I wonder if the Kitchener school board realizes that it will be likely unable to refuse requests to distribute the Koran or Book of Mormon?
Once the State allows missionaries of one faith in school there isn't a constitutional way to discriminate between faiths. I suspect the school board didn't focus on that.
Now, I am fine with faith (and anti-faith) books being made available free -- the more the merrier -- I got a free Bible and Book of Mormon in Grade 5 and the effect was nil:
Charles Lewis, National Post
Tuesday, Nov. 30, 2010
A vote to allow the distribution of Bibles in classrooms in an Ontario community has created an intense divide between those who insist religion has been pushed too far outside the mainstream of society and those who believe proselytizing in any form should never be allowed in a public school system.
"Doing the distribution of the Bibles is causing division in our community and making many of our teachers uncomfortable," said Rick Pryce, a Lutheran minister. "This is an issue of justice and it is wrong to divide people along religious lines."
On Monday, school board that encompasses Kitchener and the surrounding environs voted to let Gideons International to distribute Bibles to Grade 5 students. The schools give permission slips to the students who in turn must get their parents approval to obtain a Bible. The Bibles are then handed out to students in the classroom, though religion is not taught in the schools.
9 comments:
In the classroom, I have no problem with the discussion of religion in any grade. Indeed, in grade-two, the traditions and celebrations unit in Social Studies involves a discussion of different religions. In the other grades, a class can discuss the religious significance of different holidays including Christmas and Easter. One of the best explanation I heard of the significance of Easter was given by a teacher to a group of mostly Jewish students at a public school in the Toronto area. The teacher was also Jewish.
In some schools prayer rooms are provided for devout Muslim students so that they may pray. On Fridays, at least one school in my board provides the gym at lunch time for prayers. Otherwise, the students would not be attending school that day.
Yes, Christian students do get the most accommodation as the school year is set up for the Christian calendar. Many schools do have Christian clubs at the high school level.
I do have a problem as a classroom teacher handing out Bibles or Korans--not because I believe in the separation of church/religion and state, but because as a teacher and with the school I help decide which resources to use for students to learn the curriculum. I don't see the benefit of students using these religious texts in the classroom to learn the curriculum. I also do not hand out free coupons for fast food restaurants. I don't even hand out Scholastic order forms. I will leave these items at the door for students to choose to pick up.
The office can take care of the distribution of Bibles (and Korans). As a teacher, I do not distribute these texts.
I agree with the above comment---for those parents who aprove their kids pick up the free bible from school(or any other free books/pamphets/literature)---they can do so from the library or some such place---instead of teachers handing them out.---otherwise there isn't much of a problem here.......?
Would publicly funded Catholic schools be required to do the same?
I think the "discrimination" argument presupposes the s. 2 argument. Hopefully the CCLA takes a run at this outrage. Religion has absolutely no business in the classroom for kids that age. Its probably ok to study religion in a factual, neutral way to older kids provided that ALL forms of religion and spirituality get a fair shake (that means no making fun of Wiccans and Scientologists) and non-belief is presented as an equally valid view.
But I was tormented and confused as kid from a non-religious family by attempts to push religion at an early age from being forced to say the Lords Prayer in Grade 3 (POST-Zylberberg regretably) to receiving a copy of the Gideons new testmanent in Grade 6. I wouldnt wish that on any other kids. There is no good reason for this. If parents want their kids to read the bible they can get a hold of Gideons and get their own copy.
Religion should be kept out of public schools period. It is the parents duty to see to it their children have religious lessons out side of the school setting. This religious thing is getting to be rediculous in North America. Are we heading back to the dark ages?
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