Religion classes in school - Megathread

Honestly, it’s such a massive failure of discipline when they let kids who skip religious studies just head straight home instead of making them stay in the hallway to reflect. That kind of loophole shouldn't be allowed—it really needs to be dealt with, maybe even with a termination, if not some serious jail time for those in charge. ☕

Rebecca Diaz said:If you can remember which specific schools you're talking about, please shoot me a DM. I'm pretty sure they're violating regulations.

Honestly, having religious studies in public schools at all? That's just common sense being ignored.

What actually happens to kids who skip out on religion class when it’s tucked right in the middle of the school day? Like, is the school required to provide them with some kind of alternative programming, or are they basically just left to their own devices to wander the halls and do whatever they feel like?

Jason Ortiz5 said:Honestly, having religious studies in public schools at all? That's just common sense being ignored.

I was actually going to say that having a lick of common sense is practically a crime in this crazy country—especially when you see that not even 30% of the students bother showing up to the class just to get it removed from their schedule (though I should mention my school isn't located in New York City).

As for how they handle the kids who skip religion class, as far as I know, there’s a directive stating the school has to find a way to ensure they aren't left unsupervised, at least for the younger grades. How that actually plays out is entirely up to the principal—it really just depends on their mood. But it isn't just about supervision; it's also a numbers game. The fewer students who opt out, the harder it is to find an alternative solution. At my kid's school, only about six to eight students don't attend, and in the lower grades, they usually stay with a teacher or hang out in the library. For the older kids, they have this lounge area in the school auditorium—sort of a "study hall" setup with a little pallet sofa, pillows, and chairs. They usually have a great time there; in fact, they often have to be told to quiet down by the religion teacher! The only real hiccup happened once when the principal caught them and scolded them for doing homework during that time, arguing they should be doing it at home (of course, they were really just using the opportunity to pool their resources, finish everything together, and then head home completely free of obligations 😁).

I’m not quite sure what the setup will look like for my son this year. He’s starting fifth grade, so he’ll likely be in the auditorium. Most of the boys tend to skip religion class, so if they start kicking a soccer ball around the auditorium, we might run into some trouble 🤔.

I've been wondering lately—is there actually any legal ground to stand on when it comes to school scheduling? Like, is there a specific law or a set of district regulations I could point to if I wanted to complain about a totally nonsensical timetable? For instance, imagine a situation where religion class is squeezed right into the middle of the regular school day for a class where half the kids aren't even enrolled in it. It just feels so disjointed.

silentmason4 said:What actually happens to kids who skip out on religion class when it’s tucked right in the middle of the school day? Like, is the school required to provide them with some kind of alternative programming, or are they basically just left to their own devices to wander the halls and do whatever they feel like?

At my kid's school, they actually managed to work out a schedule this year where the classes happen during the first two hours in the morning—so they get to sleep in a bit—and then again during the last two hours in the afternoon, which means they get to head home earlier.
I'm not entirely sure if they've implemented a critical thinking elective yet, or if that isn't slated to start until next school year... maybe.

As far as I know, there isn’t really a formal rule against it. However, if they actually make up more than half the class and start acting out in the hallways—you know, being loud, filming TikToks, tossing a ball around—the teacher might just "coincidentally" decide to shuffle the schedule so their class ends up being the very first or the very last period of the day. 😁The main thing is for you parents to stay on the same page and back them up. They have every right to have fun during their free time; it shouldn't be on you if the school decides to schedule those breaks in the middle of the day instead of at the end when they can just head home.

I don't know what else to say, but sometimes in the Middle East, only the old-school, unconventional methods actually get things done...

Since we’re already deep in the weeds talking about religious studies during class hours...

So, my kid doesn't take religion classes, and on the day all their religious friends have a block period for it, they told the non-religious kids that they aren't allowed to leave and just come back later for their regular lessons. Instead, they’re stuck sitting in the library?!

The school is right in the middle of the neighborhood—literally a ten-minute walk for everyone. These kids are in high school, and instead of being stuck in this ridiculous religious loophole, they could easily just head home, grab some lunch...

I'm honestly just waiting for the first parent-teacher meeting to blow a fuse... ☕

The library, the hallways... unfortunately, they aren't allowed out anymore. They used to go outside with their teacher, but since fifth grade, they can't go without supervision.
We don't have the full schedule yet, but for now, it’s just one period on one day and another one in the middle of the week.

redridge13 said:Since we’re already deep in the weeds talking about religious studies during class hours...

So, my kid doesn't take religion classes, and on the day all their religious friends have a block period for it, they told the non-religious kids that they aren't allowed to leave and just come back later for their regular lessons. Instead, they’re stuck sitting in the library?!

The school is right in the middle of the neighborhood—literally a ten-minute walk for everyone. These kids are in high school, and instead of being stuck in this ridiculous religious loophole, they could easily just head home, grab some lunch...

I'm honestly just waiting for the first parent-teacher meeting to blow a fuse... ☕

Technically, students aren't supposed to leave the building during school hours here either. There's probably some handbook rule about it.
Let me know what they say at the meeting; I'm actually curious to hear how they handle it.

redridge13 said:Since we’re already deep in the weeds talking about religious studies during class hours...

So, my kid doesn't take religion classes, and on the day all their religious friends have a block period for it, they told the non-religious kids that they aren't allowed to leave and just come back later for their regular lessons. Instead, they’re stuck sitting in the library?!

The school is right in the middle of the neighborhood—literally a ten-minute walk for everyone. These kids are in high school, and instead of being stuck in this ridiculous religious loophole, they could easily just head home, grab some lunch...

I'm honestly just waiting for the first parent-teacher meeting to blow a fuse... ☕

In our district last year, when everything was scheduled in blocks, they actually set the religion classes to just one hour specifically to avoid leaving such huge gaps in the schedule. If it is a block period, they usually schedule it first thing in the morning or at the very end of the day. Honestly, you should speak up—either ask them to break up the block, move it to the start or end of the day, or tell them you'll be sending an official note every single week stating that your child is leaving campus under your own responsibility. (It would be great if all the parents whose kids don't attend take this stance.) Once you submit that as a parent, they can't legally stop you.

Michelle Nelson4 said:In our district last year, when everything was scheduled in blocks, they actually set the religion classes to just one hour specifically to avoid leaving such huge gaps in the schedule. If it is a block period, they usually schedule it first thing in the morning or at the very end of the day. Honestly, you should speak up—either ask them to break up the block, move it to the start or end of the day, or tell them you'll be sending an official note every single week stating that your child is leaving campus under your own responsibility. (It would be great if all the parents whose kids don't attend take this stance.) Once you submit that as a parent, they can't legally stop you.

Man, this is huge info, thanks so much!

I'm just sitting here waiting on the final permanent schedule and the parent handbook to drop next week.

silentmason4 said:What actually happens to kids who skip out on religion class when it’s tucked right in the middle of the school day? Like, is the school required to provide them with some kind of alternative programming, or are they basically just left to their own devices to wander the halls and do whatever they feel like?

It really depends on the specific school district. There isn't some universal mandate. In our area, the younger kids usually hang out in the library, while the high schoolers pretty much figure things out on their own.
Exactly, those block schedules are great because if the class falls at the start or end of the day, they can just show up late or head home early.

My fifth grader has a morning schedule where he only has two classes first thing, so he'll just head into school later. When it's scheduled mid-day, he’ll probably just stay home since he has enough time to grab lunch, rest, and get his homework done before heading in. For the older kids, it's easy as long as they aren't relying on their parents for a ride.

Though, looking at what mom2be wrote, that logic is completely nonsensical. If my local schools operate that way, we're going to have a serious problem, but I doubt it. It's a school, not a correctional facility. It makes zero sense to essentially punish students just because they aren't attending religion class.

Jacob Lopez2 said:It really depends on the specific school district. There isn't some universal mandate. In our area, the younger kids usually hang out in the library, while the high schoolers pretty much figure things out on their own.
Exactly, those block schedules are great because if the class falls at the start or end of the day, they can just show up late or head home early.

My fifth grader has a morning schedule where he only has two classes first thing, so he'll just head into school later. When it's scheduled mid-day, he’ll probably just stay home since he has enough time to grab lunch, rest, and get his homework done before heading in. For the older kids, it's easy as long as they aren't relying on their parents for a ride.

Though, looking at what mom2be wrote, that logic is completely nonsensical. If my local schools operate that way, we're going to have a serious problem, but I doubt it. It's a school, not a correctional facility. It makes zero sense to essentially punish students just because they aren't attending religion class.

If they actually let students leave school early where you live, that's pretty great.

rowdypanther12 said:If they actually let students leave school early where you live, that's pretty great.

Exactly. We'll see how that plays out. But honestly, I fail to see why they wouldn't be permitted to leave! By that ridiculous logic, students should be forced to show up earlier if religion class is scheduled for first period, or stay late if it's at the end of the day.
What are the actual arguments here?

The main argument is child safety, and honestly, it’s probably because they shouldn't be acting out or causing trouble around the school grounds 😁

rowdypanther12 said:The main argument is child safety, and honestly, it’s probably because they shouldn't be acting out or causing trouble around the school grounds 😁

Ha ha. They don't give a damn about how those kids actually get to school or where they wander off to afterward.

Jacob Lopez2 said:Ha ha. They don't give a damn about how those kids actually get to school or where they wander off to afterward.

No, just the specific part they're actually responsible for, like 😁

Looks like we aren't getting any replacement for religious studies this year—at least for those who aren't interested in it—if we're actually talking about teaching critical thinking.

Larry Walker24 said:Looks like we aren't getting any replacement for religious studies this year—at least for those who aren't interested in it—if we're actually talking about teaching critical thinking.

Wait, wasn't that supposed to be just a pilot program in maybe 50 schools starting next year?