accompanies it—matter a great deal. We
should not accept the status quo of religious talk in the public square, which
too often resembles a series of indignant
soliloquies delivered with self-righteous
certainty. The idea of civic multilingualism is that citizens in our diverse
democracy will bring with them to the
public square their own religious and
ethical languages and their own ways of
seeing and ordering the world, but they
will also communicate respectfully and
effectively with those who hold conflicting perspectives.
a healthy start to life, if at all possible.
Once students understand competing
points of view, they’re better prepared
to explore ways in which those holding
such views might reach accommodation, compromise, and perhaps even
common ground.
Several important conceptual distinctions can foster this kind of civic multilingualism and help teachers engage
productively with the challenges of religion in the classroom.
How Can Schools Help?
It’s often assumed that religious perspectives will most likely surface in the
context of history or literature, but if we
consider how widely religion permeates our world, it becomes clear that
many subjects—science, art, music,
foreign languages, health, and so on—
are equally important opportunities to
develop civic multilingualism.
Consider a 10th grade biology class
embarking on a genetics unit. The
teacher presents a curricular hook in
the form of provocative questions about
cloning and genetic testing, which
almost inevitably result in some students drawing on religious convictions
to articulate their positions.
“The Bible says that God knit us
together in the womb,” one boy contends, “and we have no right to alter
that design.” The teacher could respond
by simply acknowledging the existence
of religious arguments and then encourage her students to “stick to the science”
as they explore these issues. But this
misses an important opportunity to help
cultivate civic multilingualism—
demonstrating respect for competing ethical perspectives by striving to understand them.
For example, parents who would
refuse to screen for genetic abnormali-
ties may view that decision as an act
of faith and unconditional acceptance
of their children. Those who would
screen may view their responsibility as
parents to include giving their children
i
almost inevitably result in some stu-
dents drawing on religious convictions
by simply acknowledging the existence
of religious arguments and then encour-
age her students to “stick to the science”
as they explore these issues. But this
1. Focus on respect instead
of;tolerance.
Public schools often see their role as
promoting tolerance of diversity, and
this is certainly important. But tolerance
can be entirely ignorant—students don’t
have to know anything about other
beliefs or ways of life to tolerate them.
Respect, however, requires an appreciation for why religious adherents believe
or live the way they do. Students who
have this understanding of their fellow
citizens’ religious commitments will be
better equipped to thoughtfully discuss
those commitments, especially when
conflicts arise in the public square.
For example, consider the ongoing debates about religious dress in
public life, both in the United States
and abroad. When deciding whether
any restrictions on religious attire are
appropriate, it’s not enough to know
that some Muslim women choose to
wear headscarves as part of their religious observance. Respect requires an
appreciation for how this choice may
represent an integral facet of their identity. Without such insight, students risk
evaluating those commitments through
a lens that views clothing choices as
little more than fashion statements.
2. Respect doesn’t mean endorsement.
It’s important for teachers and students
to understand that appreciating why
others believe and live the way they
do doesn’t necessarily mean agreeing
with those ways of life. Demonstrating
respect by seeking to understand the
