Exam boards discuss Ramadan 2016 and exam dates

[DeoGratias]

For those who believe in invented Gods apparently the exam boards may make some changes. I think the having key exams first in the mornings is the best proposal. One of my children last year who did pretty well in GCSEs often doesn't have any breakfast so he has an kind of Radaman fast anyway from 10pm to lunch or even after school sometimes. I think we can work around this.
It is not for 30 years that Ramadan has fallen so fully within the GCSE and A level period and then we had many fewer people prepared to believe in such things.

And just one other point Ramadan is nearly always going to fall into a school term that is why we should encourage the use of ME timetable for the summer months especially

That is something our government education department could raise with religious leaders doubt they will or will get anywhere with

If I am a believer in secular schooling which I am I can't support dates times etc being changed for any religious calendar

I have no issue with Christian dates being changed about but they won't

This is not the case in the uk so exams have been changed about because of Ramadan I am not telling anyone not to fast it's a personal choice

I can't say well actually I really think schools should be secular but let's accommodate in this case Ramadan

All UK schools should be 100% secular but I don't see an issue with nudging the dates of some exams to accommodate some students.

All students will sit the exams at the same time so if it's 'too early' then it's too early for everyone.

All UK schools including private schools should be secular. It's ridiculous and outdated that children can still be segregated and discriminated due to the religion of their parents. I'm an atheist and the thought that my DC would be unable to go to certain state schools because of MY religion is disgusting. I'd be ashamed to be part of a religion that backed such a exclusionary policy. It's like it's the Middle Ages.

A lot off fuss about nothing.

Back in the 80s I did the 12+ on an unannounced day. We all knew roughly when it would happen, and it definitely wouldn't be on Diwali.

Perhaps it would be better to say they have been re-ordered. The exam session has not changed. Our last GCSE exam is 27 June.

This is nothing to do with schools being secular or not.

This is nothing to do with schools being secular or not.

Exactly.

If I am a believer in secular schooling which I am I can't support dates times etc being changed for any religious calendar

Values are all very well but we have to deal with the world as it is, not as we would like it to be. You can say "well in an ideal world Muslim students would defer their fast or not fast or stick to Mecca times, but given that is unrealistic and I don't want schools to fail and be closed by Ofsted and the country to be overburdened with resit students, then I can support a slight reshuffling of the timetable"

Otherwise it's like when Corbyn said we should have arrested Jihadi John instead of killing him. Sometimes rigidly sticking to your values doesn't help anyone.

It's a discussion I have no influence so argue/oppose and stick to it but I do understand what you are saying

Many counties have secular education (including Muslim countries) and it would take time to for changes to be made and raise other issues but it can still be done

As for JC he is nothing more than a rebellious backbencher who is leading the party to fail at the next election if he were a man of principle
he would be leading the socialist Labour Party but he is now more ambitious

Enthusiasm It's clear you object to Fasting, and I understand you want schools to be secular (I agree on that point), but I really don't understand why you object to this minor readjustment that won't negatively affect anyone else and will help get the best out of the Muslim students who do fast. It almost seems like you think they deserve to do less well for being silly enough to fast.
Having secular schools won't stop children being religious and wanting observe their religious practices. As long as that doesn't negatively impact other students, I don't understand why you would object.

Secular education would not take religious practices into consideration religion is seen as a personal matter

If you have read my posts you will see that I myself have fasted in Ramadan so no I do not object to it though I do feel summer months fasting here is far too long for children exams or no exams ME hours could be followed they are in Scandinavia

Neither do I wish for anyone to fail or do less well in exams because of a religious on non religious choice they make

I can't make it clearer be it a Christian, Muslim, Sikh or whatever religious practice and education should be a separated if you make allowances then you have to make allowances for all religions/beliefs then it is not secular is it

I'm with you, Exit.

Fuck me, I've only just noticed the irony of the OP's username!

But allowances haven't been made for muslim students. They are sitting the same exams at the same time as everyone else. They aren't getting special consideration.

And in fact, they are still sitting most of their exams during their time of fasting.

Well this is conflicting one minute they have changed the timetable exams moved forward to take Ramadan into consideration then they haven't

The principle has been debated

Key exam times have been set with consideration towards the timing of Ramadan. The timetable hasn't been changed recently, it was set originally with this in mind.

E.g. as I posted earlier on the thread, the first maths paper is now 26th May, before half term, where usually it is in June, after half term.

Yes I read that thought I had missed something