Emily Bock didn’t think the Bible had a place in public schools,
but she’s had a change of heart.
The 18-year-old voted against the addition of a Bible literacy class
at New Braunfels High School during a student poll last year.
However, she ended up on the class roster this semester when she
dropped her statistics class, and said she’s found the course to be
balanced and informative.
“Because of separation of church and state I didn’t really think it
was appropriate,” said Bock, a New Braunfels senior. “I thought it
would be like Bible study because this is New Braunfels and we’re
conservative — but now it’s my favorite class.”
Time magazine also was drawn to the potential for controversy — and
the apparent objectivity — of the New Braunfels High School class
called “The Bible and its Influence.”
The course, taught by Jennifer Kendrick, is featured in a April 2
cover story in Time. The social studies elective was approved by the
New Braunfels Independent School District trustees in December 2006
and was offered for the first time this semester.
“I was kind of surprised to see how positive the story was,”
Kendrick said. “It was pretty exciting to see myself in a magazine,
I can’t imagine how exciting it was for the students.”
Senior Tyler McKee, 17, said the article showed the course in a
positive light and will help show that Bible classes don’t equal
church.
“It’s not preachy,” he said of the course. “I think the article was
good exposure.”
The story, by Time’s senior religion writer David Van Biema,
discusses Bible classes taught in public schools, while also going
into issues such as First Amendment rights and the relevance of
Biblical knowledge in education.
Rosalyn Bratcher, New Braunfels Independent School District’s
superintendent of curriculum and instruction, said Van Biema found
New Braunfels High School through the Bible Literacy Project, a
group that publishes the textbook “The Bible and its Influence.”
“He called up and spent time interviewing me and Jennifer,” Bratcher
said. “He interviewed a few students by phone and then came down in
early February and sat in on some classes.”
Kendrick, who also teaches English, was a little nervous about
teaching the class because community members and other faculty
expressed concerns before the course was approved last year. She
joined the staff at New Braunfels High School this year after
working in Judson Independent School District.
“I know some people and even some teachers at this school don’t
approve of the course being taught,” she said. “But no one has put
that disapproval on me on a personal level. Everyone’s been very
supportive.”
The writers of the course textbook, also titled “The Bible and Its
Influence,” claim the text was created to comply with the First
Amendment, which separates church and state. The book was examined
by 40 reviewers and is endorsed by many educational, religious and
secular groups. According to its editors, the textbook allows room
for parents to teach their own views of the Bible.
Kendrick works from the text, but also adds insights from other text
and even compares Biblical passages to texts from other world
religions. Both Van Biema and Bratcher agreed that Kendrick’s
teaching and the course itself are careful not to take sides.
“I could find little to object to here and much to admire.” Van
Biema wrote in his article. “(Kendrick) name-checked the Crusades,
avoided faith declarations and treated the Bible as a living
document to be pored over rather than blindly accepted. She even
managed to fit in other faiths.”
Bratcher said there are 20 students enrolled in the course during
its debut semester. “The Bible and its Influence” will be offered
again in the fall for juniors and seniors seeking a social studies
elective.
“I think she does a good job teaching about religion without leaning
into areas that are constitutionally indefensible,” Bratcher said of
Kendrick. “I think the reporter was undecided about the issue when
he came here, but he really liked the class. I’d like to think that
New Braunfels High School might have turned his opinion around.”
Copyright © 2007 The Herald-Zeitung
Source URL
http://herald-zeitung.com/story.lasso?ewcd=e435d75f27bce9b7
Read more
about the Bible Literacy Project here.
