teacher were to single out the religious assignment for special prominence or if the classroom display was overwhelmingly religious in nature. The line is drawn when a student's private expression of belief shifts to a state-endorsed religious message.
The First Amendment's Application
The First Amendment applies to this situation through its dual clauses. The Free Exercise Clause protects the student's right to submit the assignment and drawing. A student's religious expression is a form of protected speech, and the school cannot prohibit the student from completing an academic assignment based on their religious beliefs. The Supreme Court affirmed this in Tinker v. Des Moines (1969), establishing that students do not "shed their constitutional rights to freedom of speech or expression at the schoolhouse gate." The student's choice of a religious figure for the assignment is a personal, voluntary act of expression.
Conversely, the Establishment Clause limits the teacher's and school's actions. The school cannot use the student's work to promote religion. The teacher must ensure their actions—from grading to display—do not give the impression that the school is endorsing Christianity. In Stone v. Graham (1980), the Supreme Court ruled that a state law requiring the posting of the Ten Commandments in public school classrooms was unconstitutional because it served a religious, rather than an educational, purpose. A teacher’s display of a student's work is acceptable if it is a reflection of a student's academic effort, not a means of religious instruction. The teacher must be a neutral facilitator, not an advocate for a specific religious viewpoint.
Sample Answer
Legal issues surrounding the grading and display of a student's religious work in a public school classroom are governed by the First Amendment of the U.S. Constitution, which contains both the Establishment Clause and the Free Exercise Clause. A teacher’s actions in this scenario must be carefully navigated to respect both the student’s rights and the school’s constitutional obligations.
Legal Analysis of Grading and Display
The grading of the student's assignment must be based on neutral, secular criteria. The teacher must evaluate the word assignment and drawing solely on its academic merit—factors such as writing quality, grammar, creativity, and whether the student met the assignment's requirements—and not on the religious content itself. For example, if the assignment was to write a persuasive essay, the student’s work on Jesus should be graded on the quality of its arguments and organization, not on the teacher's personal agreement or disagreement with the religious viewpoint. The Supreme Court in Edwards v. Aguillard (1987) held that a school's curriculum must not be designed to advance or inhibit any religion. By applying objective, non-religious grading standards, a teacher ensures they are not promoting or penalizing a specific religious belief.