1. Chapter 8: Religion Multicultural Education in a Pluralistic Society,
9th Edition
Donna M. Gollnick and Philip C. Chinn
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2. Religion in the United States
Religion is likely as important in shaping an individual’s persona as gender, class, or ethnicity.
All religions and religious groups are important, especially to those who belong to them.

3. Religious Composition of Schools
The religious pluralism of the school in which one teaches will be determined, in great part, by the school’s geographic region of the United States.
The dominant Protestant groups have often determined the moral teachings that have been integrated into the public schools.

4. The First Amendment
The First Amendment clearly states that Congress is prohibited from making laws establishing a religion or prohibiting religious worship.
If an educator does not understand or ignores the role of religion in the lives of students, it may be difficult to develop appropriate instructional strategies, or even retain one’s job.

5. Religion as a Way of Life
Many religions are particularistic, in that members believe that their own religion is uniquely true and legitimate and all others are invalid.
Other religious groups accept the validity of distinct religions that have grown out of different historical experiences.

6. The Importance of Religion in Our Lives
In the United States, 84% of the population claim to have a preference for some religious group. Religion influences the way many people think, perceive, and behave.

7. Freedom of Religious Expression
Approximately one-third of the world has restrictive policies on religion.
Globally, the Middle East and North Africa tend to have the most stringent government and social restrictions on religion, and the Americas the least.
While religious differences often cause frustration and acrimony in school and society, we often take freedom of religious expression for granted.

8. Religious Pluralism in the United States
Religion in the United States is dynamic, and constantly changing.
Americans tend to identify not only with major groups, but also with smaller groups or denominations.
Although religious pluralism in our past has often led to conflict, the hope of the future is that it will lead to a better understanding and respect for religious differences.

9. A Changing Religious Landscape
While the United States has remained primarily a Christian nation, with strong Protestant influence, the country has seen slow but steady changes in the last few decades. Recent data suggest that Americans are becoming less religious, with nearly twice as many (almost 20%) choosing no religious identification in 2008 compared with 1990.

10. The End of Christian America?
The findings of the American Religious Identification Survey sent shockwaves across the country’s religious communities.
Recent data suggest many outside the Christian faith feel that today’s Christians are un-Christian in their behavior and have little esteem for the Christian lifestyle.
Educators must respect the religious values of all of their students.
Educators also need to be vigilant for students who demonstrate religious intolerance toward others.

11. Protestantism Liberal/Conservative Protestants
Protestants make up approximately 47% of the U.S. population.
Although not a numerical majority, their influence is still continued in society and institutions.
Among Protestants there is considerable diversity in views (denominational pluralism).
Liberal/Conservative Protestants
Evangelical/Fundamentalist Christians
Fundamentalist and Evangelical Christians exert particular influence in education and politics.

12. Catholicism
One denomination, under a Pope, which has authority over all Catholics throughout the world.
Approximately 22% of the U.S. population identifies with the Roman Catholic Church.
Membership in U.S. Catholic churches involves many different ethnic groups.
The Roman Catholic Church in the United States has developed the largest private educational system in the world.

13. Judaism
Judaism is one of the oldest religions known to humanity, and identity is a blend of historical, religious, and ethnic variables.
Judaism represents about 1% of the U.S. population.
Jews in the United States and throughout the world have been the targets of prejudice and discrimination, sometimes leading to attempted annihilation of the population.
Although a small percentage of the population, contributions of Jewish Americans in major fields of study and entertainment, business, economics, and politics have been profound.

14. Islam
Islam is also one of the fastest-growing religions in the United States, and has over 1 billion adherents worldwide.
Muslims make up 1.2% of the U.S. population.
Recent world and U.S. events, especially September 11, 2001, make Islam of particular importance to us.
U.S. Black Muslims form a unique identity of their own.

15. Buddhism Buddhism is one of the world’s major religions.
Immigration of Asians into the United States brings thousands of additional Buddhists into the country each year.
Buddhist beliefs encompass the suffering which is part of all existence, and the solution to suffering and meaninglessness, which is Buddha.

16. Hinduism Hinduism is the major religion of India.
It is the world’s third largest religion after Christianity and Islam (13% of the world’s population aligns with Hinduism).
It differs from other religions in that it does not have a single founder, nor a single system of morality or a central organization.

17. Other Religious Groups
Latter-Day Saints (LDS/Mormons)
Eastern Orthodoxy
Christian Science
Unitarian Universalists
Native American Religions
Jainism
Sikhism
Baha’ism
New Age Spirituality
Wicca
Cults

18. Religion and Gender
Religion often profoundly influences the gender roles in religious organizations and in society in general.
For the more conservative religious groups, the role of women is clearly defined and limited.
Women cannot attain the highest leadership positions in the Roman Catholic church, Mormon church, Islamic groups, and some conservative Protestants churches.

19. Religion and Homosexuality
Homosexuality is one of the most controversial issues in religious institutions today.
Some conservative religious groups view homosexuality as a matter of choice, a sin, and curable through faith.
Views toward homosexuality vary considerably in other religious groups. There are intra-, as well as inter-group, differences in beliefs.
Religion and political affiliation are closely interwoven in the United States.

20. Religion and Race
Religion has had a profound impact on issues of race and ethnic diversity.
In 1995, the Southern Baptist Convention apologized for its role in slavery and maintenance of a culture of racism in the United States.
Historically, many religious groups have found justification for slavery and discrimination against other religious groups in the Bible.

21. Slavery and Racism
The Bible does not condemn slavery, and its practice can be found throughout both the Old and New Testaments.
Anti-Semitism also finds many of its historical roots in the Bible and other religious works.

22. Role of Black Religious Groups
African Americans often organize their own religious institutions due to racism.
Black churches and religious institutions have served their communities in a variety of ways.

23. Civil Rights Movement and Black Churches
The modern civil rights movement was centered in the South’s African American churches.
Religious leaders directed boycotts and organized civil disobedience and nonviolent confrontations.

24. Disenchantment Among Younger Generations
Some young African Americans have become increasingly disenchanted with their black churches.
Some youth have turned to secular organizations, which they feel deal more directly with their life situations and with the social problems they face.

25. Individual Religious Identity
Most Americans are born into the religion of their parents, later joining that same body. In the U.S., individuals are always free to change their religion or to choose no religion. Religion may be the primary micro-culture with which individuals identify.

26. Separating Church and State and Other Issues
Public schools are supposed to be free of religious doctrine, but many people believe that schools without such a perspective do not provide desirable values orientation for students. Although schools should be secular, they are greatly influenced by the predominant values of the community.

27. Controversial Issues in Education and Religion
School Prayer
School Vouchers
Censorship
Secular Humanism

28. Classroom Implications
teach that the United States is rich in religious diversity.
show respect for religious differences by their interactions with students from different religious backgrounds.
avoid stereotyping all students from one denomination or church.
periodically reexamine their own interactions with students.
Educators can: