THE growth of Muslim faith schools must not be allowed to undermine the coherence of British society, the head of Ofsted warned today.
A traditional Islamic education "does not entirely fit" Muslim children for life in modern Britain, said David Bell, the Chief Inspector of Schools.
While diversity is potentially a great strength, Mr Bell suggested that it could also pose a threat to "our coherence as a nation" if taken too far.
In a speech to the Hansard Society in central London, Mr Bell acknowledged that the issues he was raising were "tricky".
But he stressed: "Faith should not be blind.
"I worry that many young people are being educated in faith-based schools, with little appreciation of their wider responsibilities and obligations to British society," he said.
"Britain's diversity has the potential to be one of its greatest strengths. But diverse does not need to mean completely different and it certainly must not mean segregated or separate.
"Religious segregation in schools, for example, must not put our coherence at risk."
Appreciation
Mr Bell said his next annual report will urge Muslim schools to reform their lessons to give children "a broad general knowledge of public institutions and services in England".
These schools must help their pupils "to acquire an appreciation of and respect for other cultures in a way that promotes tolerance and harmony".
The country now has about 300 independent faith schools, including more than 50 Jewish schools, about 100 Muslim schools and more than 100 Evangelical Christian schools, he said.
"I believe that it is right that parents should be able to choose how their children are educated and should be able to pay to do so," he added.
And many new faith schools were being opened by "a younger generation of British Muslims".
These people recognised that "traditional Islamic education does not entirely fit pupils for their lives as Muslims in modern Britain".
Mr Bell said the government must monitor these new faith schools to make sure pupils are taught about "other faiths and the wider tenets of British society".
"We must not allow our recognition of diversity to become apathy in the face of any challenge to our coherence as a nation," he said.
Mr Bell went on to say that there should be no tolerance of "attitudes and values that demean the place of certain sections of our community - be they women or people living in non-traditional relationships".
What do you think of the growth of Muslim schools in this country? Have your say.
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In 2005 it seems incredible to me that all children are not taught in a secular educational system. We seem to be going through a period of increased division on the basis of religion. I feel this is a dangerous development and can only add to prejudice and society becoming more divided. Religion, if it must be practiced, should be for home consumption only.
Mr Bell is right. Faith schools are turning out too many pupils who believe in God and have knowledge of and respect for their religious beliefs. These people would rather spend Friday night in the mosque, church or synagogue instead of getting bladdered down the pub and having a fight. They will learn about such anti-British things like helping others in their community less fortunate than themselves instead of doing the decent thing and relying on the state or helping themselves to other peoples property. With the evidence showing that these schools are actually performing well then theres a danger that they might turn out better educated children and what use is that to anyone in Britain these days. Heavens, if we're not careful then these people might start bringing their children up the same way and then where would we be?
I personally don't have anything against the growth of ALL faith schools- Christians, Jewish and Islamic. But I do think religious education lessons should be taught in ALL faith schools, so everyone accepts other faiths. I think the growth of faith schools should be talked about in general. I think Islamic schools are put in the spotlight.
There is enough divisiveness in our society currently. There is no need to fragment, or ghettoize ourselves even more so. There must be some commonality and as I see it, religion many times is the cause for discord. As already stated, religion can and should be taught in one's home or place of worship.
An Open Letter to OFSTED
There are over half a million Muslim children in British schools where bilingualism and Islamic Identity is totally neglected. In History lessons, a Muslim contribution to European learning and culture is never mentioned. British education system has failed to meet the needs and demands of the Muslim parents. Mr. Bell wrongly expressed concern about the number of Muslim schools failing to prepare their pupils as good citizens. OFSTED never criticized state schools for the mis-education and de-education of the Muslim children. According to the educational theory, there should be a positive co-relation between school and home; otherwise the education of the children would suffer. Learning a second language is the "alphabet of the 21st century." People who lose their language lose their identity. The language a person speaks is part of his/her identity and culture. So learning languages means opposing racism, xenophobia and intolerance. The European Monitoring Centre on Racism and Xenophobia (EUMC) Annual Report 2003/2004 provides that education system in most European States and United Kingdom is to fail migrants and minorities.
Muslim schools can play a vibrant part in British society. Parents have no choice in educating their children. There is a choice in health; the government is prepared to pay private providers to treat NHS parents. Why not do the same in education? Muslims feel that British society at large is hostile to their way of life. In this atmosphere, there is a growing demand for Muslim schools. Feversham state funded Muslim school now leads in academic progress in only four years. It is a faith based school, underpinned by an Islamic ethos, which influences the quality of teaching and learning. Role models are important to motivate pupils to pursue their dreams. Such schools aid integration. Better exam results mean better jobs and a more integrated society. Majority of Muslim parents balk at the secular treatment of matters such as materialism, spirituality, sex, drugs and the treatment of other people and the environment. What would be wrong with having a state school with a Muslim ethos in areas where Muslim is in great majority. One can't leave religious identity at the school gate. Lord Bertand Russell regards Western education as being intellectually harmful and makes a man stupid. Islamophobia is the consequence of the ignorance, the misinformation and the fears which result from it.
Teacher is a role model. Bilingual Muslim children need bilingual Muslim teachers. OFSTED is not suitable to inspect and passed its judgments on Muslim children and Muslim schools. Bilingual Muslim educationists should be employed for the inspection of the Muslim schools who should not only be well versed in English, Arabic or Urdu but also in Sciences and humanities subjects.
Iftikhar Ahmad