12Yr Old Becoming A Muslim

[fender62]

what an awful situation the father is in, and why does the school have this on their religious education curriculum, scientology anyone, it's all religious madness rammed down childrens throats in the name of diversity...i like the why i want to convert, who's bloody idea was that.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-5069919/Sunderland-stepdad-explains-Islam-
homework-complaint.html

[-Talbot-]

What about the comma?

[Mamyalynne]

It's the pupil's homework planner.

[andy-hughes]

Fender - your OP is somewhat misleading, because it infers that by simply writing a letter, this, or any other child, somehow converts to Islam, as if by some magic spell.

Encouraging young people to explore different ways of living from their own assists understanding of other cultures.

Given that it is the dreadful levels of ignorance that drive extremism in the first place, the notion of examining something and thinking about it cannot be a bad thing.

I think this parent's fear is unfounded, and his reaction is ill-judged, but that does not mean he deserves abuse from strangers because they have similarly misunderstood his motives in exactly the same way as he has misunderstood the school's approach to teaching.

Modern children are perfectly capable of assessing something from an intellectual perspective - there is no indication that writing a letter from a different viewpoint will automatically lead to a wholesale conversion to another faith.

If a child of mine brought home this assignment, I would be keen to discuss it with them from a viewpoint of curiosity for people who are different from us, not leaping to media-fed paranoia and bigotry.

That's what extremists do - who wants to have a child growing up as ignorant and fearful as them?

[DTCwordfan]

Commas are important in the Koran as they all point to Mecca.

[Prudie]

My understanding was "The homework came to light when Mr McLachlan was looking through the youngster's school planner and saw the teacher has written the task to be handed in on November 8"

[-Talbot-]

Given that it is the dreadful levels of ignorance that drive extremism in the first place, the notion of examining something and thinking about it cannot be a bad thing.



Whose extremism are you refering to, andy?

[zebo]

Are such tasks reciprocated across all schools in respect of all religions?

[-Talbot-]

No ^

[sherrardk]

I think he's making a mountain out of a molehill - it's a tiny insight into the whole RE experience and no doubt the school goes to considerable lengths to deliver a balanced RE curriculum. He's totally within his rights to express his concerns but the school has to deliver the national curriculum.

[naomi24]

//Given that it is the dreadful levels of ignorance that drive extremism in the first place//

Ignorance doesn't drive extremism. Quite the opposite. If anyone is ignorant it's the idiot who set this homework.

[Mamyalynne]

I knew as I said earlier that this wasn't new - we had a thread about this case back in February 2016, not that I can find it now.

http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/home-news/school-asks-pupils-to-write-to-their-parents-pretending-to-convert-to-islam-for-homework-a6890951.html

[vetuste_ennemi]

It's obvious what's wrong with the homework, as are the predictable excuses for it.

Klavidir's post said it all:

"... surely it would have been better to get the kids to write a letter about changing to another religion ( one different to their own) and let the children choose which- I mean what do the Muslim kids write about?"

I am willing (at no charge) to help those who don't understand the point being made here.

[Mamyalynne]

Without knowing what the context of the current segment of this term's work is it's difficult whether that would have worked, but it's a very valid point. Especially in regard to the pupils who are already of the Islamic faith.

These are all questions I as a parent would have asked if bothered as this father is.

He has every right to both input and feedback from the school.

[whiskeryron]

// is there a need to go to the papers with it? //

YES. THIN END OF WEDGE. Get this child away from that school ASAP

[Mamyalynne]

I think you'll find it's more than one school, I posted a link to another above.

I stated @ 20.22 I think this particular letter writing exercise should be dropped.

[gness]

Prudie is aghast.......I'm a bit aghast that I agree with Talbot @ 21.17 ........mine wouldn't have been allowed to complete that homework..x

[Old_Geezer]

Interesting homework. If my parents were converting to Islam I'd want to communicate using a better method than a letter in order to find out why.

[-Talbot-]

Gness, I was not saying they wouldn't be allowed, I was saying they wouldn't want to do it.

God never gets a mention in my house (Jesus f-ing christ may get a mention if I hit my thumb with a hammer or something similar) religion IMO should be a out of school hobby.

My eldest two were let of lightly but my youngest two had Islam pushed on them every year. Yes, every year in the corridors there was a display about this wonderful religion ... never anything about Judaism or Buddism or Hinduism or Christianity just Islam


Why?

[murraymints]

school is for education ... church is the place for religion... keep it out of schools , all religions !

[fiction-factory]

I'd be amazed if the teacher writes the homework into in each student's planner. I think the comma sugegsts whoever wrote down the task didn't finish it. There seems to be a site referred to to help pupils with the task.
I'd be uncomfortable setting this task. I always feel i'm treading on eggshells when doing PSHE topics on race etc