Are Faith-based Schools Divisive, Discriminatory and Dangerous?

A generous funding arrangement both state and federal, implemented under the Howard government in Australia has seen a growth in independent faith based schools, a rise that is nothing short of revolutionary.

However it is not exemplary academic records that are luring parents to enrol, it is strong religious values and low fees that are the key draw cards. But are these schools beneficial to society as a whole or are they serving a small minority whilst eroding social cohesion, and are the rest of us paying for it?

The devout claim that parents have a right to have their children educated in a manner that integrates their faith and spiritual development. Whilst I respect the right and freedom of belief and the right and freedom of education it has never been the responsibility of publicly funded schools to instil religious faith and nor should it ever be. What you teach your children in your home is your business. Australia is a secular society and as such public funds should support secular education. Surely the responsibility of publicly funded schools is to do what they do best – improve teaching and learning for all students.

Because religious schools tend to draw students from singular ethnic communities almost entirely, they are in fact contributing to religious-racial segregation. This is not good preparation for life in a wider multi-cultural society. It enhances social exclusion, fragmentation and disrupts social cohesion.

In addition to funding from a secular-based taxation system for faith-based schools that fragment communities, the curriculum in these schools is also under scrutinised. What are students being taught and who are the educators employed to teach them?

Independent schools have been granted exemption from the state curriculum. Under Victorian law, it is not compulsory for private schools to teach evolution, though it is recommended and asks schools to teach it and explain the link between natural selection and evolution. However, as it is not compulsory for independent schools to teach this, it is widely accepted that creationism is taught in science classes.

The Accelerated Christian Education (or ACE) curriculum shows that in a primary school science class a statement such as: "God made many kinds of fish. He made them on day five.” is commonplace, with a comprehension test going along with the statement asking the children on which day God made fish.
Often evolution is not taught until senior high school years. It is obvious that the delay creates an illusion of choice of belief on behalf of the individual when in almost every instance children’s beliefs are long formed by this age. This has serious implications for further study. Increasing numbers of students are entering tertiary biology classes with creationist viewpoints that are irreconcilable.

One alternative to creationism and evolution that has also crept into the teachings at independent schools is Intelligent Design. This is also taught in science class. It boggles the mind. Intelligent Design is not based on facts and does not use any scientific reasoning. Intelligent Design is creationism relabelled. It has no place in a science classroom.

The scientific method is a set of techniques for the investigation and acquisition of new knowledge of the natural world. Therefore to qualify, a scientific a theory must be:

Consistent
Parsimonious
Useful (describes and explains observed phenomena, and can be used predictively)
Empirically testable and falsifiable
Based on multiple observations, often in the form of controlled, repeated experiments
Correctable and dynamic (modified in the light of observations that do not support it)
Progressive (refines previous theories)
Provisional or tentative (is open to experimental checking, and does not assert certainty)

Intelligent Design is at best anti-science and at worst blatant scientific fraud. Creationism in any form is just bad science. If religion and its theory of creationism has a place then surely it is in religious and philosophy classes, the home and in church, but never in a science class.

Moving on from unethical science education lets explore what is being taught in regards to sex education and homosexuality. What is being taught, and its broader effect on society, has been largely ignored. Government schools should be and are expected to deal with issues of safe sex, same-sex attraction, sexual harassment, homophobia and discrimination.

In direct conflict with government efforts to provide valuable and appropriate sex education to students, abstinence is instilled. Accompanied by a discriminatory assertion that sexual attraction should be expressed within the context of a monogamous, heterosexual marriage.

How is disparity in teaching even possible? Independent faith based schools are exempt from anti-discrimination laws. The exemption includes laws governing anti-discrimination pertaining to gender, religion and sexual orientation. So in addition to scientific fraud and an irresponsible sex education devoid of anything useful these schools can pay women less than men for doing the same teaching duties, expel homosexual students, sack teachers found to have different religious beliefs or those admitting to be homosexual themselves.

This at first glance appears undemocratic and on further investigation downright illegal. With increasing numbers of students being taught at these schools it will only take a generation for the equality gained by women, lesbians and homosexual men to unravel. This poses a serious threat to society as a whole.

Education must be a place where ideas are explored. Not where belief systems are indoctrinated. How will these students cope at university, in the job market and wider social environments where they will face, often for the first time, pluralism in religion, culture, ethnicity and sexual preference?

Our environment is at crisis point. Oil is running out. Drought is devastating agriculture. More and more people are starving in the world. The next few decades are crucial. We need critically thinking children who use evidence based reasoning to solve these problems, not faith based decisions. To suggest as some faith based schools do, that pollution is an effect of sin will do little to counteract it and its effect on our environment and health. What it will do is reinforce prejudice and intolerance.

Stephen O’Doherty, CEO Christian Schools Australia claims “Addressing inequality is about looking to the needs of the whole child and their social context. This commitment goes to the core mission of Christian schooling.”

This directly contradicts the anti-science teachings, discriminatory practices and irresponsible sex education. It is clear that the autonomy of children choosing their own beliefs and values is neither encouraged nor respected.

Independent faith based schools conflict with secular state education. A secular society and education offers children the opportunity to engage with people from diverse backgrounds where barriers to social inclusion are removed. An individual’s religious, cultural, and socio-economic circumstance does not limit their interaction. This has wider implications not just for the individual but also for society and the world as a whole.