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... training? He indicates that the laboring and time consuming prayer and the bible reading should be seriously doubted, because students might be confused by the guilt of adolescence, and loses their rights of obtaining sexual education which really can strengthen them to be more healthy (Slattery & Rapp, 2002). Religion Education Approach of Citizen Philosopher, John Dewey Likely, another philosopher who considers the teachers roles as citizens, John Dewey, also supports that excessive religion education is not a proper idea (Dewey, 1971). Shea (1992) categorizes Dewey, as a naturalist, a humanist, and an atheist.
In fact, this social-realist as well as citizen philosopher believes that educators should eliminate any sacramental order that threatens full attention to democratic politics and its sacraments (Shea, 1992, p. 80). Reasons of Rejecting Religion Dewey thinks traditional religions with their cognitive claims, their obscurantism and their divisiveness, could not survive the scrutiny of liberated intelligence and he hints the teachers to get rid of the limitation from religion education and train the students to be a better citizens but not a religion believer. Shea (1992) commented that the vast and mysterious public human good became Dewey's God, and his life in its service became his religion. From a Christian to a Citizen Accordingly, he rejects the importance of religious education in his Common Faith, which reveals that he had to leave his Christian religion and its concern with the individual interior life in order to become properly political, public, communal, and sacramental (Dewey, 1934).
No wonder, Dewey wishes the goal of education for everybody is being able to participate in our society as a citizen, so he would not allow Christianity to threaten the students attention to the democratic politics. Two Curriculum Theories Applicable for Religion Education The religion education is not illegal, but it needs to be taught in a prudently designed curriculum based on more unprejudiced foundations. In fact, there are three systems provided by Supreme Court can be regarded as appropriate theories of designing religion curriculum, which are regulations taking human rights into concern. Whats more, a list of twelve rules written by Marshall and Kappan according to constitution principles can be employed as consulting references for curriculum designers. Lemon, Endorsement, and Coercion Tests The US Supreme Courts have developed three different types of tests for these kinds of cases: the Lemon, endorsement, and coercion tests that the administrators and teacher should notice when designing the religion education curriculum (Kaiser, 2003).
Two of them are written by court judges. Applying lemon as a standard curriculum theory in religious course design Firstly, the Lemon is a method of analysis with three criteria declared by Supreme Court in 1971, which evaluates if teachers instruct in a neutral manner and violate the constitution. The scales in Lemon Test have functions of raising the curriculum writers awareness if there is any suspicion that the completed curriculum exists bias. For example, one of the criteria asks whether the curriculum has a secular purpose? to warn curriculum writers not to integrate any personal opinion into curriculum. Applying Endorsement Test as a standard curriculum theory in religious course design Secondly, the Endorsement Test designed by OConnor in 1985 focuses on examining if the state governments interfere the schools religion education by sending any documents of disapproval or approval for any religion.
Actually, OConnors purpose of writing this system is for emphasizing the importance of neutral position in religion education and supporting the previous Lemon system, which curriculum writers can apply to protect their well designed curriculum from being oppressed by government officials. Applying Coercion Tests as curriculum theory in religious course design Thirdly, Coercion Test provided by Kennedy in 1989 acknowledges if the environment of school and pedagogics in religion curriculum are coercive or not. Coercion analysis system informs teachers not to bound students by establishing inappropriate learning conditions such as forcing background chanting music or dimly-lit gym for relaxation. Marshal and Kappas Twelve Problems and Solutions as Curriculum Theories of Religion Education Despite many voices of objection in religion education from perspective of democracy theory, Marshall and Kappan (2003) provide their positive position of religiosity among American adolescents.
They believe that if the religion education can be conducted in a way which the students variations can be respected, the religious topics should be addressed in classrooms. In one of their article Religion and Education: Walking the Line in Public Schools, they provided twelve potential problems for teachers to resolve, in order to inspect if they distinguish a proper pedagogy of teaching religion. With the list of twelve problems, the teachers can assess if they are qualified to religion education. And, they can learn to be qualified by referring to the standard solutions for the twelve problems. Problem Example One of the problem examples is A Muslim girl wears a head covering (heap) to class, how you should do? And, the lawful solution for this should be this is okay as free religious express (Marshal & Kappan, 2003, p. 242).
In general, Marshall and Kappan agree that the ignorance of other religions need to be avoided. Curriculum Theory and Philosophy Application in Schempp Case Slattery's Thinking As Slattery had said, the religion topics such as the prayer training are always very time consuming and laborious (Slattery & Ross, 2002). I think this point should be applied by the principle or a curriculum designer of Abington, which means they can reduce the time and frequency of the bible reading. Lets consider about this: if the bible study is only twice a week, will Schempp and his parents be still angry about it? Curriculum Design Consulting Resource: Lemon System Indeed, by applying above three evaluation systems as religion curriculum theories, the conflict between Abington Senior High School and Schempp will be avoided. My reasons are as follows.
First, the restricted religion instruction in Christianity will be detected when the curriculum designer promote bible study too frequently in an aggressive way. In other words, merely bible reading will be identified to be a bias on the other religions by the Lemon system. Through noticing the Lemon text of advancing or inhibiting religion, the favoritism and favor of the church authority will be recognized by teachers and administrators. Curriculum Design Consulting Resource: Coercion Test Second, by referring to the coercive test, the classroom broadcasting will not be adopted to a good pedagogy of bible study.
If the principle perceive the coercive listening conception at that time, the school will not be struck down by the court judge. Conclusion Finally, I think that religion education is still necessary because it transmit the ethic and cultural difference ideas to students. However, it needs to be taught under a well- concerned curriculum. The pedagogics of introducing religion need to be carried out in an equal, non-compelling, and peaceful fashion.
I think religion education at school should be more like a history, a cultural or a language class, which should be not similar as a worship process in a church or a temple. Just like John Dewey's standpoint, he wants everyone to have a conversion, but not to a historic community that already possessed a language believe. Therefore, the religion course at school should be for learning other peoples believes and make us be able to integrate to the other peoples cultures, but not for unify all the people into only one belief. References Dewey, J. (1934). A Common Faith. New Haven, Conn. : Yale University Press Eduard, C. , & Smith, C.
S. , (1949). The Democratic Way of Life. New York: Mentor Books. Has, J. (1984). Religion and democratic politics. Teaching Political Science, 11, 182 - 190.
Kaiser, E. D. (2003). Jesus heard the Word of God, but Mohammed had convulsions: how religion clause principles should be applied to religion in the public school social studies curriculum. Journal of Law, 3, 321 - 356 Marshall, J.
M. , & Kappan, P. D. (2003). Religion and education: walking the line in public schools, Academic Search Premier, 85, 239 - 246 Pryor, C. (2003). Writing, A Philosophy Statement. Educations Workbook. McGraw-Hill Shea, W.
M. (1992). On John Dewey's spiritual life. American Journal of Education, 101, 71 - 81 Slattery, P. , & Rapp, D. (2002). Ethics and the Foundations of Education.
Allyn and Bacon Wallace, J. M. , Forman, T. A. , Caldwell, C. H. , & Willis, D. S. (2003). Religion and U.
S. secondary school students, Current patterns, recent trends, and socio demographic correlates. Youth & Society, 35, 98 - 125
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Research essay sample on John Dewey Bible Study
