Church Leaders Fear School Move

Bit of an old story (4 months) here, but still relevant.

Religious Education in NI Schools in the 20th Century

Henry Cooke's opposition to the interference of the State in the independence of the Presbyterian Church in adminstering its schools in the early 19th Century is "relatively well-known" due to the information contained in his biography, but what is less well-known is the subsequent battle for religious education in NI schools thereafter.

The influence of the secularists was so strong that the Education Act (NI) 1923 "stated that schools were to provide ‘an education both literary and moral, based upon instruction in the reading and writing of the English language and in arithmetic.’ Religious instruction was no longer to be part of the required curriculum except where it might impinge through ‘moral education’. Under clause 28 such instruction was forbidden in elementary schools, and under clause 26, local education authorities were not permitted to provide religious instruction in schools under their control. Under clause 66 the education authority was not entitled to take into account a teacher’s religion when an appointment was being made. Lord Londonderry, who was opposed to the segregation of children according to religious belief, did not think it was the state’s role to assume responsibility to impart Christian beliefs. He argued that the state’s role should be a neutral one in this area."

By this act, the Churches also lost effectual control of their schools.

Opposition was strong and concessions were made in 1925 and 1930 to amend the Act. The 1925 amendment included morality alongside literacy as an aim of the educational system and allowed for schools to provide "simple bible instruction," but insisted that the local education authorities could not provide and pay for religious instruction.

The 1930 amendment "allowed the Protestant clergy to maintain a share in the control of the local elementary schools although these were ostensibly under local civic control. [It also provided that] the Ministry would pay one half of the costs of building and equipping new voluntary schools. It also obliged teachers to give simple bible instruction, and removed the prohibition on inquiring into a teaching candidate’s religious background."

Further information may be obtained here.

N. Ireland 3rd in World in Reading and Science

A recent BBC News article has stated that the U.K. has dropped down the PISA/OECD league table in reading, but this is very misleading. N. Ireland came 3rd after South Korea and Finland. N. Ireland also came 3rd in science after Finland and Japan. (However, Scotland beat us in Maths, and I'm not sure where we came in that table.) Sounds like a good time to do away with the "backward" educational system of NI, which still has 11-plus's and state-funded grammar schools.

The Republic of Ireland came 7th in reading (if NI is included). Most of the English-speaking countries were in the top-ten for reading, apart from England and the U.S. (It is unclear where Scotland and Wales came.) See the following URLs:

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/education/4075903.stm
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/education/7115692.stm

Catechising Young Children

My wife was just telling me at supper about walking down with the kids to the McDonnell's (another home-schooling family in our estate). My 6-year old son, Peter said to her out of the blue, "Mommy, God made me and everything. God made the world to glorify him. God is an invisible being who does not have a body like us." (My boys currently have a fascination with metaphysics.)

This is part of the joy of a fully-integrated Christian education. (But then it's nothing new. It's what my Mum and Dad got in their country church schools. By the way, the parents of a friend of mine thought they still taught the Shorter Catechism at primary school. Sadly not!)

Our children are learning "The Child's Catechism", which the RPCI uses in its Sabbath school programme and which is produced by the PCI. This provides a good grounding in basic Bible history (Q 1. Who was the first man? A. Adam), but it isn't until after 129 questions that it gets around to doctrine. So in parallel we initially used the excellent "Catechism for Young Children: An Introduction to the Shorter Catechism" produced by the PCA (original edition), but we have now swapped to Carine MacKenzie's "My First Book of Questions and Answers". This is an expansion of and improvement on the PCA's catechism.

May I heartily recommend it to you along with all that Carine MacKenzie has produced for CFP. We have used a lot of her materials in family worship. There are other "My First Book of..." books.

By the way, I'm glad that CFP don't have pictures of Christ, as far as I know.

Faith Schools Petition

The following is a petition being presented to the Prime Minister:

We the undersigned petition the Prime Minister to continue the support for faith schools and to ensure that in all schools the teaching of traditional ‘faith’ views of origins is included alongside the more recent scientific ‘theories’ which many scientists ‘believe’.

Faith schools help to ensure that children develop mentally, physically, emotionally, spiritually and morally. As such faith schools ensure children are well placed to choose their own religious, philosophical and ethical beliefs. Schools should be places where children are given a full education, not centres where the spiritual and moral is excluded. Evolution and other scientific theories should not be taught as fact but instead along side other ‘faith’ views of origins. Supporting faith schools will provide children with a fuller education, parents with the choice of such for their children and help to promote a fully multi-cultural and peaceful society.

Access the petition here, although I have a real issue with the way that Islam and Romanism is lumped with Protestant institutions and supported by the state, but such is the way it is stated. Better to support our brethren than not.

The Main Reason We Home-school

This post is to help people understand why we have chosen to do what we do, and stimulate some thought on these issues.

Lest some take offence, let me make it clear that we are not saying that those who send their children to state schools in N.I. are sinning, nor are we judging and condemning those who do, nor are we saying that those who do are bad parents, nor are we saying that we or our children are superior, nor are we attacking the good work that Christian teachers do.

As parents we must ask ourselves, how can we best obey the following verses? We believe the answer is consistently Christian home-schooling. Nevertheless, "Let each be fully convinced in his own mind." (Romans 14:5)

1. Our children's training must come from Christ
"...bring [your children] up in the training and admonition of the Lord."
Ephesians 6:4

2. Their whole day should be pervaded by the Word of God:
"You shall teach [God's words] to your children, speaking of them when you sit in your house, when you walk by the way, when you lie down, and when you rise up."
Deuteronomy 11:19

3. Is it right that God-given chastisement is not available for most of the day?
"Foolishness is bound up in the heart of a child; the rod of correction will drive it far from him... Do not withhold correction from a child..."
Proverbs 22:15; 23:13

4. How can we best prepare our arrows for shooting into the World?
"Like arrows in the hand of a warrior, so are the children of one’s youth."
Psalm 127:4

5. We must be careful what company our children come into and who teaches them
"Do not be deceived: 'Bad company corrupts good morals.'"
1 Corinthians 15:33

6. As Exclusive-Psalmists we believe that it is detrimental to encouraging our children to adopt this practice, or to tempt them to go against their consciences, by sending them to a school to sing man-made hymns every day. (No wonder so many RP children turn away from this position.) At home, Psalm-singing can be part of their schooling.
"Lead us not into temptation."
Matthew 6:13

"But beware lest somehow this liberty of yours become a stumbling block to those who are weak. For if anyone sees you who have knowledge eating in an idol’s temple, will not the conscience of him who is weak be emboldened to eat those things offered to idols? And because of your knowledge shall the weak brother perish, for whom Christ died? But when you thus sin against the brethren, and wound their weak conscience, you sin against Christ. Therefore, if food makes my brother stumble, I will never again eat meat, lest I make my brother stumble."
1 Corinthians 8:9-13

7. All things should be done for the maximum glory of God, including the education our children receive
"Therefore, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God."
1 Corinthians 10:31

8. Christ must be King over education as well as every other sphere of life
"...that in all things He may have the pre-eminence."
Colossians 1:18

Christian home-schooling is not something to be adopted lightly, but I doubt that anyone would, esp. with the responsibility and the pressure to conform. We respect those who either do not have the finance or the confidence to seek after this ideal, and those who take a different opinion for good reasons. We also don't want false guilt to be created in the hearts of those who have looked at the options and decided differently to us. Examine your own heart and circumstances before God, not by what others do.

Good Christian parents of course still do supplement the 'neutral' teaching of schools with a Christian education at home. We are just trying to take what we see as a more consistent approach as much as possible.
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A Quick Thought on Home-schooling

Q. What is the purpose of sending one's children to school/ home-school?
A. To be educated about God's world and equipped with knowledge to live as an adult.

The answer is not "to be missionaries". That is not the purpose of education.

How many times I have heard people say, "I'm sending my children to be salt and light!" Are they salt and light in the first place, or could some of the influences they get have the opposite effect? I've seen the tragic situation of someone asking why his children have gone off the rails. If he knew how some of their teachers were influencing them, then he wouldn't ask. (I knew as I was at school with them.) If you send your children to school, be vigilant about what influences they are getting.

Please note that I am not despising the good work and witness that many Christian teachers have within the state sector. In fact, I say, "Keep up the good work!" Nor am I saying that those who send their children to state schools are bad parents.

I am also not saying that home-schooling will save your children. Of course not! I've seen a person from a home-schooling background who doesn't appear to be Christian as well. I believe that the worldly influence of the home-schooling parents had a lot to do with it (as well as too quick an acceptance of a confession of faith without questioning inconsistent behaviour afterwards).

Home-schooling parents (and all parents) need to think about the influence that they have on their children.

Do not be deceived. Bad company corrupts good morals. Do you know enough about the company your children are keeping, including teachers?

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Irish Constitution Protects Home-schooling

By the way, while we're still on home-schooling, the Republic of Ireland's Constitution states the following...

Education

Article 42

1. The State acknowledges that the primary and natural educator of the child is the Family and guarantees to respect the inalienable right and duty of parents to provide, according to their means, for the religious and moral, intellectual, physical and social education of their children.

2. Parents shall be free to provide this education in their homes or in private schools or in schools recognised or established by the State.

3. 1° The State shall not oblige parents in violation of their conscience and lawful preference to send their children to schools established by the State, or to any particular type of school designated by the State.

2° The State shall, however, as guardian of the common good, require in view of actual conditions that the children receive a certain minimum education, moral, intellectual and social.

However, please note this recent attack in 1999 on home-schooling that was lessened through help from the American HSLDA. It would be interesting to know what eventually got passed. it sounds like they require registration, which is less free than the U.K. (except for liberal Scotland).

Here is another great section in the Irish Constitution:

The Family

Article 41

1. 1° The State recognises the Family as the natural primary and fundamental unit group of Society, and as a moral institution possessing inalienable and imprescriptible rights, antecedent and superior to all positive law.

2° The State, therefore, guarantees to protect the Family in its constitution and authority, as the necessary basis of social order and as indispensable to the welfare of the Nation and the State.

2. 1° In particular, the State recognises that by her life within the home, woman gives to the State a support without which the common good cannot be achieved.

2° The State shall, therefore, endeavour to ensure that mothers shall not be obliged by economic necessity to engage in labour to the neglect of their duties in the home.

3. 1° The State pledges itself to guard with special care the institution of Marriage, on which the Family is founded, and to protect it against attack.

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New Scientist Doesn’t like Home-schooling

See this article on the Answers in Genesis website about subversive types like yours truly. The evolutionists are getting scared about their monopoly being taken away. After all, as has been confessed by the liberals who organised it in the U.S., the point of the state system was to eject Christianity from schools and stop its influence upon the next generation, so that they could transform society into a wonderful, atheist/humanist utopia. Isn't the world a better place for it?