The way you worded it it is not the same. If you said not letting them go simply because they are Muslim then maybe I see your point. But to say just simply refusing to sign the permission slip makes it the same just isn't accurate. Maybe it is for some but there may be religious reasons for not allowing it. What if I didn't want my child exposed to any other religion? Or maybe I'm atheist and don't want my kids expose to any religion. Has nothing to do with me thinking I'm superior, it's about my beliefs and he beliefs I'm passing on to my kids.

 

I think the bolded is exactly what PP92 was referring to. That sounds an awful lot like thinking your religion is superior to all others.

Religions get covered in schools all of the time. You can't study World History without studying the religions. I see nothing wrong with taking a field trip to the mosque and had people not complained then maybe all five religions would have been covered before they canceled the field trips. That is the right thing to do. Cover all of the religions. At some point we(Americans) have to quit crying everytime somebody does something out of our comfort zone. Like our kids would really be harmed by visiting a mosque. If anything they'll learn acceptance and tolerance of those different than us. At the end of the day isn't that what we should be teaching our kids anyways?

 

Refusing to sign your kids persmission slip to visit a mosque is no different than refusing to let your kids date a person of a different race IMO. The same lesson is being taught. They aren't good enough for you.

Uh there are more than 5 religions http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Major_religious_groups

Uh there are more than 5 religions Major religious groups - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

 

He was talking about the class, which covered 5 religions.

I think the bolded is exactly what PP92 was referring to. That sounds an awful lot like thinking your religion is superior to all others.

 

I would think most people think their faith is supperior to all others, why would they pick that faith if they didn't think it was the true faith. Where the problem comes in is where you believe your faith is superior and you show animosity and intolerance towards other faiths.

Haven't read through all of the posts yet.

 

Let's take the worksheet out of the equation for a minute.

 

What's the problem with a school exposing students to other religions/cultures? Why do some say "well they have to also take them to the Christian church" when there's a strong chance that every student has been exposed to Christianity already?

 

Why a tit-for-tat?

The way you worded it it is not the same. If you said not letting them go simply because they are Muslim then maybe I see your point. But to say just simply refusing to sign the permission slip makes it the same just isn't accurate. Maybe it is for some but there may be religious reasons for not allowing it. What if I didn't want my child exposed to any other religion? Or maybe I'm atheist and don't want my kids expose to any religion. Has nothing to do with me thinking I'm superior, it's about my beliefs and he beliefs I'm passing on to my kids.

 

I was implying that in my original sentence but yes I feel like refusing to allow your kid to visit a mosque on a field trip because it is a Muslim church is in the same vein as refusing to allow your kid to date someone of a different race. What is there to be afraid of on a school sanctioned trip that teaches our kids something different than what they see in everyday life? Especially if they are studying about Muslims in class.

Haven't read through all of the posts yet.

 

Let's take the worksheet out of the equation for a minute.

 

What's the problem with a school exposing students to other religions/cultures? Why do some say "well they have to also take them to the Christian church" when there's a strong chance that every student has been exposed to Christianity already?

 

Why a tit-for-tat?

 

I would say because its the standard applied to the Ten Commandments being displayed when the ACLU goes to war.

Is it a schools job to expose students to any form of religion?

 

Actually schools should teach the history of the major religions and how they came about and where they are practiced, etc. It should not be a taboo subject for schools.

How can you study history without being exposed to other religous beliefs or even Christianity? The sheer number of wars and conflicts and even the simple influence of religion on history, society, etc, can't be ignored.

I would say because its the standard applied to the Ten Commandments being displayed when the ACLU goes to war.

 

You're not saying that's a valid reason to have a problem, right?

You're not saying that's a valid reason to have a problem, right?

 

Its the hypocrisy of the religo-phobes.

 

The ACLU says its ok to display the Commandments in 'historical context - with other historical documents'. So if you are doing a class on world regions then treat them the same. In some ways its good that this type of class is available in a public school. But some of the other items cited in the article are almost more concerning. "Religious Tolerance in Islam"? Maybe they should send that over to the Islamic rebels in Syria who forced a mostly Christian village to convert to Islam. It seems like the class was white-washing real, current issues.

I don't think that a field trip to any place of worship is necessary in a public school. I think the teacher can do plenty within the classroom to teach about all the world religions and their affects on history and culture. Photo slide shows, documentaries, and websites will be plenty if material to meet the learning objectives.

why not bring in guest speakers to explain religions, I would have no problem with some Islamic Scholar to discuss Islam with my kid and explain their religion.

 

But it is difficult for Christianity, so many different denominations and beliefs.

 

Teach the common core beliefs of the 5 major religions and what they share in common and differences

 

You dont have to take them anywhere.

How can you study history without being exposed to other religous beliefs or even Christianity? The sheer number of wars and conflicts and even the simple influence of religion on history, society, etc, can't be ignored.

 

I don't think it's possible to teach European history at all without at least a basic introduction to the differences between Catholicism and -- at a minimum -- Lutheranism and Anglicanism. Calvinism seems fairly essential as well from a European perspective. Those denominations --and the differences between them -- were at the heart of European international relations from the 95 Theses until nationalism and democratization began to dominate it in the 19th century.

 

... and that's just within Christianity.

One of my favorite courses in college was a religious studies class. Fascinating subject, too bad the leaders screw it up so often.