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AIBU?

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Original poster

to not want my kid to go to a mosque ...again!

425 replies

moaningminnie2 · 01/10/2014 14:46

We live in North Yorkshire and every year the village Cof E school run a whole-school trip to Bradford.First they went to a mosque, then the following year a Gurdwara and then a Hindu temple, and now this year back to a mosque again.They do that in the morning, then have lunch and a run around in a park, and then in the afternoon a quick visit to 'Bombay Stores' and then back home for school pick up. DD and her friends don't want to go ( they went in Y2) and I resent having to pay £13 for each of my 2 kids at the school.Whaty is the point of going to the same place again, and do the school get 'Brownie Points' for doing this sort of RE trip.

OP posts:
cindydog · 01/10/2014 18:21

Why does religion have to be taught at schools ? Leave it to the parents.

OwlCapone · 01/10/2014 18:26

Why does religion have to be taught at schools ? Leave it to the parents.

Probably because a large number of parents are ignorant about religions other than the one they were raised in.

Worship should have no part of state education but learning about religions is very important.

workhouse · 01/10/2014 18:27

Agreed, they need to be taught the basic facts about all religions and leave it at that.

BitterAndOnlySlightlyTwisted · 01/10/2014 18:29

I would have though that considering what's going on in the world right now, understanding what you neighbours do, think and believe is very important. I commend the school

workhouse · 01/10/2014 18:31

I thought that the view on here was that what was going on in the world is nothing to do with real Islam. they would be better off learning about politics.

Guitargirl · 01/10/2014 18:34

why does religion have to be taught at schools? Leave it to the parents

Teaching religion and teaching about religion are not the same things as has been pointed out several times on this thread already. Really, why is that so difficult to understand? I wouldn't have a clue how to teach my children about Hinduism or Buddhism for example, well apart from what I could find on Wikipedia....

paulapantsdown · 01/10/2014 18:39

Well £13 is a bit steep, that's why I'd be irritated about.
Everyone at our cofe primary can go to gudwara, mosque, synagogue and even the local Buddhist temple over the course of 4 or so years. Kids love them, the food at the gudwara was the best, but the sweets at the Buddhist temple were ace.

Unfortunately the Muslim kids and the Pentecostal Christian kids never go!

motherinferior · 01/10/2014 18:41

OK. Let's cut to the chase here - the fact is that at the moment, there's a real trend of demonising Muslims, and Asian Muslims in particular. Bradford has a very high Asian population, and also a very high Muslim population (no, not all Asian people are Muslim - my Indian family, as it happens, are Christians - and not all Muslim people are Asian, obviously, but in the overall popular view the two things are often conflated). THere is also a trend within some - not all, far from all, there is a long tradition of liberal Islam (as my half-Bengali partner frequently points out) - areas of Islam to demonise non-Muslim behaviour. People on both sides are increasingly looking at each other with fear and misunderstanding.

So going to a mosque, for this group of Christian kids, is really important. It is a way of showing them that Muslims are not all hidden behind the hijab or building bombs in their back-bedrooms. And it is also a way of demonstrating to these kids, who are being brought up in a faith school, that other people have religious faiths and follow those.

Shockers · 01/10/2014 18:41

Haven't read the whole thread so apologies if someone has already answered this point.

A CofE school will also have an RE inspection, which does look at coverage of other faiths, so you could be suspicious about point gaining, but only if you're cynical Wink.

Personally, I believe that knowledge breeds tolerance and would encourage my children to go on such trips. I would (and have) volunteer to be a parent helper on those trips too.

I agree wholeheartedly with the posters that have pointed out that a five year old's understanding is very different to that of an 8/9 year old.

motherinferior · 01/10/2014 18:49

My Bengali-looking partner always gets stopped at customs when he flies to the US, as do his brothers because guess what, they look as if they come from a community that is predominantly Muslim. I do not get stopped at customs, not least because I inherited my father's white colouring not my mother's brown skin.

Which is part of why sending them on a trip to the mosque is a rather good idea.

Maisyblue · 01/10/2014 19:07

There's wars going on all over the world.....and all in the name of religion. Perhaps kids need to be taught that fact to give them a broader understanding of religions.

Maisyblue · 01/10/2014 19:11

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nonameslefttouse · 01/10/2014 19:14

I would not want my children to visit any place of worship that treats women as second class citizens let alone pay for the privilege!

I'm certainly not a racist and believe strongly in equality over any faith until these places adopt equality between the sexes there is no reason for them to visit!

It would definitely be a duvet day in our house.

maddening · 01/10/2014 19:25

Actually if they kept going to the same museum i would be wondering "why not somewhere else?" There are so many places to go and see if they are spending the parents money and using this time out of the curriculum to take the dc out then why not somewhere else?

The op has said it is about being the same place that she holds issue and not the religion attached to the building.

maddening · 01/10/2014 19:28

How do you know clean ? Do you browse all forums - particularly those frequented by or run for the Asian communities ?

Tiptops · 01/10/2014 19:35

Nonames That is so offensive, but more importantly incorrect. Shame on you for being so ignorant. Women are given an extremely high status in Islam. Try reading the Quran instead of spouting bigoted nonsense.

Greengrow · 01/10/2014 19:35

One of my sons seems to spend a lot of time trying to ensure boys there give up any religion. He was debating today with one boy who believes evolution did not happen. However I have never had a problem with school trips to various places of worship. Some of those places are so interesting.

I think mine were really lucky to go here on a school trip- en.wikipedia.org/wiki/BAPS_Shri_Swaminarayan_Mandir_London

However going to the same place twice is not usual, certainly at my children's private schools.

Shockers · 01/10/2014 19:42

Do women hold high office within the mosque Tiptops?

When we visited with school, we only saw the men at prayer, the women were upstairs praying. I assumed that only men were church officials, but I suppose the women would have been with the women iyswim?

Puzzledandpissedoff · 01/10/2014 19:47

I love the idea of pupils being able to broaden their knowledge in this way, though I'd prefer the visits to be even more diverse - there wasn't a buddhist temple or synagogue mentioned, just to give two examples. Properly handled, I think things like this can do nothing but good

Just one thing though, OP - I hope the mosques, gudwaras and sikh temples in your area also make visits like this?

MiuChoos · 01/10/2014 19:47

we visited the local church to learn about Christianity and also had a Christmas party every year. We also had an Eid party each year. Some folk on this thread would have exploding heads at the mere thought of such a thing!

See, I think that's great. I'd love mine to experience an Eid party for the experience and knowledge, (as long as they got their Christmas party as well though!)

nonameslefttouse · 01/10/2014 19:51

Certainly didn't mean to offend Tiptop, however like most of these fictional religious books are open to so much interpretation and as such look at the atrocities occurring all over the world in the name of religion!

Bigoted and ignorant I don't think so, I would sooner teach my children to treat people as they find them, not base their opinions on someone's colour, race, sex, sexuality or religion!

lem73 · 01/10/2014 19:53

Are you serious?

GratefulHead · 01/10/2014 19:58

I have a very good female friend who is Muslim. No way would she tolerate being treated as a second class citizen. She holds a high powered job and has a family as well. She would never accept condescending behaviour. Her husband is Muslim too and treats her like the precious and fabulous person she is. Likewise he wouldn't accept any less for his daughter and his son is being raised in a family where women are valued.

lem73 · 01/10/2014 20:14

How are women treated as second class citizens in a mosque exactly? I have visited mosques as a tourist and not been asked to cover myself.
Muslim women cover their hair when praying but Jewish women and men also cover their heads in the synagogue. Muslim men must also dress conservatively to pray. They can't wear shorts in the mosque.
Muslim women pray behind men because it is rightly considered inappropriate for men to be looking at their bottoms when they are praying. I think that's a mark of respect not subordination.

fatlazymummy · 01/10/2014 20:17

lem so, why not side by side then?