Bill 1626 passed with a 64-7 vote. Yet, Rep. Jana Della Rosa did speak against the bill. She said, “I don't think 15 kids ought to be able to demand anything of a school board." A supporter of the bill, Rep. David Meeks, said that this bill should “remove schools' fears of liability” because it is requested by the students. Some may also see this as an Establishment and violation of the Establishment Clause. This could add to the growing controversy in our state and country. However, there is a condition of the class regulations in the bill to guard against this.
Where you shocked by how easy it was to pass the bill?
Do you think the Arkansas Senate will be as easy or will it cause more of a struggle?
Does this bill go against the Establishment Clause?
Would you be willing to ask for this class, or do you agree with Rep. Jana Della Rosa?
https://www.washingtonpost.com/national/higher-education/arkansas-house-oks-bill-requiring-schools-offer-bible-course/2019/03/20/386e629e-4b04-11e9-8cfc-2c5d0999c21e_story.html?utm_term=.bc054514e251
This bill is a good idea. I do not see this bill as breaking the Establishment Clause. Students have the option to take this course and will not be forced to take it. Everything should be good!
ReplyDeleteIt was easily past surprisingly I thought. I dont think it will be that hard. I feel like it is right on the edge of it, as long as they are not forcing kids to take it. I will personally not ask for this class. There are barely enough teachers here to teach subjects, how will they find one in Ozark?
ReplyDeleteThis bill is something that has been needed in public schools for a long time. Students should have the option to learn more about the bible, and if they don't want to they don't have to.
ReplyDeleteI am very much so not surprised that this bill was passed easily. Arkansas is a conservative and largely religious state so this is something that the constituents would value. I would assume it will pass through the Senate quickly as well. This bill concerns me. I have to wonder how already under-budgeted schools are going to be able to afford to appoint a teacher to teach this course and fit it into their timetable. I also wonder if this bill applies only to the Christian Holy Bible or any religious document with cultural influence like the Quran or the Torah. Because they have made this out to be a secular "non-devotional" course, other religions could be studied as well even if the Muslim and Jewish populations here in Arkansas are slim. I don't think this bill inherently violates the Establishment clause. I will not be asking for this class.
ReplyDeleteConsidering Arkansas is a largely religious and conservative state, I am not shocked this bill passed so quickly, and will not be shocked if the AR senate passes this law just as quickly as the AR House did. I do think this class could cause trouble for the schools with lower budgets or packed schedules. Who will teach these students and what classes will be replaced if need be? However, I do not think this class violates the Establishment class, but I will still not be asking for this class myself.
ReplyDeleteI have been curious about the papers I've seen taped up around the school, so thank you for clarifying the situation with your blog post!
ReplyDeleteBecause it is only an educational opportunity, not a forced ritual, I do not think it goes against the Establishment Clause. Also, it is strictly the *nonreligious*, *academic* study of the Bible and its influence on literature, art, music, culture, and politics, so I don't see how that could be any kind of religion-establishing issue. The Bible is a historical library of old knowledge and ideas, a very interesting and important ancient text, worthwhile studying just like other ancient religious books if even just for the art, culture, and history appreciation and understanding.
I would personally be willing to ask for this class, because I am very interested in the Bible as a Christian but also as a student of history and culture.
I would also like to point out that students can do this for any class-- I myself signed a petition/request for Chemistry 2 (soon to be AP Chemistry) and for AP Government and Politics! This is a big way for our administrators to hear students' voices and have a calculated measure of what students' wants/needs are for classes.
I am actually surprised as to how easily this passed. I figured more people would have argued that it violated the Establishment Clause. I do see some potential problems with the class though. Although they said that it will be taught strictly from a scholarly point of view, I believe that this will be hard to follow and not turn into a devotional. I am not familiar with all the steps of creating a new class, but I think that if enough students are interested in taking it, it should be created.
ReplyDeleteDisregard this please, I don't know what happened but I can't delete it either. Thanks
DeleteI am actually surprised as to how easily this passed. I figured more people would have argued that it violated the Establishment Clause. I do see some potential problems with the class though. Although they said that it will be taught strictly from a scholarly point of view, I believe that this will be hard to follow and not turn into a devotional. I am not familiar with all the steps of creating a new class, but I think that if enough students are interested in taking it, it should be created.
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ReplyDeleteI’m not surprised that this bill got passed, seeing as how a very large percentage of Arkansas is religious. I think it’s got a good chance of being passed fairly easily. I do not think it violates the Establishment Clause.
ReplyDeleteSince Arkansas is largely a religious and conservative state, I’m not all that surprised that the bill passed as easily as it did. Personally, I would love to take this class. It is much needed in our public schools. It’s a great opportunity for students.
ReplyDeleteI was honestly surprised as to how easily this bill passed.I am religious and do love to read the bible and having said that i think based off of experience that it will be extremely difficult to not make it devotional. I do feel that there will be some parents and students that try to take shots at the school for supporting the bible and not other religious documents.
ReplyDeleteI’m not surprised the bill passed considering how conservative our state is. I do find it interesting but I will not be taking it. I would hope that a bill proposing a class for other religions would pass thought because growing up with Christianity all around me, I would be interested in learning about other religions. I don’t think it violates the establishment clause because it’s not endorsing a certain religion, it’s just educating the public about it.
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