By Charles C. Haynes and Oliver Thomas, First Amendment Center, February 2002

Finding Common Ground by Charles C. Haynes and Oliver Thomas is a First Amendment guide to religion and public education published by the First Amendment Center. The text of the Williamsburg Charter, a 1988 reaffirmation of the First Amendment, may be found in the appendix.

"Finding Common Ground is a truly ground-breaking book. The content is clear and concise, and provides solid advice for educators who are trying to address issues of religious differences in the public schools. The book covers church-state law, a vision of civility that every educator should be thinking about, and practical chapters on dealing with religious topics in the curriculum and character education. A must-have for every public school teacher and administrator!" An Amazon Reader

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Finding Common Ground Official Website

Download the Acrobat file of individual sections of Finding Common Ground:

• Front cover (83.6 KB)

   

• Front matter
  Title page, table of contents, about the authors, foreword (60.7 KB)

   

• Chapter 1
  "From Battleground to Common Ground" (260 KB)

   

• Chapter 2
  "Religious Liberty, Public Education, and the Future of American Democracy" (260 KB)

   

• Chapter 3
  "A History of Religious Liberty in American Public Life" (670 KB)

   

• Chapter 4
  "The Supreme Court, Religious Liberty and Public Education" (386 KB)

   

• Chapter 5
  "Strategies for Finding Common Ground" (123 KB)

   

• Chapter 6
  "A Teacher's Guide to Religion in the Public Schools" (472 KB)

   

• Chapter 7
  "Religion in the Public School Curriculum" (348 KB)

   

• Chapter 8
  "Religious Holidays in the Public Schools" (136 KB)

   

• Chapter 9
  "Student Religious Clubs" (237 KB)

   

• Chapter 10
  "Student Religious Expression in Public Schools: United States Department of Education Guidelines" (113 KB)

   

• Chapter 11
  "Student Religious Practices" (296 KB)

   

• Chapter 12
  "A Parent's Guide to Religion in the Public Schools" (209 KB)

   

• Chapter 13
  "Character Education" (364 KB)

   

• Chapter 14
  "First Amendment Schools: Educating for Freedom and Responsibility" (282 KB)

   

• Chapter 15
  "Sample School District Policies" (151 KB)

   

• Appendix A
  "Contact Information for Organizations Signing Consensus Statements" (40 KB)

   

• Appendix B
  "Williamsburg Charter" (93 KB)

   

• Index (27.7 KB)

   

• Back cover (84.2 KB)

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