Welcome to the American Academy of Religion's new website. Founded in 1909, the AAR is the world's largest association of academics who research or teach topics related to religion.

http://www.aarweb.org/Public_Affairs/Religion_in_the_Schools/default.asp

Religion in the Schools

The goals of the American Academy of Religion (AAR) include fostering excellence in teaching about religion. The AAR’s Religion in the Schools Task Force facilitates access to resources useful to elementary and secondary school teachers interested in teaching about religion. On the AAR website, lesson plans are available on Art, Religion, and Popular Culture and on Religious Diversity and Pluralism in America. Other resources include the following:

First Amendment Center, a program of the Freedom Forum, works to preserve and protect First Amendment freedoms, including freedom of religion as it applies to schools. Its website provides answers to frequently asked questions as well as lesson plans. Its guide to religion and public education, called Finding Common Ground, is downloadable free.

Program in Religion and Secondary Education (PRSE) at Harvard Divinity School. Besides earning an M.T.S. or M.Div. from Harvard, PRSE students can earn secondary school teacher licensure, valid in 45 states, in certain humanities, social science, or language subjects, from the Mass. Dept. of Education. PRSE also sponsors an Annual Conference for Secondary School Teachers of Religion, Ethics, History, English, and Social Studies just before the AAR Annual Meeting.

Project on Religion and Public Education at California State University at Chico provides workshops, forums, and institutes designed to prepare and support teachers in their efforts to teach about the world's religions in constitutionally permissible and academically responsible ways.

Religion and Education, a journal produced at the University of Northern Iowa, has its tables of contents and excerpts viewable free online.

Spotlight on Teaching, a periodical produced by the AAR, has a special edition on religion in the schools.

 

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Welcome to the AAR's newly redesigned website! Over the coming weeks, please look for continued improvements to enhance your experience, including area-specific links in the box above, new content, and increased functionality.