Prayer In Schools

8 Pages 1997 Words

It’s nine-thirty on a Monday morning do you know where your kids are or what they are doing? Assuming that your children are in school in one of the 29 states that allow a moment of silence in public classrooms, they could be praying. That’s right, praying in a building owned by the United States government that is supported by the same government that in 1962 decided in the Supreme Court case of Engle vs. Vitale that the Establishment of the First Amendment prohibited school-sponsored prayer. In light of the recent tragedies, such as the terrorist attacks on America and the Columbine High school shootings, the debate has become more popular in the media and in the federal legislature. Should prayer or moments of silence be allowed in schools?
The debate over this controversial topic is very impassioned on both sides, conservatives characteristically support legislation that allows a moment of silence, while liberals oppose such legislation. I plan to represent both positions taken on the topic of school prayer or moment of silence. This will include the argument for and against moments of silence, as well both sides of the student initiated prayer debate along with my view on prayer in schools. Currently state governments have the power to make the decision on whether to allow their schools to admit a moment of silence in their public school systems.
Virginia is just one of the states that allow a moment of silence in its schools. One problem this proposes is in regards to grade school students. Grade school students often do not know what the moment of silence is about, nor are their teachers given the guidelines to explain the moment of silence. Third-grader Hunter Hallman, told her mother what she thought the moment about “what we’re supposed to think about…the man who wrote the song.” Her mother was puzzled until she figured out that Hunter was referring to Francis Scott Key in reflection of the class...