Free Schools Or Indocrination ?

[modeller]

Hundreds of Free Faith Based Schools are springing up in the UK.

They are being touted as a new approach to improving education .

Will it have that effect ? Will it have a divisive effect on our society ?

[NOX]

Divisive and thoroughly bad idea.

[Old_Geezer]

Quite possibly divisive. Hope they aren't getting public money.

[LazyGun]

I cannot see how they can be anything but divisive, and they will of course be taking public funds.

I do not have any confidence at all in this particular initiative.

[modeller]

As I understand it they are fully funded by the state.

http://www.education.gov.uk/a0073853/revenue

[bazwillrun]

But it was never really an issue until fairly recently where we find ourselves with the muslim problem

there have always been Catholic,CofE and a few Jewish schools but for the most part they were happy with our culture whereas there seems to be plenty of muslims who hate and despise our culture and have no intention of having their children brought up in our ways and culture as far as is possible.

[Old_Geezer]

Public education funding should be reserved for govenrment provided shools/colleges. If private education is allowed at all it should be self funded and prove they achieve a decent standard. Anything else is just plain wrong.

[atalanta]

If you want to consider the line that must be drawn, try imagining Nazi schools.

[modeller]

Within 2 miles of where I live we have , Muslim, Buddhist, and Sikh.schools 32% of all the schools are faith schools . All of which have their places of worship. Plus of course all the CofE, RC and Jewish. . A new 1000 strong Sikh is to be built half a mile away and a Jedi school is proposed. We are becoming a segregated society. Recently the police were called for fear of violence at a public meeting. There wasn't any but there were high levels of opposition. What will be the result.?

[sandyRoe]

A Jedi school? They're having a laugh, surely?
Here in NI segregated schools have played no small part in maintaining a divided society.

[emmie]

all faith schools should be banned.

[RATTER15]

Like em said, all faith schools should be banned!

[ummmm]

What harm do the majority of faith schools do?

[naomi24]

Faith schools exist not for the benefit of children, but to satisfy the whims of parents. One of the saddest signs I’ve ever seen is one etched into the stone over the door of a Church of England school which reads, ‘Children, harken unto us and we will teach you to fear God’ – or words to that effect. Teaching young people to respect other people is imperative, but why anyone thinks teaching them to fear anything is of benefit to them is quite beyond my comprehension. I see it as nothing short of child abuse. If these schools are to remain they must be rigorously monitored to ensure that false information is not being taught as fact, as it most certainly is now. Religion is indoctrination and it has no place in any classroom.

[ummmm]

I think the RC school I went to was pretty laid back. We weren't discouraged from having our own minds.

[naomi24]

Ummmm, You might think so, but have you ever asked yourself why, in your adult life, you struggled with your religious belief? Had it not been ingrained into your mind in the first place, the struggle would not have existed.

[ummmm]

Yes, and I think it all comes back to my mother, not school.

[naomi24]

Ummmm, so school didn’t endorse what your mother taught you?

[Booldawg]

the local junior school that our daughter goes to is CofE. Think they may sing a few hymns in assembly and the local vicar pops his head round the door occasionally.

Hardly indoctrination.

[ummmm]

Not really. My sons attend the same school and my youngest is atheist. He wasn't when he started.

To me, attending a Catholic school meant we had to say a few more prayers and study the very boring Marks gospel, which I can't remember anything of :-)

[modeller]

CofE schools are probably the least divisive as they were set up originally
in the 18/19 century as schools for the rural poor. Today most of the old rural schools are still Cof E . My granddaughter goes to a CofE primary and they only see the vicar once a fortnight when he attends their assembly.
When I was teaching ,religion was almost never mentioned and I was never asked about my beliefs.
On the other hand when I was teaching I observed lessons in some RC schools and religion was dripped into the children in most lessons even into
PE and football e.g " Now children let us use those muscles God has given you ." " Boys let us score a goal for Jesus . " etc.
I believe teachers in RC schools had to be RCs . That may not be allowed now officially but I can't see a head teacher or the governors appointing a non RC.

sandy # A Jedi school? They're having a laugh, surely #
No they are not joking ! As long as a Free School meets the academic criteria they can get approval . There have been applications from some extreme Islamist groups.