Is it a violation of religious rights to mark a student as wrong for saying Earth is 10k years old?

[Ferguson97]

If a student whose family is Young Earth creationists is taking a test in science class, and is asked "How old is the Earth?" and they answer "10,000 years", would it be a violation of that student's religious freedom to mark them as incorrect?

[Ferguson97]

Any teacher worth his salt would think of a better, more specific question to ask on a test.

A more interesting issue is about the religious freedom of teachers.  My husband was recently telling me about a high school biology teacher he had (in rural Mississippi) who refused to say the word "evolution" and instead used the word "adaptation" in notes/tests.  Refusing to say the word is silly, but do you think she should be allowed to do such, Fergie? 

Teachers shouldn't let personal issues get in the way, as you deplorables constantly remind us any time a teacher is suspended over accidentally mentioning her wife to 2nd graders in passing.

So the street goes both ways?  Do teachers have freedom of speech or not?

Refusing to use the word evolution in a biology class is something that directly and negatively impacts the learning of the students. A teacher mentioning that she has a wife, the same way that a straight teacher would mention she has a husband, is not something that negatively impacts the learning of the students.

Teachers have a right to freedom of speech, but that does not include including incorrect, misleading, or incomplete language in the curriculum.

[Ferguson97]

Curriculum itself can be written to include "incorrect, misleading or incomplete language" so your argument isn't quite the slam dunk you think it is.

Assume a state adopted a curriculum that some say is promoting Southern "Lost Cause" mythology.  Would a teacher have the right to alter his language to avoid teaching it?     

Either teachers can teach what they like (i.e., freedom of speech/religious expression) or they are peons only able to regurgitate state-mandated curricula.  I think you'd like to have it both ways.   

I don't want it both ways. I want teachers to teach the truth. The truth exists independently of what the state government or they personally think.

If the school curriculum is based in reality, then the teachers should stick to it.

If the school ciriculum is not based in reality, then the teacher should teach the truth.