This compilation of materials from the SLATE (Support for the Learning and Teaching of English) Steering Committee of the National Council of Teachers of English reflects the ongoing concerns and discussions that SLATE has held about the free exchange of thoughts and ideas throughout its history. The collection contains "starter sheets"…

Presents a lesson where secondary students learn about First Amendment rights. Expounds that the students conduct and analyze a survey on First Amendment rights and then compare their results with those from the national survey conducted by the Freedom Forum. Includes a student handout on conducting a survey and also the survey itself. (CMK)

Discusses a court case involving a student's use of puns in an assembly speech, Shakespeare's use of puns, the relationship between banning offensive words and the censorship of ideas, and the difficulty with placing a ban on the expression of "indecent" puns and double entendre and of deciding what is "appropriate." (EL)

Presents four essays that discuss (1) the continued apathy of many English teachers toward censorship of textbooks, (2) the tenuous commitment of the general public to the First Amendment rights of speech and assembly, (3) feminists as censors, and (4) the tendency of conflicts between censors and anticensors to be dominated by the extremes. (RBW)

This curriculum guide is intended to encourage students to learn how everyone benefits when young people, other citizens, and the media exercise the constitutional rights of free speech and free press. Background information on free speech issues is provided, along with classroom activities, discussion questions, and student worksheets. There are…