You Be The Judge
Test your knowledge of the Five Freedoms and see how you match up to the courts...and fellow citizens.
Educator Freedom
A high school English and journalism teacher failed to censor her students' creative writing assignments even though some of her students used profanity in their work. After a complaint, the school principal terminated the teacher for violating the school's "no-profanity" rule, which had traditionally not been applied to classroom exercises. The teacher sued, alleging a violation of her First Amendment rights. A jury sided with the teacher. The school district appealed.
Can a public school fire a teacher for violating its no-profanity rule?
Vote Now!
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30%A. YESTeachers are public employees; as such, they have no First Amendment rights while on the job.
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32%B. YESIf officials have evidence that a teacher has knowingly allowed her students to violate a school-wide rule, they can fire her and not run afoul of the First Amendment.
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38%C. NOAlthough the First Amendment rights of teachers are not absolute, they do protect the freedom of teachers to decide how best to educate their students.
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Incorrect
Although teachers are public employees, it is inaccurate to say they have no First Amendment rights whatsoever. However, since the 2006 U.S. Supreme Court case of Garcetti v. Ceballos (2006), employers have had a much larger shield to thwart even legitimate free-speech complaints.
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Correct!
In the case of Lacks v. Ferguson Reorganized School District, a unanimous three-judge panel from the Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals held that “a school district does not violate the First Amendment when it disciplines a teacher for allowing students to use profanity repetitiously and egregiously in their written work.” The school board has a “legitimate academic interest in prohibiting profanity by students in their creative writing.”
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Incorrect
Previously, to sustain a First Amendment claim a public employee had to show that his speech touched on a matter of public concern and that his free-speech interests trumped his employer’s right to a disruptive-free workplace. In 2006, however, the U.S. Supreme Court changed the legal landscape, ruling that when someone speaks as an employee, and not a citizen, their First Amendment rights virtually disappear.
Remember — US Supreme Court decisions outline "the law of the land." Lower court decisions do not. Sometimes, this means different lower courts will issue contradicting opinions.
DO YOU AGREE WITH THE COURT’S DECISION? WHY OR WHY NOT?
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WHAT DO YOU THINK OF THE COURT'S DECISION?
0 responses to Educator Freedom
Icon of Freedom
A principal in Modesto, California, Jamal Fields is a National Leadership Fellow with the Five Freedoms Project. His ideal school is a place where "kids and adults are on a journey of discovery together. Students, staff and families are actively engaged in the practice of democracy every day. Students engage in important work that is meaningful and productive toward making a better society. And the school is fluid in the content it addresses but consistent in teaching the big ideas of citizenship in a democratic society."
