To Pledge or Not to Pledge

In Chapter 1 of Seeking Common Ground: Public Schools in a Diverse Society, by Tyak, it mentioned a US Supreme Court Case about whether or not it was mandatory for children to salute the American flag if they were Jehovah's Witnesses. This case was in 1943, and affirmed their right to refuse to salute the flag. It also states that three years before that court case, refusal to salute the flag was was punishable and insubordinate (Tyak 34).

I was surprised to read that these tensions in civic education between liberty and unity were prominent during this time. Lately, I have heard a lot about whether or not the Pledge of Allegiance should still be recited in school since it contains the words "under God". This is an issue that will continue to be debated, and I am interested to see whether or not the Pledge will no longer be a daily ritual in the school day.

I am not a History fan at all, but I have to admit this article had me very interested. I had no clue about how and why the education system was started. This is an article all future teachers should read!