To do so would be viewed as school endorsement of a specific religion, which is unconstitutional. The law also prohibits requiring students to recite prayers as a class. Although most state laws that attempt to permit school prayer usually allow the students to excuse themselves and wait in the hallway. The First Amendment also states that there shall be no law regarding the establishment of religion. The courts frequently see prayer in the classroom to be an example of the government approving one religion over the other.
Religious symbols are a protected form of free speech.
In general, children do not abandon their religious rights when they go to school. Prayers before Board of Education meetings. The sixth United States Circuit Court of Appeals decided in March of 1999 that the Board of Education in Cleveland, OH, cannot pray before their meetings. The court ruled that prayers are an illegal endorsement of religion. They may not promote religion in general as superior to a certain approach in life or lifestyle or vice-versa.