Freedom of speech should apply to teachers as much as anyone else  Freedom of speech and expression are protected by the first amendment to the US constitution [1] and teachers are entitled to freedom of speech and their academic freedom as much as anyone else. If a science teacher does not believe that the evidence supports evolution then why should s/he have to teach evolution as fact rather than just as one of several competing theories? The Tennessee bill protects freedom of expression by freeing teachers to include whatever other angles on controversies such as evolution or climate change as they wish.  [1] Legal Information Institute, ‘First Amendment: An overview’, Cornell University Law School, 19 August 2010,