Religion and education

Secularists are concerned with the question of the place of religion in public life. Nowhere is this more contentious than in publicly funded education, where there has been growing controversy surrounding the place of religion in schools.

Topics at the heart of public debate include:
1. The presence and wearing of religious symbols in schools
2. The teaching of religious dogmas sometimes described as “facts” (including the teaching of creationism)
3. The degree of involvement of religious groups in the running of schools
4. Compulsory worship 

Issues

Religious schools
State funded religious schools make up a significant proportion of the education systems in many European countries. More

Cohesion
As well as educating pupils, schools mould future citizens so will be a special concern of the nation state. More

Religious education
It is particularly disturbing that confessional (indoctrinating) religious education classes form a compulsory component in publicly-funded schools in some EU Member States. More

Worship in schools
In the UK, the law stipulates that all publicly funded schools must provide acts of worship for their pupils. More

Sex and relationships education
Legislators are too often willing to sacrifice the health and well-being of children in the face of pressure from religious lobbyists. More

Creationism
Secularists are concerned that some religious groups are trying to introduce creationism into the science classroom. More

Religious symbols
A legal case about crucifixes in Italian schools is under appeal at the European Court of Human Rights. More

Situation in European Countries

Situations across Europe are diverse and complex. There are, for example, a variety of approaches to the teaching of religion. A report by NEF Initiative on Religion and Democracy in Europe called Teaching about Religions in European School Systems: Policy issues and trends found that these approaches to RE broadly fit into one of four categories:

1. Confessional – compulsory, with limited opt-outs (as in Romania)
2. Confessional – optional (as in Spain, the Czech Republic, the Netherlands and some UK schools)
3. Non-confessional RE (most prominent in Sweden and some UK schools)
4. Teaching of religious facts (fait religieux) integrated into relevant subjects (France)

In a number of European countries but most notably in Spain, Sweden, the UK and the Netherlands, publicly funded but religiously controlled schools have been criticised for practising hidden forms of selection, creating segregation within the education system[1].

In Ireland, plans are being drawn up by the Department of Education for the state to take control of a significant number of Catholic run primary schools.

Conclusion

European society is growing more diverse and becoming increasingly secular, but the public education offering in many member states simply fails to reflect this. The historic prevalence throughout Europe of religious involvement in education is problematic. However, the problem is being exacerbated by an increasing number of State-funded but religiously controlled schools being opened.

As Europe becomes more diverse, students should be educated in an informative and secular (i.e. neutral) environment; one that develops the relevant skills of analysis and judgement in order for young people to make a fully-informed choice about the value system by which they choose to live.

Religion’s assumed right to access impressionable children must be challenged. Most parents don’t send their children to schools to be inducted into a particular religion; they send them there for a good education. Publicly-funded education in particular needs to be secular in order to be fair to everyone.

For more information on European educational systems visit Eurydice, an information network on education in Europe set up by the European Commission and EU member states in 1980.

This page was prepared in August 2010 by the National Secular Society in London www.secularism.org.uk. Queries can be addressed to enquiries@secularism.org.uk

Disclaimer: the views expressed in the different articles of this website are those of the authors and do not necessarily represent the official position of the EPPSP or of its members.