Court case involving student freedom of expression

I found this video online that discusses how a student's freedom of expression in the classroom can be violated. The narrator discusses a court case eminating from Tomah, Wisconsin in which a high school senior got a zero on an art project that contained a cross and the words "John 3:16". The reason the art teacher gave for giving the student a zero is because she presented him with a policy that every student had to sign agreeing to "no violence, no sex, no blood and no religion". This is waiving a student's first amendment rights, which a teacher cannot do by law. These are constitutional rights protected by the government. You cannot waive these rights because somebody signed a document, according to the narrator. Some may object that the student's constitutional rights have been violated since he was allowed to paint the painting. That is incorrect; expression means more than being able to express yourself. It means being able to do so without any interference as long as order and discipline can be maintained in school. Only in situations where the right to school discipline or the rights of others are violated is the school allowed to violate students' right to freedom of expression.

There are several reasons the student is right for filing a lawsuit against the school. Along with having his freedom of expression violated, this artwork was not threatening to the order or code of discipline in the school. If it caused a riot or something like that, I could see the school interfering with his rights for the sake of the safety of the other students. Going back to what the document stated in regard to "no blood, sex, violence or religion", avoiding the first three has to do with keeping discipline and school order. Religion is apart from that.

Besides, art is intended to teach you to express yourself in an artistic manner using certain methods. It is different from academics in this way. Academics has a close relationship between content and the nature of how you teach it. Art encourages students to express themselves as long as they have respect for other students and it does not encourage violence or anything that would disrupt the educational process.