Schools should cross boundaries
Is it just me, or does this seem a little confused?
Measure to make all faith schools open their doors to children from other religions are to be considered in an attempt to break down barriers between communities. Alan Johnson, the Education Secretary, will announce today that he plans to look at the intakes of existing religious schools as part of a review of the admissions code for schools…In remarks likely to alarm supporters of faith schools, Mr Johnson will say in his speech: “Young minds are free from prejudice and discrimination, so schools are in a unique position to prevent social division. Schools should cross ethnic and religious boundaries, and certainly not increase them, or exacerbate difficulties in sensitive areas.”
But then…why are they expanding religious schools? I think Johnson is quite right that schools should cross ethnic and religious boundaries (cf Brown v Board of Education for some of the reasons to think that), but then their policy on the issue is – how to put this – wrong, isn’t it? Maybe they’ve decided that.
It’s patritoically heartening to realize that in some things the English do do it worse. Public-funed faith schools? Blehh.
Religious schools are the most ingenious campaign for secularism ever invented. Nothing puts a child off religion more than those arcane dirge-like hymns we had to sing during school assembly. In the face of fundamentalist myth, scientific reason has the lure of the forbidden. The kids may have bibles in their satchels, but they’ll have Dawkins under their beds. ;-)
OB: “…but then their policy on the issue is – how to put this – wrong, isn’t it?”
It is one of the strangest policies I have ever read!
And what happens to the non-religious children during the religious classes? Do they get to opt out (it doesn’t look like it) or do they have to sit there and get indoctrinated with the rest?
Given that our education system has been systematically screwed by both main political parties, in an ongoing process from 1968 until now, and it is still continuing, what do you expect?
I have an aquanitance who has worked within the education system and politics who advised me a number of years ago that many of his ‘devout’ constituents would prefer to send their kids to *any* church school rather than a secular schiool. I.e. parents of muslem or sikh children were queueing up to get their offspring into the Roman Ctholic schools because discipline and results were better. The whole thing is a disgusting sham for back door selection and privatisation. Really, screw Blair.
Here in Scotland we have the most divisive supernaturalist sectarianism (well, more in Weegieland [Glasgow – “Glaswegians => Weegies” for the uninitiated] than anywhere else), and yet virtually no politicians will dare to admit that “faith schools” are a major part of the problem.
Too many votes from the gullible at stake.
Plus, as has been previously mentioned, TB (what appropriate initials), and many of his cabal, are deeply committed to as much public-funding of supernaturalism as they can get away with…policies to build more “faith schools”, involve more “faith-based” institutions in social care provision (at taxpayers’ expense), sucking-up to the Muslim Council of Britain (until Jack Straw – of all people – broke ranks recently), etc,etc.
Amazing what you can do when only 35% of the voters who bothered to turn up choose to vote for you.
Ho hum.
Andy, and it goes without saying what has resulted, in part, from religious segregation in education in N Ireland.