Can you spot the contradiction in this headline?
More faith schools are planned in an effort to integrate minorities
Thousands of Muslim children will be educated in new state faith schools under radical plans to extend state education to Britain’s minority religions.
The move comes amid growing concern that a generation of British Muslim children, whose parents may speak poor English or be poorly integrated in British society, could grow up in segregated communities.
The move would give the Government greater control over Muslim schools at a time when questions are being raised about whether some are adequately preparing children for life in Britain.
It would also respond to the huge demand among Muslim parents for their children to attend madrassas and after-school Muslim education classes in mosques and to ensure that their children get a proper grounding in their faith.
Given the government’s record on dealing with British Muslims – which is, to assume that they form a monolithic community whose views can best be articulated by the most extreme, and to ignore any warning signs about the influence of hardliners – I don’t see why we should find it in any way reassuring that they plan to take greater control in their education. And I certainly don’t see why the rest of us should finance the rote learning of the Koran, never mind whatever else they might learn (see previous post).
The separation of religion from education should surely be the foundation of the school system in a modern liberal society like Britain. If people want to spend their own money on sending their children to independent religious academies, there’s little we can do about it, but the state should play no part. To plan an increase in state faith schools is to move in completely the wrong direction. I kind of hoped that with Blair gone we might see Labour distancing itself from all this, but apparently not.
Mick Hartley 
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