Things that piss you off Page 1,342

Quote: Tursiops @ 18th December 2013, 12:14 AM GMT

Outside of a faith school does anyone actually take RE to GCSE level? That sure as hell never happened at my old comprehensive.

EDIT: actually that might not be true; Cliff Richard went to my old school and he ended up living with his old RE teacher.

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Yup so I could get an extra GCSE a year early and then did it at A level, well I swopped it for communications.

Interesting stuff, but about as indoctrinating as the weather forecast.

Quote: Harridan @ 18th December 2013, 12:17 AM GMT

Sorry, missed the question. I don't think that hijabs or turbans should be banned, I think you should be able to cover your hair if you want to. I think that niqabs or other religious face coverings are also fine, but I think that people's right to wear them is less important than the requirement to ensure somebody's identity in certain situations.

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So I can cover my appearance completely, I just shouldnt discuss the reason in school.

Opressive manifestations of religion are great, but learning about them isn't.

And where do you stand on ritual slaughter.

I had to take RE at GCSE. I also had to go to chapel twice a week, but it was a CofE school. Not a faith school, though, and the couple of muslim and jewish kids also had to go to chapel.

Quote: sootyj @ 18th December 2013, 12:19 AM GMT

Yup so I could get an extra GCSE a year early and then did it at A level, well I swopped it for communications.

Interesting stuff, but about as indoctrinating as the weather forecast.

So I can cover my appearance completely, I just shouldnt discuss the reason in school.

Opressive manifestations of religion are great, but learning about them isn't.

And where do you stand on ritual slaughter.

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I didn't say that at all. You can talk about religion without teaching it. You can even teach comparative religion without teaching people to believe in a religion.

I think my school must have only had one kid whose family identified as specifically non Christian, as she had to walk out of assembly at a certain point every morning before they did some kind of prayery bit I don't remember doing. I must have tuned out.
But I remember the poor girl having to leave. All a bit weird.

Thats the kind of thing I can't get into, enforced religion is just without value or point.
And the sooner its taken back out of schools the better.

Quote: Harridan @ 18th December 2013, 12:11 AM GMT

Yeah, making children perform in and watch the story of how baby Jesus was born every year won't affect them at all...

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It is just a tradition. A bit like the Great Escape being on telly every Christmas.

Evolution is barely taught at GCSE level.

Sadly I never got to do biology at school, it clashed with history (where incidentally I learnt quite a lot about the downside of religion). But since David Attenborough gets rather more air time than the entire CofE I have never really felt the loss.

I'm totally fine with doing away with Santa and the tooth fairy. It teaches children to believe nonsense just because your parents say it's true.

I never was encouraged to believe in Santa Claus. I feel rather that I missed out. There should be some magic to childhood.

Quote: zooo @ 18th December 2013, 12:21 AM GMT

I think my school must have only had one kid whose family identified as non Christian, as she had to walk out of assembly at a certain point every morning before they did some kind of prayery bit I don't remember doing. I must have tuned out.
But I remember the poor girl having to leave. All a bit weird.

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I liked getting out of assembly as I hated sitting cross legged.

But the Jehovahs Witnesses we had to share our none assembly room with, were all knobbers.

I'm an atheist but I loved doing the nativity. I don't think of it as being religious, just acting out a fun story from a book. Which is what it is.

Quote: Harridan @ 18th December 2013, 12:21 AM GMT

I didn't say that at all. You can talk about religion without teaching it. You can even teach comparative religion without teaching people to believe in a religion.

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So if someone comes from a home that teaches religion as a form of opression and indoctrination, to the extent of expecting them to hide their appearance.

Thats fine, becausethat's what they do at home.

It's their culture is about the most insidious form of racism or I suppose culturalism.

Quote: zooo @ 18th December 2013, 12:21 AM GMT

I think my school must have only had one kid whose family identified as specifically non Christian, as she had to walk out of assembly at a certain point every morning before they did some kind of prayery bit I don't remember doing. I must have tuned out.
But I remember the poor girl having to leave. All a bit weird.

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At my primary school we had a Jewish kid who would do that. I rather envied him.

Quote: zooo @ 18th December 2013, 12:24 AM GMT

I'm an atheist but I loved doing the nativity. I don't think of it as being religious, just acting out a fun story from a book. Which is what it is.

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But without religion whats to stop being any book.

How about if it was Mein Kampf or 50 shades of grey.

Quote: sootyj @ 18th December 2013, 12:25 AM GMT

So if someone comes from a home that teaches religion as a form of opression and indoctrination, to the extent of expecting them to hide their appearance.

Thats fine, becausethat's what they do at home.

It's their culture is about the most insidious form of racism or I suppose culturalism.

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Nope, didn't say that. I said if someone wants to wear a burka they shouldn't be banned from wearing one. Not that if someone wants to make someone else wear one, or make someone else feel they have to, but if someone really wants to cover themselves they should be allowed to.

I just had a sudden memory of the broom cupboard with Phillip Schofield. He used to say goodbye to Scottish viewers and then English kids got an extra 10 minutes.
Which is kind of a metaphor for Christian school assemblies.

Or just proof that I'm really old and remember the broom cupboard.

I remember the broom cupboard too!

Quote: sootyj @ 18th December 2013, 12:26 AM GMT

But without religion whats to stop being any book.

How about if it was Mein Kampf or 50 shades of grey.

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We also did Hansel and Gretel and other fairytales, when the teachers got bored of donkeys and bloody innkeepers.

So religious trappings are ok but just not religious teachings or ideas.