The First Amendment and Its Impact on Education

The First Amendment of the United States is part of the Bill of Rights. The amendment prohibits the making of laws respecting an establishment of religion, the exercise of religion, freedom of speech, freedom of press, right to peaceably assemble, or petitioning for a government redress of grievances. The five key educational issues related to the first amendment and the first one is separation of church and state. This amendment states that no laws endorsing a religion shall be passed and this impacts education because the pledge of allegiance is said in many schools and God’s in the pledge. Some people argued about public schools being funded by the government and the use of God in public schools is illegal. Under God to some people is a religious reference and it imposes on religion.

This is a religious reference that goes against the first amendment that explicitly states that is prohibited to make a law establishing religion. The second amendment is prayer before sports, and this affects the classroom because some students might not think it is necessary to have prayer before a sports event, and the first amendment states that the government may not prohibit the free exercise of religion. This issue is also controversial because the first amendment guarantees the people the right to practice their religion. Schools may feel that the ceremony before a sports event is up to the students, and the choice to do it is the students’ decision, and the school may argue that they do not endorse religion and the act is not unconstitutional.