Week 2 – Discussion

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Your initial discussion thread is due on Day 3 (Thursday) and you have until Day 7 (Monday) to respond to your classmates. Your grade will reflect both the quality of your initial post and the depth of your responses. Refer to the Discussion Forum Grading Rubric under the Settings icon above for guidance on how your discussion will be evaluated.

Dress Code

State law does not give students the right to choose their mode of dress. Thus, the matter of student dress and grooming is at the discretion of local school districts. A common question remains: Can school districts have a dress code that discriminates on the basis of gender?

Pay close attention to Chapter 4, especially the Tinker case which highlights that “conduct by the student, in class or out of it, which for any reason—whether it stems from time, place, or type of behavior—materially disrupts classwork or involves substantial disorder or invasion of the rights of others is, of course, not immunized by the constitutional guarantee of freedom of speech” (p. 65).

In your discussion post,

• Present an argument to the question, “Can school districts have a dress code that discriminates on the basis of gender?” using the text and one outside source to support your explanation.
• Refer to at least two statements from the Linking to Practice Do and Do Not suggestions in Chapter 4 (p. 70) to further explain your rationale for your dress code argument.

Guided Response: Respond to at least two of your peers’ posts that have a different take on the question. Describe how their thought process has broadened your own understanding of students’ First Amendment rights and helped you think differently on the subject.