The Commission for Racial Equality said the UK was in danger of becoming a mini America, with schools segregated along religious and ethnic lines.
And Government figures showed one in seven primary school children in England now does not speak English as their first language.
Nick Johnson, director of policy at the CRE, said parents must stop sending their children to schools where most pupils are from similar ethnic or religious backgrounds.
And he suggested that schools should be given extra money for taking a racially mixed group of pupils.
Schools across Britain are becoming "increasingly segregated in terms of race and religion", he said.
"This should be of key concern to each and every one of us.
"We're in fear of turning into a mini America, with racially determined schools and areas in all of Britain's towns and cities.
"Schools are where our children first learn how to get along with people from other cultures and backgrounds.
"Racially segregated schools prevent this from happening.
"If a Muslim child is educated in a school where the vast majority of other children are also Muslim, how can we expect him to work, live and interact with people from other cultures when he leaves school?
"This is a ticking time-bomb waiting to explode."
Mr Johnson said he was particularly worried about Tony Blair's controversial group of privately-backed city academies and trust schools.
Some of these schools are using their extra freedoms to "cream off pupils from certain ethnic backgrounds or religions, thus reducing interaction and increasing racial tensions".
"If schools are judged solely on the academic results of pupils, it's hardly surprising that they are selecting white, middle-class pupils, who have more opportunities and are more likely to succeed.
"This is creating a culture of education by ethnicity.
He went on: "Given the choice, most parents are choosing schools where the majority of pupils are from similar backgrounds.
"This simply has to change if we are to go any way towards reversing this predicament."
Mr Johnson's intervention came as the Department for Education and Skills published figures which showed a significant rise in the number of ethnic minority pupils in state primary and secondary schools this year.
The annual January schools census found that more than one in five of England's primary school children - 724,000 - came from an ethnic minority background.
Last year 20.6% of primary school children were from an ethnic minority group. The figure had risen to 21.9% by January this year.
The number of primary school pupils who do not speak English as their first language increased by about 7% on the 2006 figures to 448,000, or about one child in seven.
Figures for secondary schools showed a similar picture, with a 9% increase in the number of pupils not speaking English as their first language to 342,000 in total.
When special schools are included, 798,210 pupils in England's state schools do not speak English as their first language.
Asian pupils made up over 8% of primary school children and 7% of secondary school pupils, while nearly 5% of primary pupils and 4% of secondary school pupils were black. Tweet
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Once again it's our fault - us, the people in the street. Don't try to give your children the best education available: send them instead into over-large classes where one in seven children don't have English as their first language, and let them contribute to racial harmony whilst the teachers concentrate their (ever-lessening) efforts on the children who - through no fault of their own - will take a disproprtionate amount of their time and attention. Let's also not forget that - not infrequently - its not the average man in the street who's shouting about the need to set up segregated schools: that cry comes from the very minorities we're ebing asked to merge with!
Ban all faith schools, insist that English be the first language for every pupil. Teach all children that there is no supreme religion, and that all are based on blind faith and not certainty. Introduce atheism as a subject, and ban any form of religious dress. Then we might start to get somewhere.
White middle class?. Interesting as RC schools tend to do well catholics come from a mixture of ethnic groups and the white ones tend to be Irish and certainly not in most cases middle class
Schools are not so much racially split as split by religion. There would be more schools available if there were no religious schools taking on pupils of their chosen faith. Getting rid of all religious schools is the way forward if all races and religions are going to learn to get on. What are the chances of a catholic school, for example taking on any significant number of pupils of other religions? Removing selection by religion would mean all children could go to any school. Attitude towards race and religion is learnt as a child and unless children from all faiths and skin colour mix together from an early age it is easy for prejudice to set root. It should not be the taxpayer's responsibility to pay for anything but general religious education, covering as many types as possible, so children can get the necessary broad understanding of different faiths. Any other form of more specified religious education can be done in the pupils own time, school should be for learning your ABCs!
As for having schools filled with non-English speakers do they not just go to their nearest school? People from similar ethnic backgrounds tend to flock together - human nature isn't it? Seems like splitting the kids up into politically correct groupings is going to require drawing names from a hat.
To late its here segregation is starting (wearing of the veil at school ect) and pupils refusing to eat food not prepared under islamic laws and conditions in school (halal food/meat). This isnt integration its the start of segregation.
We should prohibit all religion and religious dress and sybmols from Schools. Racial integration should be enforced.Those who dont like it should find a country more sympathetic to their religion.
Right on again calamity, though I think we do need to show some flexibility toward children who follow any religion & attend the ideal no faith school. Every school should have a multi-faith room & worker to cater for after school & break/lunchtime support & EVERYONE should have to follow school uniform which should incorporate important needs of the child to follow their religion. There aren't all that many mainstream religions that would need to be considered when coming up with the boundaries. As long as what they wear in excess to their uniform does not get in the way of their ability to learn.
If we don't compromise many parents will continue to choose & fight for the right to send their kids to a religious school.
Kids are still being suspended for having the 'wrong' haircut?