From the banning of headscarves in French schools, to the debates in the United States about the Pledge of Allegiance and prayer in school, disputes about the role of religion in schools rage around the world. But why do these controversies exist? What prompts them? Why do certain conflicts arise and what attempts are made to deal with them? How have solutions fared? How are the controversies in one country similar to or different from those in another? In this book, Thomas uses examples from twelve countries, covering all the major world religions and all regions of the world, to examine and answer these questions. He reveals the complexities of the conflicts and shows what brought them about. Using the case studies and applying a uniform approach to analysing each country's particular focus on religion and the schools, he is able to show what these conflicts have in common, how well solutions have worked, and what may lie ahead.