Saturday, November 6, 2010

School Boards, Not Teachers, Responsible for Curricula

Mark Walsh reports that teachers have no First Amendment free-speech protection for curricular decisions they make in the classroom.

'When a teacher teaches, the school system does not regulate that speech as much as it hires that speech,' Sutton wrote, borrowing language from a 7th Circuit decision in a similar case. 'Expression is a teacher's stock in trade, the commodity she sells to her employer in exchange for a salary. And if it is the school board that hires that speech, it can surely regulate the content of what is or is not expressed, what is expressed in other words on its behalf.'

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the 6th Circuit, in Cincinnati, said in its opinion October 21, 2010, 'Only the school board has ultimate responsibility for what goes on in the classroom, legitimately giving it a say over what teachers may (or may not) teach in the classroom.'

The teacher brought cited First Amendment Rights violation for the school board not renewing her contract because of problems with her team work, among other things.

The appeals panel said the teacher had clearly shown that 'her teaching choices caused the school board to fire her.'


Court: No Teacher Speech Rights on Curriculum