I'm sorry I disappeared for so long - I don't want to look as if I'm running from the discussion, but this was one of the top two worst days I've ever had at work. *sigh* I absolutely hate racism!!!
Quote:
Originally posted by RACooper
When I went to school (Catholic) it was a required class - World Religions... lets see we covered Protestantism, Islam, Judiasm, Hinduism, Zoroastrianism, Buddhism, Sikhism and a number of days on Cults and Sects - in each case someone (except for the Cults/Sects) was invited in to speak with us about their faith. Further if students asked about a particular faith, Father Ron was more than happy to deal with the subject - that's the reason we learned about Zoroastrianism. I guess I was lucky to come from a system where the Brothers and Priests believed that "knowledge was the best defense against the Devil".
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This is how my school worked, only it was a public school. Put all the theories etc out there, and "explore all options". (Must have been a former hippie who designed our curriculum!)
Just wanted to answer one question a couple pages back, I think from valkyrie: I think we can all agree that using different religions in literature/philosophy type classes is only beneficial to students - and I'm aiming this at the middle/high school level. Kids need to know the different idioms, analogies, etc.
So, why not in other forms of classes? What if the only theory of mankind was based on the Big Bang theory, and suddenly, upon entry to college, the student hears about evolution for the first time? Granted, I doubt that it would happen, but wouldn't you rather have teachers have controlled discussion (or assigned reading) on each theory, rather than students picking it up on the streets? We don't allow - or
shouldn't allow Sex Ed to be picked up from the streets, why not allow the theories to be at least considered?
When presented with several options, if the student is somewhat intelligent, he or she is going to make an informed decision, rather than simply spout the theory of their childhood, their best friends, or some blog that seemed to make sense. YES, this is more work for the teachers, but I really think that any subject that has more than one theory needs to explore as many as possible. Back to the sex analogy: prior to Margaret Sanger etal, the vast majority of women used rhythm or primitive sheep skins, if any birth control. Then came the diaphragm, then the pill - when there was only ONE pill - then the sponge, etc. Now, there's a plethora of options that a woman can use,
and by exploring and comparing all the options, she can select the method(s) right for her.
This may sound simplistic to some, but again, I'm going back to my own school district. I think there was a rate of 89% of graduating students who went to college, and a lot more statistics that I can't remember right now (Letterman just had two aardvarks go at it on his desk, and I can't get the image out of my mind!). I honestly feel that children should be taught all options, that they feel secure in thinking outside the box, and teaching only one theory is just too limiting, IMHO. I'd rather see them laugh themselves silly over one theory or another than not have any comparisons.