Public schools should offer religion courses to further educate the children of the world, despite how controversial the subject is. I feel that there are many benefits to teaching children about religion. For example, to keep children from going through religious-based bullying. It is not really a kind of bullying that many people think about or focus on, but it is definitely a problem in schools. I know this from personal experience, I grew up in the south keeping my religion a secret from my peers to avoid being talked about and bullied. I feel that if people were more informed about various religions, they would be more likely to have an open mind and be more understanding. I have experienced times when people are against other religions until they learn to understand them. I also feel that offering religion classes would further educate our children about the world, which could lead the children of the world to understand each other better. Many people do not agree, which is what makes it so difficult to introduce such a course to public schools. Many parents do not want their children to learn about other religions, mainly because they are afraid that they would be preaching to the children about these religions. It would also be very difficult to then try and teach every religion of every child in the school. It is understood for parents to feel this way because it could confuse young children, which is why I feel that this course should be offered to grade six and above. Religion should be introduced to the public school system because of the many benefits that come from religious education, even though it is a very difficult subject to be taught in public schools.

America is one of the most religiously diverse countries in the world, yet also one of the most religiously ignorant countries in the world (Laycock). One reason children should be taught to understand religion, is it is a key factor in much of the world's history. Learning more about world religion could help children to further understand much of the world's history. It is also a large factor in the current society of the world. It is important for the people of the world to understand each other, and the beginning step for that would be understanding religion. What makes this difficult it, teachers have to remember to teach, not preach. This is the main reason schools have a hard time teaching a course about religion. Teachers have to be sure that they are teaching the children purely information, and not encouraging the religion. The world is very diverse when it comes to religion, and it is important to begin teaching our children to understand those around us. 

Religion is one of the most divisive factors in the world, and yet it continues to bring mass amounts of people together around the world (Schiffman). It is the reason for wars around the world and even for the borders of countries. For example, the borders of countries in the Middle East are currently a problem because of different religions being put in the same countries. At the same time, religion has been known to bring people together. It could continue to bring the world together if our youth was educated about the beliefs of those around us. 

If religions were taught in schools, it could help the world to because more religiously tolerant. The only way for this to work, would be it teachers learned how to teach without preaching, and if parents learned to accept the idea of allowing their children to be taught about the beliefs of the people around the world. "...most schools that get into trouble when it comes to teaching religion usually run afoul of the U.S. Constitution because a teacher is forcing his or her faith on students inside the classroom." (Brown).  This will also be difficult because, as was previously mentioned, America is extremely religiously diverse, which means it would be difficult to plan a course that would meet the needs of every child in the school. 

Most Americans believe that it is illegal for teachers to teach about religion in public schools in America, but this is untrue. It is illegal for the teacher to encourage a specific religion or to force it on children, but not to inform students about various religions (Wertheimer).  Religious-based bullying is an issue that not many people think about, but it starts at a very young age. Children that do not have the same beliefs as most of the other children in their class are teased and made to feel different. Also, religion has played a very large role in the world's history and literature. There are constant literary references to religions, and if the children have not been educated about the religion, they will not notice the reference in their reading. Also, when learning about WWII and the Holocaust, children should able to understand what happened by understanding Judaism. Also, if it was an official class, teachers would have books and things to help them to know what to teach to keep from preaching or even accidentally encouraging a certain belief. 

In the article "Public Schools Shouldn't Preach. But They Should Teach Kids About Religion.", the author talks about how she was in a class in the fourth grade that preached about Jesus during class. She was Jewish, so the school allowed her to be dismissed from class during the religious instruction. This left her feeling different and left out. This is why she encourages the idea of teaching without preaching, so that children are not forced to feel different or forced to tell their parents so that they are "banished" from their class. This shows how incorrectly teaching religion in schools can affect the children in the classroom. I feel that children in Elementary school are too young to truly understand different religions. But they should still have the opportunity to learn a little bit about those around them. More information can be giving to children at older ages.  Giving kids more information about religions provides them the opportunity to make their own opinions, or even just better understand the conflicts that are going on in the world today. 

There are many people that believe that children should not be taught about religion, even after the elementary school age. For example, Olivia Godfrey states that children should not have to learn about other people's religions because everyone has the right to have their own religions in her article "Why Religion Should Not Be Taught in Public Schools". She feels that forcing children to learn about religions other than their own is denies them of their right to believe in whatever they wish. She also states that religion it too controversial of a subject to to make children learn about. 

There have been several times where religion has been successfully introduced to public schools. In colleges it tends to be more successful because it is an optional course, and because of the ages of the students. In elementary through high school it is more surprising for the class to be successful. For example, in "Teaching Religion in Brazil, in Public Schools and Confessional Colleges" it discusses examples of religion being taught in elementary and high schools. It explains how it is very difficult to teach religion at this age, due to trying to avoid discrimination (Cruz). Every parent wants their child to be taught about their own religion, and accommodating for each individual student. The article also shows that, with proper planning and models, it is highly possible for religion to be taught in public schools. 

Teacher in classrooms have written many articles explaining how it is possible for religion to be taught in public schools, and why it would be beneficial. For example, "A Rose by Any Other Name" and " Teaching Religion in Public Schools: Removing the Angst". In " A Rose by Any Other Name", a school worker explains what a large benefits would come from teaching religion in public schools. She explains that children often feel misunderstood in school and including their spirituality in school could help to lessen this feeling. It can also be a benefit to children's mental health. According to this article, schools tried to introduce yoga into the classroom to help calm the children and make them feel more relaxed in class, but it was considered religious and the school was forced to cut it from the program. In the column "Teaching Religion in Public Schools: Removing the Angst" the author explains what is and is not allowed to be taught in current public school classrooms. Parents tend to get upset when they hear of any type of religious teaching in the classroom (Fischer) because they do not realize what is technically allowed and what is not. The column is written by a teacher, and he explains his personal experience in the matter. He explains that it would benefit the children in that they would have a more well-rounded education by the time they graduate highschool. 

Another source that lists many different times religion has been successfully taught would be "An Evolution of the Concepts and Problems of Philosophy of Religion in Terms of Teaching Religion: A Study into the Units of Philosophy of Religion and Religious Concepts in the Programs of Teaching Philosophy". This article lists different courses throughout several years that have been used to teach religion in colleges. Each course is either a philosophy course, a sociology course, or a logic course. Each of these courses has their own approach used to teach religion, depending on the type of course that it is, seeing as there are several different ways that religion can be taught due to the several different reasons religion should be taught. 

There are several benefits that come from teaching religion in public schools, and there have been many articles written on just that. For example, "Should Public Schools Teach Religious Studies?". The article includes a section saying that religion should not be taught to children in grades lower than the 10th to avoid confusion of their own religion at home. As I have previously mentioned, I feel that children would be able to avoid confusion at a much younger age.  It is a very interesting subject that would help people to further understand several subjects that are already taught. That is why there are several different approaches that have been discovered to teach this subject. The main three being; the Historical Approach, the Literary Approach, and the Traditions-based Approach (Moore).  The Historical Approach being the method of teaching that includes the history of the religion and also the contributions that the religion has made to religion. The Literary Approach explains the many literary references that are made to religions throughout time. And the Traditions-based Approach is the teaching of the traditions and beliefs of the religion. It is important for a teacher of a religion course to fully understand each approach and to teach using the appropriate one. Also, knowing the different approaches of teaching religion shows that there are many different reasons a student should learn about religion and how it would cause their education to become more well-rounded by including such a subject. 

In conclusion, religion should be taught in public schools to benefit children's education, and well being. Learning about religion would beneficial to their education by causing them to be more well-rounded and better understand the subjects that they are currently being taught. It will benefit their history classes, because it could help them to better understand many events that have happened throughout history. For example, 9/11, they would be given the chance to understand who caused the event, why they did, and why not everyone from the middle east should be hated for the event. They would be able to understand the conflicts that are currently going on in the middle east better, and even understand the colonization of America better. It would benefit their literacy learning by allowing them to better understand literary references that are made in many classic pieces that children learn about in school. Learning about religion in school could even benefit the children's well-being. It could cause religious-based bullying to be less of a problem, if not end completely. It would also give children the chance to better understand those around them and give them a chance to see each other differently. Understanding what people believe in can explain the things that they do. Having the children understand each other better could allow school to be a more pleasant and enjoyable place. Also, religion can be a very interesting topic because of how relatable it is. With children in each class that believe in different things, it could give them a chance to express themselves to their peers and explain what they believe, which could be very enjoyable. Learning about religion in school might seem like one big issue, but when you really think about it, it can be a very good thing for the children in the school for many reasons. 

