Public schools must respect students’ rights to freedom of expression, guaranteed under the First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution. But those rights aren’t absolute. In addition to the general exceptions to First Amendment protection, students often face restrictions on their speech that are particular to the school setting.
Special Rules for Speech at School
The U.S. Supreme Court has long recognized that the right to freedom of expression isn’t quite the same for children at school as it is for adults in other settings. This is because K-12 schools have a special responsibility to keep children safe, teach them how to behave properly, and make sure the campus environment is conducive to learning. Not surprisingly, students and administrators often clash over the balance between schools’ dual responsibilities:
- to respect students’ rights to freedom of expression, and
- to protect children and the learning environment.
When those clashes lead to lawsuits, courts turn to the basic ground rules that the Supreme Court laid out in four landmark decisions. Schools may restrict students’ speech at school or school activities if it:
- is likely to disrupt school
- is lewd
- promotes illegal drug use, or
- is part of the curriculum or communications sponsored by the school.
(The rules are somewhat different for student speech that happens off-campus or online.)
Several lower courts have recognized another principle: The younger the students, the more leeway schools have to control their speech. (By the same token, colleges and universities have less latitude when they try to restrict older students’ speech.)
Disruptive Speech
The Supreme Court found that a school violated students’ First Amendment rights by suspending them for wearing black armbands as an antiwar protest (an example of what’s known as “symbolic speech”). As the court explained, school officials may not squelch the expression of unpopular opinions just to avoid “discomfort and unpleasantness.” Instead, they need to show that the banned speech would create a “substantial disruption” at school or would violate other students’ rights. (Tinker v. Des Moines Independent Community School Dist., 393 U.S. 503 (1969).)
Students, school administrators, and lower courts often disagree about what qualifies as a substantial disruption. Courts consider several factors when deciding whether disruption from a student’s speech is too disruptive, including:
- Did it interfere with classwork or other school activities?
- Did it cause disorder on campus?
- Were other students so upset that they couldn’t concentrate or visited school counselors in droves?
- Did administrators and/or teachers have to take considerable time away from their regular duties in order to deal with the fallout?
School officials don’t have to prove that a student’s speech already interfered with school before they take action. But in order to justify punishing the student, administrators do need to show that it was reasonable for them to predict that would happen. The fear of disruption has to be specific and significant. Vague or general worries aren’t enough. Along with the content of the speech, context and tone matter.
Vulgar Speech
In another case where a high school student gave a speech at school that was filled with explicit sexual metaphors, the Supreme Court found that the First Amendment didn’t prevent schools from disciplining children for offensively lewd and indecent speech. As the court explained, society’s interest in teaching “the boundaries of socially appropriate behavior” outweighed the student’s right to express his views in a way that was highly offensive to many of his classmates. (Bethel School Dist. No. 403 v. Fraser, 478 U.S. 675 (1986).)
Dangerous Speech
After another high school student was suspended for refusing to take down a banner reading “BONG HiTS 4 JESUS” at a school event, he sued. The Supreme Court found that the principal hadn’t violated the boy’s free speech rights, because it was part of the school’s mission to protect students from messages that could be seen as promoting or celebrating illegal drug use (Morse v. Frederick, 551 U.S. 393 (2007)). Based on the reasoning in Morse, courts have given schools a fair amount of leeway in deciding whether students’ speech poses a danger to their classmates or teachers.
School-Sponsored Speech and Student Journalism
Teachers and other school authorities are allowed to censor or change what students write or say in school-sponsored publications (like an official school newspaper or yearbook), school plays, or other activities that involve the expression of ideas and are essentially part of the curriculum. The school must have a legitimate educational reason for the censorship. However, this broad editorial control doesn't apply if school authorities have, "by policy or by practice," allowed a school paper or online publication to become what courts call a public forum—meaning that it's an open platform for students to express themselves freely and make key decisions about content without prior approval from teachers or administrators. (Hazelwood School Dist. v. Kuhlmeier, 484 U.S. 260 (1988).) Most courts agree that this rule applies only to K-12 schools.
Schools generally have less control over "underground" student journalism, whether online or in print. Also, a few states have laws that give student journalists greater free-speech protections than they have under the federal Hazelwood standard.
Speaking With a Lawyer
If you're concerned that school officials have overstepped their authority and violated your (or your child's) free speech rights, consider speaking to a lawyer. An attorney who's experienced in education law or civil rights law should be able to explain how federal or state law (as interpreted by the courts) applies to the specific circumstances, as well as the legal options that may be available to you.