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I would call the teacher into the office. I would ask about his/ her citing the verses for the Koran in the school. I would also show the teacher the curriculum for each grade in the school. Then, I would ask to see the teacher's lesson plans for his/her class. Together with the teacher, I would examine both documents.

When we found the specific evidence that the Koran was not listed as a source for teaching in the teacher's lesson plans or the curriculum. I would say to the teacher that he/she should stop that practice of citing the Koran verses in his/her class. Then, I would say directly "Are you stopping the practice of citing verses of the Koran in your class or in the school? When she answered, I would say that I am going to enter a note in her permanent file. I would also say, that I am going walk through the school in one week to talk with students and teachers about whether he/she did what was discussed in the office.

In one week, I would do just that, walk Through the school and talk to students and teachers about how things are coming along. Depending on what I found, I would have another another talk with the teacher about my findings. Good luck.

Well, first, I'd talk with the teacher. And ask exactly what is happening just to get the whole story. If they say they do it once in awhile, and ask what is the purpose? I'd suggest to the teacher to also site verses from The Bible and other well known books from spiritual people. I wouldn't ask them to stop, but they should not say Allah in my opinion. You have to be sensitive to peoples faith in any particular God. The Christians and the Jews have the same God, but don't share faith in Jesus Christ. But Allah is not the god of the Christians or the Jews. So if he's quoting from the Koran he should not say it. Muhammed however is a prophet and pretty much everyone accepts that Jesus was/is a prophet. Although the Christians believe He is the Son of God. The consitution doesn't say separation from church and state...its' really about fair play, meaning even time amongst the religions. Whats cool though if this teacher knows the Koran, its cool to share that because I never heard anything from the Koran until I actually went and tried to look at it one day in the library.

There seems to be an anti Christian sentiment in the town where my children went to public school. Teachers would discuss witchcraft, sorcery and not consider it to be religious but there was an attitude of banning any Christian talk. So....as long as a climate of tolerance is being promoted that is a good thing. It really depends the context too. I think its really cool. Walkin' on the edge a little bit.

If the teacher is teaching a course in which Islam is part of the unit (like a world cultures unit) it is fine. I only bring out the Bible when there is a Biblical reference. When I see a connection between the theme of a text and a part of the bible, I might model for my students how I have a personal connection to the story because it reminds me of a certain Bible story (the same way I connect texts to movies and other books), but I do not quote the Bible at these times.

It is all about how the teacher is using it. I, personally, believe a teacher should not use any religious texts as religious texts in school, but as a piece of literature is fine. If I was an admin, I would first investigate what is really being said and how relevant it really is. In an English or World History class, I could see this coming up in appropriate ways, but I don't really feel quoting from the Koran (or Bible, etc) is really relevant unless a piece of literature is being read that references a particular line.

It is not appropriate for teachers to quote from the Bible, the Koran, or any other religious sources to students. As an administrator, I would call the teacher to the office to discuss this privately and reference school district policy. If it has happened before, a disciplinary note would be made in the teacher's file. Students are not there for religious education.

So long as the teacher isn't trying to force beliefs about islam upon her students. Then there is nothing wrong. As a teacher it should be your job to do your best to teach about as many different aspects of the world as possible. And seeing as there are over a billion muslims on the planet I think it's wise to give some people an idea of what the beliefs of over 1/7 of the worlds people are.

Schools are meant to be secular, and in my interpretation of the word secularism does not directly imply that we should never speak about religion. Far from it we should discuss religion as openly and as broadly as possible just so long as the students are not being forced into any particular belief and are allowed to make up their own minds.

I know that in the UK for example. Lessons about religions are not only allowed to happen but until the last four years of school they are mandatory.

Since there has been a parental complaint, I would talk to the teacher and request that they use more than one kind of religious text to make their point. There are many similarities between the bible and the koran. If he teaches in a Christian area he could find the same type of text in the bible. If he used both he would not be subject to criticism.

You tell them that you think it's a great idea to share insightful tidbits of wisdom with your students. However, due to the political climate of the day and perhaps b/c of the letter of the law (IANAL) that those wise tidbits need to come from more secular sources. Surely anyone wise enough to be handing out tidbits of wisdom is wise enough to know that there isn't a single authoritative source. So keep the wisdom flowing. Otherwise the unwise decision to quote from a single source will only stop the flow. And no one wants that. If they refuse then I think it's pretty clear that this person has a religious agenda. Religious agendas don't belong in school. :)

I would just tell the parent that nothing can be done about it and the teacher is not trying to impose Islam onto the students. Says she's a religious teacher (by the sounds of it, she is)..and she's free to practice her own religion. She isn't doing anything wrong. It's not going against school policies.

We need to know how the verses are being used. We need to know if this is occurring in a public school. The teacher's handbook may have a rule or regulation concerning such subjects. Proselytizing should be prohibited in a school's environment.

I believe this is the norm in school to encourage religious awareness and not just Christianity for all students not to be ignorant of others beliefs but if there is a strong concern, maybe tell your teacher to explain motives! I am sure they are harmless really......just helps with race relations too in class....