MUSLIM SCHOOLS SINGLED OUT ON CITIZENSHIP CLASSES
(17 January 2005)

Pupils' political and social apathy poses risk to long-term cohesion of local communities, the Chief Inspector of Schools warned today. He went on to call for more to me done to improve the quality of citizenship teaching in schools and aid pupils' understanding of what it is to be British. Delivering his speech to the Hansard Society, at the beginning of what is widely predicted to be a general election year, Mr Bell said it is disappointing that in the two years since citizenship education became a statutory requirement in schools, 25 per cent of classes were still unsatisfactory. New Ofsted evidence also shows that citizenship is the worst taught subject in secondary schools.

Some schools made a very late start introducing the subject; in others, key management decisions were based on misunderstanding or scepticism. Unsatisfactory teaching of the subject is most often found where it is provided through other subjects rather than distinctively. Mr Bell said: "The high level of unsatisfactory teaching of citizenship is unacceptable when one considers the important role this subject has to play in providing an opportunity to discuss the public dimension of pupils' development, including their rights and responsibilities. The government and school managers must take urgent action to address this."

Good quality citizenship teaching is vital in a society where pupils know little and increasingly care less about political issues, Mr Bell argued.

Ofsted conducted an ICM poll of teachers and pupils aged 14-16, who are currently studying citizenship as part of the National Curriculum, to coincide with the speech. Only one in four pupils could identify the correct balance of power in the House of Commons, yet 45 per cent said they did not think it is important for them to know more about what the political parties stand for. Prime Minister Tony Blair was correctly identified by 95 per cent of the pupils, but only 16 per cent recognised Michael Howard and 10 per cent recognised Charles Kennedy.

One of the most ambitious aspects of citizenship education requires pupils to understand and respect the diversity of national, regional, religious and ethnic identities in the United Kingdom. At the heart of this is the issue of national identity.

Mr Bell said: "Britain's diversity has the potential to be one of its greatest strengths, but we should also cherish what we hold in common. Citizenship education has an important role to play in developing respect for diverse identities while identifying shared goals and interests."

Ofsted's poll showed that 64 per cent of pupils (and 81 per cent of teachers) identified as 'British', while one in three pupils identified as 'English'. Only 2 per cent of pupils and 3 per cent of teachers identified as 'European'. Those surveyed were also asked about symbols, with the majority identifying the Union Jack and fish and chips as the symbol and food that they most associate with being British. Curry and jellied eels won only one per cent of the vote each.

Overall 70 per cent of pupils and teachers thought pupils should learn more about Britain's cultural diversity, with even higher support among younger teachers. 40 per cent of pupils in the north were opposed.

Ofsted has identified a significant growth in the number of independent faith schools. There are now around 250 such schools, with around 100 Muslim schools educating around 14,000 pupils and more than 50 Jewish schools educating around 9,500 pupils. There are also more than 100 evangelical Christian schools.

Mr Bell said: "Parents should be able to choose how their children are educated and should be able to pay to do so. That is the mark of a free and open society. But faith should not be blind. I worry that many young people are being educated in faith, with little appreciation of their wider responsibilities and obligations to British society.

"This growth needs to be carefully but sensitively monitored by government to ensure that pupils at all schools receive an understanding of not only their own faith but other faiths and the wider tenets of British society. We must not allow recognition of diversity to become apathy in the face of any challenge to our coherence as a nation. We must be intolerant of intolerance."

It was reported in the Daily Telegraph newspaper, that he went on to add that "many of the new faith schools were being opened by a younger generation of British Muslims who recognised that traditional Islamic education did not entirely fit pupils for life in modern Britain. But a significant proportion of others had been told that they did not meet the conditions for being registered as schools.

Ofsted said that 175 private faith and special schools, of which 29 per cent were Muslim, had been told that they must improve their curriculum to qualify or continue to qualify for registration. Independent schools do not have to follow the national curriculum but they must show that they provide for "the spiritual, moral, social and cultural development" of pupils.

MCB DEFENDS MUSLIM FAITH SCHOOLS

The Muslim Council of Britain Secretary General Iqbal Sacranie noted that "the issue of community cohesion and coherence is of paramount importance for the whole nation but we consider it highly irresponsible to suggest that the growth of Muslim faith schools poses a threat to 'our coherence as a nation'. The issue around schools not adequately fulfilling their responsibilty in preparing children for 'their wider responsibility and obligations' is a generic issue affecting all poorly resourced schools.

That is why the Muslim Council of Britain has consistently argued for an increase in state funded Muslim schools to respond to the wishes of Muslim parents. At present there are over 100 Muslim schools, but only five of them receive state-funding. With only 3% of Muslim children attending Muslim faith schools, it is astonishing that they have been singled out in this way, especially when considering the fact that state-funded Muslim schools and many independents are now outperforming the state sector".

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