Since the implementation of the Prevent strategy, 400 Muslim children under the age of 10 have been referred to the ‘anti-radicalisation’ programme
Earlier this week, Ofsted head Michael Wilshaw confirmed that inspectors can downgrade schools if they feel that the wearing of the niqab – by either teachers or pupils – is impairing learning. Phrased like this, it seems a reasonable policy.
In reality, however, opening the door to penalising the wearing of Islamic dress in this way is deeply worrying.
For a start, it’s unclear exactly why the niqab might be an obstacle to learning. Muslims have been teaching, learning and otherwise communicating wearing the full-face veil for centuries in Islamic countries all around the world.
It’s also unclear why Wilshaw feels the need to single out the niqab: if inspectors feel that learning is being impaired in any way, by any item of dress or obstacle to communication, surely they are able to reflect that in their report without the niqab being specified as a potential reason for an ‘inadequate’ rating.
But this policy is particularly concerning given that it follows a trend in recent weeks and months that has seen the practise, expression or even discussion of Islam in schools as suspicious.
Since the implementation of the ‘Prevent’ strategy, 400 Muslim children under the age of 10 have been referred to the ‘anti-radicalisation’ programme, and new E-safety legislation is forcing schools to install software which tracks the use of words such as ‘Pakistan’, ‘Islam’ and ‘Quran’.
Launching a new ‘Educate against Hate’ website this week which encourages teachers to look out for ‘warning signs’ of radicalisation such as rapid conversion to religion, Education secretary Nicky Morgan admitted that conversion to Christianity ‘of course’ doesn’t count as one such warning sign – showing the clear disparity between the treatment of Christians and Muslims in this country.
When we make young Muslim children feel monitored, isolated and demonised for practising their religion in our schools, we damage irreparably community cohesion, trust and mutual respect. We lose the potential for discussion of difficult but important topics – and opportunities for truly valuable learning. Children in this country are at risk of radicalisation – but we need to tackle this through education, not demonisation.
Indeed, if Michael Wilshaw wants to eliminate barriers to learning in schools, he should perhaps look to the overassessment, rigid focus on examinations and targets, and back-breaking teacher workload which now characterise our education system. Allowing both teachers and pupils to teach, learn – and wear – what they like would do children a world of good.
Sophie van der Ham is co-chair of the Young Greens
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95 Responses to “Comment: Ofsted – not the niqab – is impairing learning in schools”
RomaBob
Sophie van der Ham is co-chair of the Young Greens, just about sums her up, young and green.
Phyllyp Sparowe
Another example that the left have allowed their class hatred of the establishment to drag them far from the goals that sat behind the founding of the Labour and other progressive movements.
Embracing every cult/cause/ideology or medieval cultural practice just to stick it to the Tories, has left them with a ragbag of competing causes. Hence the pathological aversion to condemning the Cologne outraged evidenced by the Guardian’s opinion writers’ mercilessly shredded apologia.
Islam doubly divides by religion and race as it is a non-native belief system and the definition of non believers as Kefir introduces a trigger term into the educational environment. Tolerating open religiosity will just lead to de-facto segregated schools and a growing minority of people in tight knit communities who believe in Sharia law and not basic human rights.
Selohesra
When your ham is green its best to chuck it away as swallowing it is likely to have unpleasant outcome
Leftyliesrefuted
I just want to take the opportunity here to protest about the Fascist, racist, neoliberal nature of whatever the above article is about, and to say that it’s time for those of us on the Progressive Left to call out the inherent racism of UKIP and to take on this Tory Government which is the most Right-wing regime that has ever got the support of only 24% of the electorate since the dark days of that extreme Right-wing Tory traitor, Tony Blair.
Negotiated Settlement
As a graffiti artist I am going to sign a partition regarding this.