to think that there will be no lasting damage if I send my non RC DD to a RC School?

[thedollyridesout]

That's it really.

I have read the various faith school debates on here and I'm not quite sure which side I come down on.

I will not however be faking religion/lying in order to improve DD's chances.

It's just that I'm going to look around a Roman Catholic Middle School tomorrow that has an excellent reputation in the area. What bad thing/s could happen to DD if she went there?

My DB who failed the 11+ and is a non catholic went to catholic school.In assembley every morning a prayer was said for god to have mercy on non-catholics !!
Still I'm sure things are different now.

my mum would disagree with you!! hshe's still traumatised. but she makes me laugh telling me tales of all the rosary beed clacking, and every lesson starting with a hail mary. BUT i'm sure times have changed.

Na they still sat Our Father and Hail Mary at the start and end of lessons in primary. They do the Rosary too. Well at least they do at ours.

Hando, I don't think my first sentence is at all disgusting. I wouldn't want my child to grow up with the burden of Catholicism, or indeed many other religions. I dare say many people feel they wouldn't want their child to grow up with the burden of having no faith. I wouldn't have a problem with them saying that, whether I disagree or not.

I can't understand why you are even thinking about it if you are talking about 'lasting damage'.

I think it's fine as long as you don't get your knickers in a twist everytime there's something in its Catholic ethos you don't like. You have to accept that it's a Catholic school so it's likely to be a bit, well, Catholic.

The thing is if you do opt for the RC school and if there is anything taught there that you think it poo you can teach otherwise at home. I went to an RC school - my mum's choice it was important to her that I was Catholic, however I also attended Quaker sunday school with my Dad quite often and in a nutshell I didn't just listen to what I was taught at school

Also it does strongly depend on the school. My DS1 is a an RC school (I'm not overwhelmed with choice of other type of schools here in Ireland) and just before Christmas DS1 told me that Santa is in charge of God (he's 6) - so I don't think the emphasis on religion is that great.

I think that is you are going to be worried about damage being done (and what sort of damage - are you refering to the sexual abuse that has been in the news recently?) then I don't think that sending her to a RC school is a good idea tbh.

However if you think that she'll just be taught a few things that you don't belive then that's ok isn't it - the chances are is that if she's from a home that doesn't belive it than she won't either. Also if when she's older and she choses to become a stongly practicing Catholic - then frankly that's her choice - it could happen anyway RC school or not

What an offensive thread title

Surely shit thisngs/techers/messages/ethos can befall kids at any school? Or is it just Catholic children that get damaged?

More and more annoyed at such a thoughtless turn of phrase and glib treatment of an important way of life to many many people.

It just isn't on. Pot and kettle come to mind. You have actually taken part in one of the things you maybe fear the Catholic school will do. I don't know what your fears are, as you seem to want this thread to generate them for you. Which in it's self is odd. You have made assumptions and judgements based on one aspect of an institution, their religion, yet your information has only been gathered from the 'news'.

That seems to suggest a very ill thought out op at best, or narrow minded and prejudiced at worst.

The very things some people percieve and reject about organised religion.

I suggest looking at your own standpoints and projections, before looking to define anybody else's in such negative language.

It just isn't Christian cricket

I am Orthodox Christian and my dh RC so my dd is RC as we married in the RC church and vowed to bring up any dcs to be Catholic, however we are not sending our dd to an RC school because it is too far away. I would love to be able to because apart from being an RC school it is one of the best apparently in the country. My IL's are extremist Catholics but we are not really and our friends from Church are not really. I dont think that sending your dc to a Catholic school will damage, why should it.

No, I think you're right, there won't be any lasting damage if you send DD to RC school. These days, what with the national curriculum and all, most RC schools just can't manage to fit in any extra-curricular priestly abuse. It'd just be a complete timetabling nightmare in any reasonably sized school.

The 'in the news' comment was a glib response to a glib response.

It seems that the word 'damage' is loaded in ways that I failed to perceive.

I could have written the same post about the CofE school that I am going to look around next week.

What I think they do at these faith schools is prattle on about faith.

Hope that settles it.

Isn't it a tad hypocritical to send your child to a faith school if you don't respect any faith (or so it appears)?

Children who attend faith schools whose family are not of the faith can feel very socially marginalised, IMO. It's not something I would do lightly (though I never exclude the possibility as so many of the better schools in France are Catholic, and you never know of what the future is made).

I went to a C/E primary and a VERY High, strict C/E secondary school. In those days (I'm in my 40s now), we were taught the C/E faith exclusively (ie Judaism/Catholicism/Islam etc just wasn't mentioned. AT ALL!) RE and regular church attendance was obligatory and assemblies were held each morning, with prayers and hymns, including weekly assemblies held by the Father of the local church.

I'm a cynical agnostic who is fascinated by faiths of all kinds and who has, I hope people would say, respect for people of faith, whatever theirs may be.

OP - your failure to percieve and use of words like damage and prattle settle it perfectly.

my two go/went to a RC school. they loved it. they are fine btw....good results...small school with caring ethos. the syllabus is very well rounded and looks at all pov with regard to religion etc. we are not RC.

DS is now doing A level at college, DD is loving school so much she is not happy that its closed for snow. its a much more relaxed education that the catholic education of old.

Although I may appear to be disrespectful of faiths, this is not so.

It is just that I prefer to talk rationally about such things with my DC and I am already at how many pre conceived ideas they have brought home from school.

My DH's pet hate is the elitism of religion - the exclusion of non-members. I don't like it either.

During my teens I was very committed to a particular faith and my belief has waxed and waned over the last few years usually correlating with the passing away of a close family member. Make of that what you will .

OP, if you don't want to send your child to the school, just don't send her. IME most RC schools (indeed most faith schools that I know of) tend to "prattle on" about the usual academic subjects that the non-faith schools prattle about, plus sports days, rugby tournaments, musical and drama groups, chess clubs. School stuff. They just educate people, y'know, like they're supposed to.

Why not just go visit the school, ask around other parents, and maybe leave the preconceptions at home when you do it? And possibly ask your DD how she feels about attending the school? Like people do when they're considering a "normal" school?

It sounds a bit as though any "lasting damage" she'll be getting in terms of indoctrination and prejudice will be well catered for, whether or not she goes to this school.

Is this a windup?

Agree with GM. Do your research and go from there.

So, I speak about my 'faith' waxing and waning and you assume it is a wind up treedelivery - why?

There are people on MN with strong opinions on faith schools. I am interested in their opinions before considering one for my child.

Why is that wrong?

I am doing my research. This is part of it .

Thanks for all the replies. On the whole it seems that people are more than happy with the faith schools that they/their DCs attended/attend.

As I mentioned originally, this particular school has an excellent reputation locally and is usually over subscribed. If we do get in it will be a miracle. Which Saint should I pray to for help in that respect?