Monday, February 14, 2005

SAVVY FRENCH STUDENTS WANT TO PROVE THEIR ABILITY

Tens of thousands of lycee pupils joined demonstrations across France yesterday to demand the right to sit end-of-school examinations. The lyceens were protesting against a French government plan to modernise the two- century-old Baccalauriat by scrapping about half the written papers and replacing them with continuous assessment. They say that the reform, introduced by Francois Fillon, the Education Minister, would undermine the egalitarian nature of the national certificate that determines access to universities in France.

In the biggest in a series of simultaneous protests in the main cities, thousands of demonstrators blocked the centre of Paris. One group marched past the Palais de Justice in the French capital calling for M Fillon's resignation and holding up a banner which said Sauvons Notre Education (Save Our Education). Middle-aged passers-by, many of whom took part in the May 1968 student riots, clapped their hands in encouragement, although some pointed to the irony of the situation. Here were teenagers defending tradition against a centre-right Government that they accuse of ill-prepared innovation.

Ministers are concerned. The row has become the focal point for widespread discontent over education policy, prompting fears that it could "pollute" the referendum on the European Union constitution this year. With teachers already grumbling over what they say are cuts in secondary schools, supporters of President Chirac are concerned that the movement could spiral out of control and lead to a bout of social unrest. Luc Ferry, a former Education Minister, said: "Lyc,ens are like toothpaste. Once they are out of the tube, you can't put them back in." Last night, the Minister said that he would delay implementation of the reform for two months while he consulted education specialists and teachers' unions.

Many MPs on the government benches are angry with M Fillon for igniting demonstrations over what they say is a minor, technical reform. However, the Minister says reform is necessary to save the examination from bureaucratic collapse. Originally intended for the elite, it is now taken by 63 per cent of school leavers. Several measures in the Education Bill that he will present next week have been criticised, notably a change to the national curriculum that detractors say will squeeze economics and social sciences out of lyc,es.

Source






BRITAIN'S NEW EDUCATION CHIEF

"If the paranoid left of British letters are to be believed, schools in Britain could soon become very frightful places indeed. The new education secretary, Ruth Kelly, you see, has promised to bring more discipline to the classroom, and she is a member of a mysterious religious cult that requires no small measure of it. She is said to regularly attend rituals involving candles, funny clothes and archaic languages. She willingly hands over part of her hard-earned salary to a central authority and presumably has agreed to abide by ancient edicts handed down by a high power. She may even, like some members of the cult, forgo fun things or endure minor discomfort to help herself empathize with her redeemer.

The cult is called Roman Catholicism. Ms. Kelly, a 36-year-old mother of four named to Tony Blair's cabinet in December, has committed the unpardonable sin of admitting that she has a belief system to which she prefers to adhere. After weeks of scary headlines about this belief system, Ms. Kelly admitted in an interview with the BBC's David Frost earlier this month that she receives "spiritual guidance" from a Catholic lay organization known as Opus Dei.

Everyone, of course, knows all about Opus Dei from "The DaVinci Code." They know that its adherents, backed by legions of albino monks wearing spiky garters, fiendishly keep Christianity's deepest secrets, murdering nuns and anyone else who threatens to expose them.

The hysteria in the British commentariat about Ms. Kelly's ascendance into the Blair cabinet was about as restrained as Dan Brown's bestseller was accurate about Opus Dei, an organization of conservative Catholics whose 85,000 members take their faith more seriously than the average once-a-weeker. The Scotsman newspaper found someone from a support group for cult victims to wonder aloud whether Opus Dei adherents would soon be recruiting in Britain's schools. The Times tracked down scientists who professed to be horrified by the prospect of Ms. Kelly's religious beliefs interfering with stem-cell and other "vital" research. The Independent even created a new word for the movement: Catholofascists....

Anyone with firm convictions scares the relativists who dominate public discussion in Britain these days. Anyone who professes to know the difference between right and wrong, between good and evil, seems to scare them. Unless, that is, those firm convictions are founded in a faith other than Christianity. If Ms. Kelly were a Sufi Muslim, say, her belief system would surely be of little concern to the commentariat. Or, more accurately, it would be a cause for celebration. There surely would be no snide asides about buttock-thwacking pilgrims en route to Mecca or dervishes whirling down the halls of 10 Downing St...."

More here





CHRISTIAN STUDENT GROUPS NOT ALLOWED

Across America, more and more colleges are forcing Christian student groups to admit non-Christians or face being dissolved or punished. It is part of a wave of political correctness that accuses believers of discrimination if they want to limit their fellowship to like-minded believers. But some students are fighting back now. CBN News visited one such group at Arizona State University. There is really one main reason why Christian law students like Francisco Sirvent and Bethany Lewis want their own organization: Lewis said, "If you have a skiing club, the purpose there is to bring together people who love skiing and are devoted to skiing. Our organization -- the purpose there is to bring together Christians to walk out our Christianity together at the law school."

But Arizona State University has a problem with that, because the Christian Legal Society chapter demands two things of its members. Sirvent said, "We would just like to ask that our members and our leaders have Christian beliefs and believe in what the Bible says." Lewis remarked, "You have to be a Christian to be a part of our student organization. And then the other part is, implicit in our statement of faith is the idea that sex is only to be practiced within the bounds of marriage, so that would exclude homosexual conduct."

But ASU's Student Code of Conduct prohibits "engaging in discriminatory activities ... on the basis of (among other things) ... religion, (or) sexual orientation."

The Christian Legal Society at the school is represented by lawyers like Greg Baylor at Christian Legal Society's northern Virginia headquarters. The ASU Christian law students and the lawyers tried to get an exemption from ASU, but they were unsuccessful. Baylor said, "They said flat-out 'No, we're not going to respect your religious liberty.'" So the students have sued ASU and the Arizona Board of Regents, known as ABOR.

Baylor says ASU tells student organizations that 'you have to promise not to take religion or sexual conduct into account when you're choosing your voting members and your leaders'. And Baylor adds, "Our leader looked at that and said, 'Well, we can't do that. We're the Christian Legal Society. We're about allegiance to Jesus Christ, and therefore we want our voting members and our leaders to sign a statement of faith demonstrating their commitment to Christ and to live a life that's consistent with God's moral laws.'"

But there are real consequences if the law students refuse to comply. Sirvent said, "The first step is, ASU de-recognizes us as a student organization, and that takes away a lot of the benefits and privileges that student organizations have on-campus, which is meeting on-campus -- receiving some funding." And if the university wanted to get really personal, it could impose on the Christian students "...suspension, expulsion...which probably never would get to that level...but those are options for them," said Sirvent.

ASU would not give CBN News an interview, but did send us a news release accusing the Christian Legal Society of asking ASU "to permit the student chapter of the Christian Legal Society to discriminate against non-Christians and homosexuals." The release suggests that it is not going to happen because 'ASU is committed to diversity and respect for all of its students.' And it goes on to say that 'student organizations on ASU campuses are required to comply with applicable law and with the ABOR Student Code of Conduct.'

But Lewis insists, "In good conscience, we can't sign that non-discrimination policy." She added, "We've had problems in the past with members of different religions wanting to become members of our organization and lead Bible studies, when they don't agree with the essentials of Christianity." And both the students and Baylor say they are fighting because this is about far more than one club. He said, "The application of religion and sexual orientation non-discrimination rules is the most significant threat to religious freedom in America right now."

Baylor says it is almost like a fad spreading nationwide: universities ignoring federal law and cracking down on religious student groups. That is why the Christian Legal Society finds itself fighting cases like the one with ASU on at least four other campuses. Baylor said, "All of the laws that ban religious discrimination in employment have an exception for religious organizations. Because the law recognizes that it's simply not wrong for religious organizations to take religion and sexual conduct into account when choosing their people. I don't know why universities and other folks can't understand that. But the law in other contexts recognizes and respects religious freedom." So while the university feels it is fighting discrimination, the Christian Legal Society chapter wonders, 'Isn't it just a matter of common sense that Christians are the only people allowed in the Christian Legal Society?'

Source

***************************

For greatest efficiency, lowest cost and maximum choice, ALL schools should be privately owned and run -- with government-paid vouchers for the poor and minimal regulation.

Comments? Email me here. For times when blogger.com is playing up, there is a mirror of this site (viewable even in China!) here

***************************

No comments: