religious education/religious indoctrination

[wizard69]

how should children be taught about religion in schools?when my son (who is now home educated) used to come home from school after religious education he would be confused.have we evolved or were we created? If we were created then who created us...allah/jesus/bramah? Which "holy" book has any truth in it? etc.Why arn't alternative belief systems taught (wicca, atheism, scientology, etc).When I was at school we had to sing hyms and say prayers in assembly.As a lifelong agnostic this has always been a bone of contention with me.Any thoughts guys?

[garythecat]

I believe that as our country has such a mixture of different cultures and religions nowadays it would be wrong NOT to teach our children about the beliefs and customs of others. My son is 9 and in his last school report he was praised for "appreciating, accepting and showing an understanding of the differing beliefs of others" and I would like to think that he will continue to accept others as he gets older. I think it is important that we tolerate other beliefs and cultures if we are ever to enjoy peace and harmony in our communities (there I go hoping for miracles again!!). I think that alternative beliefs should also be taught to our children for the same reasons.

[cameo]

When my children first started school this was a concern for me.
As a non-believer i was worried about what my children were taught.
i was bought up to believe in god but as i got older i made my own decision on what to believe.
i have taught my children that it is good to learn about religions and different belief systems because it teaches them about the world in what we live.
We have close family friends who are deeply religious and my children understand that it is a personal choice on whether to believe or not, and what ever your choice it
does not make you a better or worse person.
It is how you treat people that counts and excepting that different people have different beliefs is all part of this.