Student Expression Quiz

Incorrect. The First Amendment applies differently to underage students than it does to adults. Schools have more authority to control what students can say or do, but that doesn't mean students don't have any rights! The First Amendment still protects students both at school and at home.

Correct! Although the First Amendment does protect student speech, students have slightly more limited rights than adults do. That means schools can potentially censor student speech in cases where an adult would be protected.

Incorrect. Hazelwood is an important case that said schools can limit student speech that is school-sponsored or represents the school.

Correct! The Tinker case recognized that students don't "shed their constitutional rights at the schoolhouse gate." Student speech will be protected unless it causes a substantial disruption to the school environment or interferes with the rights of other students.

Incorrect. Brown v. Board of Education is the Supreme Court case that made segregation in public schools unconstitutional.

Incorrect. In Morse v. Frederick, the Supreme Court said that schools can limit student speech that references illegal drug use or other illegal activity.

Incorrect. Even though this speech was done for a class election, the inappropriate language didn't have anything to do with the message the student was trying to convey. The school didn't shut the speech down because of its message, but because of how inappropriate the language was.

Incorrect. Just because a student says "it was a joke" doesn't make the speech any more protected.

Correct! The Supreme Court in the case of Bethel School District v. Fraser ruled that schools can censor student speech that is lewd (sexually explicit) or vulgar (profane) without infringing on a student's First Amendment rights, especially when younger students could hear the inappropriate speech.

Also Correct! In this case, the student's speech caused an uproar in the school assembly that took a while to get back in order. That disrupted the learning environment of the assembly, so the school would be able to censor the speech without infringing the student's rights.

Incorrect. The First Amendment doesn't just protect speech; it also has something called the Establishment Clause. This says that the government can't force anyone to participate in a particular religion. By broadcasting the prayer over the loudspeakers, the school would be forcing people who might not want to participate in the prayer to listen to it, which violates the Establishment Clause. (Note that this wouldn't apply to a private school setting).

Correct! The school can't force anyone to participate in a prayer, and by broadcasting it over the loudspeakers, the school might be forcing people who don't want to participate to listen to the prayer. However, the school also can't stop you from practicing your religion, so the team could have their own private prayer before the game and invite people to join in voluntarily without interfering with anyone's rights. (Note that this wouldn't apply to a private school setting).

Incorrect. Walking out of the school in the middle of class clearly disrupts the learning environment, since teaching will have to stop while the protest is going on. The Supreme Court ruled in Tinker v. Des Moines that such disruptive student speech is not protected.

Correct! By staging the protest before school starts and standing on a public sidewalk, the students are not disrupting any education and not stopping any traffic from getting to the school. This is a great form of political protest and would be highly protected by the First Amendment.

Incorrect. By refusing to let students leave the cafeteria, the protestors are causing a substantial disruption to the learning environment, since school can't continue until they break their human chain. This disruptive speech is not protected.

Incorrect. By blocking off the teacher parking lot, the protestors are keeping teachers from their jobs. The delay in having to find a new place to park will probably cause a delay in classes and overall cause a substantial disruption to the school day. This disruptive speech is not protected.

Correct! While the First Amendment does protect your right to peacefully assemble and speak your mind, students are still subject to their school's attendance policy. Even if someone organizes a school-wide walkout and everyone participates, the school could still count it as an unexcused absence.

Incorrect. Even if you're engaging in purely political speech, students are still subject to the school attendance policy. The First Amendment protects your right to attend a protest, but it won't protect you from an unexcused absence.

Incorrect. Although the color of your hair can count as speech under the First Amendment because it is personal expression, that isn't the problem here. The First Amendment only protects you from Government Actors (like public school administrators), so it won't apply to students at a private school.

Incorrect. Even if you dye your hair as a political protest (which is the most protected type of speech), the First Amendment still won't protect you from decisions made at a private school. The First Amendment only protects your rights against Government Actors (like at a public school).

Incorrect. We don't know if a student changing their hair color would cause a substantial disruption to the school environment. It probably wouldn't, but even if no one noticed, the issue is still that this is a private school. The First Amendment only protects your rights against actions taken by the government, so does not apply to private schools.

Correct! Remember, the First Amendment only protects your behavior against Government Actors. So, while public school teachers or administrators might get in trouble, the First Amendment won't protect student speech against decisions made in a private school.

Correct! The First Amendment doesn't just protect your rights to free speech, it also protects your right to freely practice religion. Because the student is wearing her hijab as part of her religion, the school cannot force her to remove, even if they have a "no hats" policy during exams.

Incorrect. The First Amendment doesn't just protect your rights to free speech, it also protects your right to freely practice religion. Because the student is wearing her hijab as part of her religion, the school cannot force her to remove, even if they have a "no hats" policy during exams.

Incorrect. The First Amendment does protect a student's right to criticize their teachers, but the student's statement goes beyond that. Saying that he will blow up the principal's car is a targeted threat of violence that has to be taken seriously, even if he was joking. The student's speech is not just criticism, so it's not protected.

Correct! The First Amendment does protect a student's right to criticize their teachers, but the student's statement goes beyond that. Saying that he will blow up the principal's car is a targeted threat of violence that has to be taken seriously, even if he was joking. The student's speech is not just criticism, so it's not protected.

Correct! If the student had worn the dress as a general protest, that may be protected speech. However, in this case, he didn't wear it just for political protest; he wore it to specifically mock the transitioning student and even named him. This type of targeted harassment and bullying is not protected by the First Amendment.

Incorrect. Even though student who wore the dress does have a right to express his opinion on the matter, in this case, he didn't wear it just to express an opinion, he wore it to mock a specific student. This specific bullying and harassment is not protected by the First Amendment.