Learning about other's beliefs

The National Curriculum specifies that children will learn ABOUT different religions. Each school year or term will concentrate on learning about the main world religions, Judaism one term, Hinduism, Islam etc. These religions will be compared with Christianity and the similarities will be emphasised - such as caring for others. The children may visit a place of worship, or look at artefacts such as prayer mats, or hear and discuss traditional stories
The aim is to be mind broadening not indoctrinating. No extremist Imams would be invited into schools.
Religion in school is a controversial area. In France they dont allow any mention of it I think. But I wouldn't be worried about grandchildren learning about different beliefs.

Thanks for pointing that out mostlyharmless it is a fact that all primary schools include lessons about most religions. Included in this can be visits from religious leaders including if the school wishes an Imam. I wonder if your DS would withdraw his children if a nun or a Catholic priest was to speak in the school? We had both of those when I was teaching, not to mention an assortment of preachers and speakers from other churches. We had "Visitor's Assembly" once a week when the head cast around to find someone who would run an assembly for us.Some were interesting to say the least. If anyone is worried about if the catholic priest was indoctrinating our children he was most remembered for bringing his bodrhan and leading a chant to the local football club. (Now there's a religion for you).

Knowledge is not indoctrination. If it were, then students of criminal insanity would all become murdering psychopaths.

Do you son and his wife really think that knowing nothing about Islam is better than knowing what it is about? It is not indoctrination to hear just what a faith is about and why its members believe it. Then the children can form for themselves the questions that triggers in their minds (like the little boy who was concerned about the Jewish cat and mixing meat and milk - he has applied his own logic to the situation, and no doubt could ask a few more questions.

Coming from N. Ireland, I feel the more you know about other religions the more likely you are to respect others regardless of who they are and how they prey.

It looks as though the parents in this case have a particular concern about the treatment of women and this is what is making them reluctant for their children to be included. It is a shame, as learning about other religions is a positive thing. It might help if they spoke about their concerns to the head and asked that any comments on the subject of women that seemed unacceptable should be discussed afterwards with the children; or the parents could ask to be there themselves so that they can discuss it with their children afterwards.

TBH I doubt that the subject will come up; but they are entitled to their concerns about something that is important to them and these should be addressed by the school.

Personally I would be more worried about a catholic priest talking to them!!

I agree with the others - it's not likely to be harmful. In any case the children will probably find out later from their friends what it was all about, as their parents thought it was so important. And might get a garbled version.

Luckygirl, exactly what I was thinking!. I wouldn't leave a small child with any cleric but a class-roomful of children with adults in attendance is safe enough. I am sad that anyone would want to withdraw their child for such a reason. We are not in Saudi Arabia. Knowledge is everything and true Islam is a peaceful religion just like true Catholicism, though history would seem to tell us otherwise.

No divorce,
No abortion, even for rape or abuse,
Stigmatisation of unmarried mothers
Male only religious leaders
Brainwashing of impressionable young people, especially teenage girls
Sexual abuse
And a few more
Not Islam Lilyflower but a faith closer to home.
By the way, FMG is not part of Islam

I have been lurking on this site for ages and reading the many interesting threads. Not sure why this topic has prompted me to respond! But here goes. Coming together is good, no one can deny that. However, I wonder would a reciprocal invitation be accepted, i.e. would a vicar or other Christian religious leader be welcomed to address Muslin pupils. I think not. If I was in that position as a parent, I would most definitely keep my children away. Respect goes both ways.

If we don't learn about other people's beliefs, how are we going to begin to understand each other? If we prevent our children from knowing how others think and feel, what sort of world are we bequeathing to them?

Most, if not all, religions have the potential for oppression and abuse by those who choose to interpret it in that way, usually to increase their own power and diminish the autonomy of others. Islam isn't unique in that way, particularly when it comes to the subjection of women. Christianity has a poor record when it comes to gender equality and so does Hinduism, for a start. I don't know that Judaism or Buddhism have got a lot to boast about either, where women's rights are concerned.

An imam is just a priest - hardly likely to be an extremist, as that's a small minority and I can't imagine the school would have invited anyone with extreme views. At our local primary, which has children from many ethnic backgrounds, they all learn about Jesus, particularly at Easter and Christmas, and none of the parents seem to object or regard it as indoctrination.

Personally, I think that religion in schools should be confined to teaching about different faiths, but I never asked for my children to be excluded from religious services. You just have to be willing to talk to them at home about what they have been taught. My younger DD got very anxious about the idea of hell, when she was about 8, and I would have preferred that her (very devout) class teacher hadn't raised the issue. However, I talked to my DD and dealt with her worries. Can't your DS do the same with any issues raised by the imam's visit?

Oh gosh OP what a difficult situation for you. But I am sure you have done the right thing in voicing your thoughts. I am saddened to hear that young people in their twenties have such biased ideas, just when I was trying to convince myself that things could get better. All of the posts about how it will be handled in school are, I am sure correct. RE studies must be in accordance with the Nat. Curriculum and will be handled sensitively. It is always good to have people in to talk to the children, it provides a link with the outside world. If you withdraw your child from a lesson/day, then you are giving the message to your children that there is something bad/wrong about that lesson. So instead of promoting the idea that religions are interesting and help you to understand people of faith, you are promoting the idea that Islam is bad and something to be feared. My SIL is Muslim and his sisters have all been educated (university), they all have very good jobs, have been offered arranged marriages (but declined them) and are lovely people. (as is he!) Incidentally, at my daughter's Muslim wedding, the Imam wore his robes and a pair of trainers!

I write as an ex-christian, now a happy atheist, finally triggered by my US sister's extremist Christian views which I regard as arrogant and contemptible. I wish we could have a similar focus on secularism and atheism in schools, also on the godslot each morning on the Today Programme on Radio 4. The views of the Sikh and Hindu speakers always seem to be the most interesting. I'm sure many schools welcome talks from those of non Christian faiths, which I'm not against. I would, however, wish to ask the imam when did he last invite a Christian priest or a rabbi to give their views in a Muslim school? If he could not give a positive response I suggest that he too should be giving further thought to that possibility.

I would be against faith schools, but as many posters have said, it is important too know about diverse religions and understand them.

As one poster suggested it would be a good idea if parents or grandparents were invited to attend. When I eventually persuaded my daughter's catholic school to have the drug squad in to talk to 16 year olds, us parents were invited too. The girls were given the chance to talk to the police alone, as were us parents. Very sensible and informative.

Personally I would be more worried about a catholic priest talking to them!!
That is quite prejudiced if you mean what I think you mean; it is not just Catholics who have been in the news and there are good and bad eggs in all religions.

DGC goes to a Catholic school

If the children are kept away for the day they will find out all about it the next day in the playground!

So if there such concerns about RC priests abusing children we should keep children away from nurseries and schools , there has been abuse in these too.

It was just a light-hearted remark - hence the exclamation mark!

I agree, learning about different religions can only be a good thing. I have had a chance to visit the local mosque to do with some work I am involved in.
The imam was delightful, and so welcoming, and gave us chance to see the whole of the mosque, including prayers, and talking to the children, who were delightful and happy.
He and I talked a bit about Muslim extremism, and he looked upset as he assured me that extremists either didn't attend a normal, moderate mosque or didn't attend a mosque at all, and were mostly brought to extremism on-line. He blessed us as we left.
I meet muslims on my nights out when I'm 'on duty' with my voluntary work, they're mostly keen to talk to us about Islam, football, schools( Muslim or not), anything.
We have a group of Muslim lads in our town who serve the homeless home made curries one night week to anyone who needs it.
I met a muslim women in full veil in the lift in Marks and Spencer who was loaded with shopping, and we had a brief chat. It was Ramadan, so I asked her if it was tiring do all her shopping when she was hungry and thirsty. She told me no, she was on her period, so she didn't have to fast and she was getting on with shopping for her kids." How lucky is that? " she laughed as she left. I've never had an open conversation in a chance encounter like that before!
Just lastly, the vicar at my church preached a sermon on Sunday, espousing that the world was black and white, no havering, it was either heaven or hell. He also to my great alarmed spoke about the creation story as true and didn't believe that evolution should be taught in our local primary school of which he is chair of governors'.
It has upset me so much I can hardly talk to him now, although I am a Christian and have regarded him as a friend. So who would you like to have your grandchildren spoken to? Vicar or imam? I'm not in any doubt now. I'm not thinking of converting, but following a kinder Christianity, that builds bridges, looks outwards, lives with disagreements and walks together with all people of good will.

I think I should go to a different church anxiousgran - this guy sounds a bot like Trump.

'There are no muslims in the school'
This is why it is even more important for the children to meet and question a real live practising muslim.
It's more important for schools in white ghettos, like the one I grew up in, to have books and teaching materials that are not just a mirror of their own lives. Mixed urban schools are full of such materials but it's much more difficult to place them in the white areas. I know, I used to do mail-order for a multi-cultural wholesaler.

What a shame the children will miss out. I thought it was part of the curriculum to learn about other religions. It certainly was when my children were at school. I work (in an infant school) with a muslim lady and the children from that school always have a visit to a mosque as part of their learning. They also visit our local Catholic Cathedral and a synagogue. They always have a really interesting time. I hate to say it, but your son and DIL are being very intolerant.

Ooooooh radicalnan "imaginary friends" - music to my ears.

What would happen to these children if they had a Muslim teacher, perhaps a female one who wore a hijab? Would the parents withdraw them from school on the pretext that she or he might inadvertently mention their religion to the children?

I once had a Muslim student doing a TP with my class. His name was actually Hussain and this was at the time of the gulf war. During discussion in tne staff room he revealed he was accepting an arranged marriage and he explained to us his reasoning.

Live and let live. Vive la difference!

We had a muslim engineer in our dept he was going home to pick a wife, the other engineers had great fun helping him pick from the photos. When he came back he still wasn't married as he didnt like any of them.