Toddlers must learn British values - argues new education secretary

Nicky Morgan, the replacement for Michael Gove has allowed local authorities to cut off funding to nurseries promoting 'extremist views' such as creationism.

http://www.theguardian.com/education/2014/aug/08/nicky-morgan-toddler-must-be-taught-british-values

Scroll to see replies

Reply 1

SocialistIC

Original post by Armadillo

I'm all for making sure little children aren't brainwashed in to believing in Creationism but what exactly are 'British Values'? I find it kind of funny that she's creating this dichotomy between extremist and British - presumably every other country is extremist and we're perfect.

Reply 2

iEatMuFFiNS

About damn time! :cool:

Too right.

Calling them 'British values' is a slippery slope, of course. However, I don't think people should be afraid to teach values like tolerance. You can't have 'fundamentalist tolerance'.

Creationism is scientifically wrong, and has no place on any curriculum, state funded or otherwise.

Reply 5

lucybuckleyy

What are 'British values'? Getting drunk and going for a kebab?

Posted from TSR Mobile

Reply 6

username878045

I never understand why things like tolerance are hailed as British values. Any society should strive for tolerance and acceptance of all kinds of people, and oppose the indoctrination of it's youth by fringe groups. Nothing to do with Britain specifically.

Reply 7

nulli tertius

Original post by lucybuckleyy

What are 'British values'? Getting drunk and going for a kebab?

For goodness sake:

Books from Boots' and country lanes,
Free speech, free passes, class distinction,
Democracy and proper drains.

Reply 8

King Hotpie

Saw the title and thought I'd have to have a massive rant, read the OP and agreed with it completely. Sounds like a good idea, but calling them British values like its exclusive to us is a bit ridiculous.

Reply 9

james22

Places teaching creationism should be banned completely, not just withrawing state funding.

Reply 10

DErasmus

Original post by SocialistIC

Here are British values:

- Political - Liberal Democracy the power of the individual and Parliament over the Queen, government limited under the rule of law with a balance of checks based on meritocracy not hereditary.
- Social - Human rights.
- Economic - Freedom of exchange through the market.

(edited 9 years ago)

Reply 11

DErasmus

Original post by SocialistIC

NO she is simply saying that other people should assimilate into the values of their home country, a country which has a respect for human rights.

Islamists, Nazis etc do not respect human rights.

Original post by PythianLegume

Above, basically she is just trying to create a sense of community based on the notion of human rights and assimilation of native culture.

(edited 9 years ago)

Reply 12

Old_Simon

This sounds suspiciously like a racist policy to me.

Reply 13

The_Internet

Original post by DErasmus

OK, but this is the sorta thing that is "taught" any way. Again. Define "British values" and how they're different to whatever we're teaching already

Reply 14

DErasmus

Original post by de_monies

OK, but this is the sorta thing that is "taught" any way. Again. Define "British values" and how they're different to whatever we're teaching already

Clearly an extremist school was not teaching British values. It was preaching that the West are the devil and that they need to be removed by any means necessary.

Reply 15

Rakas21

Original post by Armadillo

Agree with this 100%.

Even if we ignore the really extreme stuff like creationism, our children are been taught to look in shame at our own imperialist history, to support Islamist terrorist groups like Hamas over liberal democracies like Israel.

Reply 16

MindTheGaps

Original post by PythianLegume

Historically Britain was one of the main countries which brought about the modern western ideas of religious and political tolerance, and we pretty much invented the modern ideas of personal liberty and democracy. We exported these values around the world, including to places like America which helped take them further. It is a mark of our cultural success that they are now seen as universal values. But until very recently they have been nothing like so widespread as today (it's only a couple of decades since the Cold War, for instance) and they are still absent from many parts of the world.

But the history is irrelevant. They are values which we in Britain have always thought exceptionally important and they remain held in exceptionally high regard in British culture. Whether they are currently unique to Britain is also irrelevant. When faced with immigrants from places where these things are non-existent we should not baulk from converting them to these ideas.

Reply 17

Endless Blue

Original post by DErasmus

Those are very vague values - there's nothing to distinguish them from any other major European country or the USA, Canada and Australia etc.

The first point is just how our political system operates and has nothing to do with 'values'.

Posted from TSR Mobile

Reply 18

DErasmus

Original post by Endless Blue

How our political system operates is foundational to our values, because it is the system which allows us to live our lives as we do. As i've said 'British values' simply means the values shared by the majority of the country (human rights, liberalism). There is no distinction between Europe or the Anglosphere in terms of these values, it's just meant locally to refer to the assimilation into British society...

Reply 19

Copperknickers

Original post by PythianLegume

Because in most of the world people do not strive for tolerance, and fringe groups are championed. Its entirely to do with Britain because Britain invented it and is one of its main champions.