In message , at 11:31:13 on Wed, 13
Feb 2013, Walter Briscoe remarked:

My own experience is that I went to school, without adult supervision,
from the age of 4.

Same here (well, from whatever age I first went to infant school, the
absolute latest would have been 5 and a quarter).

My children were escorted to nursery and primary schools

Mine walked (on their own) when it was within walking distance [we moved
several times so modes changed], but we always lift-shared when walking
wasn't possible.

and travelled, without escort, to secondary school by public
transport.

Mine exclusively walked, about 20 minutes each way.
--
Roland Perry

On 13/02/2013 09:47, Roland Perry wrote:
In message , at 09:41:19 on Wed, 13 Feb
2013, d remarked:

There are also two Muslim Faith Schools in Nottingham.

Elsewhere in the country there are also Jewish, Hindu, Sikh and Greek
Orthodox Faith Schools.

I don't think bus policy is the real problem here!

Unfortunately. "Religious education" is an oxymoron.

We can and do educate children *about* religion - thinks like explaining
what religions believe in (spiritual and culinary), when their religious
holidays are and what they signify.

When I was at school we didn't learn about what they believed in, only
what they (supposedly) do. Muslims go on pilgrimages and don't like
pictures, Jews wear little hats and don't eat pork, Hindus, er, are very
foreign so who knows.

And despite years of compulsory daily worship at primary school, I don't
know what Christians _believe_, other than that the book 1 stuff is a
bit of an embarrassment, their friend in the sky can't tell the
difference between people acting from choice and those who are forced to
do something, and he has major self-esteem issues.


--
Arthur Figgis Surrey, UK

In article , (Roland Perry)
wrote:

In message , at
10:40:35 on Tue, 12 Feb 2013, remarked:
withdrawing school travel subsidy from those children who chose to
travel more than 3 miles to a faith school, when there was a
regular school close by.

I suppose the Catholics complained bitterly?

"The local diocese reacted angrily to the plans..." although there
are apparently 6 CofE schools as well as seven Catholic ones.

It's only the Catholics who try to insist that their flock only go to
Catholic schools, AIUI.

But there may be parents who insist their children go to a CofE
school, irrespective of what the local vicar dictated. I don't know
why else the news story I referred to would have mentioned CofE
schools as well as the catholic ones.

There are also two Muslim Faith Schools in Nottingham.

Elsewhere in the country there are also Jewish, Hindu, Sikh and Greek
Orthodox Faith Schools.

I can't speak for elsewhere but in Cambridge CoE schools are very much
community schools first and not exclusively Faith school. My children and
granddaughter wouldn't have gone to one otherwise.

--
Colin Rosenstiel

In message , at
22:54:00 on Wed, 13 Feb 2013, Arthur Figgis
remarked:
And despite years of compulsory daily worship at primary school, I
don't know what Christians _believe_

That's a bit hard on yourself. What they believe in is living a virtuous
life as laid out in the gospels. (Other religions have their own codes
of conduct derived from other publications).
--
Roland Perry

In message , at 18:46:05
on Wed, 13 Feb 2013, remarked:

I can't speak for elsewhere but in Cambridge CoE schools are very much
community schools first and not exclusively Faith school.

Here's an extract from the CofE Secondary which was the second nearest
school to where I lived in Nottingham (the first nearest being a
Catholic School), both of which were in addition to conventional
community schools serving the same area (indeed both were sited in the
catchment area of the local Comprehensive, but had wider catchment areas
of their own):

"Church schools are distinctive because they offer an education
based on Christian values. However, what really makes the
difference are when those values are underpinned by beliefs and
lived out in a way that brings added educational strength to the
school. This is most certainly the case at Emmanuel School where
every student has the opportunity to understand and experience
the Christian faith that inspires and motivates the school...

Nottingham Emmanuel School is a truly vibrant community on a
faith journey in which unique value is placed on each individual
as precious to God and every effort made to develop students as
whole people to enable them to reach their full potential in all
areas."
--
Roland Perry

On 14/02/2013 08:07, Roland Perry wrote:
In message , at
22:54:00 on Wed, 13 Feb 2013, Arthur Figgis
remarked:
And despite years of compulsory daily worship at primary school, I
don't know what Christians _believe_

That's a bit hard on yourself. What they believe in is living a virtuous
life as laid out in the gospels. (Other religions have their own codes
of conduct derived from other publications).

Well, yes, but I suspect few religions say you should be a complete
b*&%^$d and can ignore the manual. Although at university the religious
types played down the "be nice" stuff we got at school in favour of
emphasising blind faith.

Some years ago I took Japanese students to see Ely cathedral, and they
got confused by a reference there to three-in-one god(s), rather than
just the one in the sky and the bearded one wearing a towel who they
vaguely recognised. The professor asked me to explain what the third one
was, and I was completely stuck. Collective worship #fail.

Although to be fair, none of them appeared to be able to explain their
local customs beyond "There are things in rocks and trees" and a sense
it was long gone as a belief system.

--
Arthur Figgis Surrey, UK

On 14/02/2013 08:23, Roland Perry wrote:

"Church schools are distinctive because they offer an education
based on Christian values. However, what really makes the
difference are when those values are underpinned by beliefs and
lived out in a way that brings added educational strength to the
school. This is most certainly the case at Emmanuel School where
every student has the opportunity to understand and experience
the Christian faith that inspires and motivates the school...

Nottingham Emmanuel School is a truly vibrant community on a
faith journey in which unique value is placed on each individual
as precious to God and every effort made to develop students as
whole people to enable them to reach their full potential in all
areas."

Does that lot mean any more than any other mission statement?

08.55 Register 09.20 Maths (if your round molten sea is ten cubits from
one brim to the other, how many cubits must a line be to compass it
round about?) 10:50 Crusade against faith school across the road (please
cross carefully) 12:00 Dinner (blood and flesh)


--
Arthur Figgis Surrey, UK

In article ,
Arthur Figgis wrote:
On 14/02/2013 08:23, Roland Perry wrote:

[quoting]
Nottingham Emmanuel School is a truly vibrant community on a
faith journey in which unique value is placed on each individual
as precious to God and every effort made to develop students as
whole people to enable them to reach their full potential in all
areas."

Does that lot mean any more than any other mission statement?

When I see the word "vibrant" I know the writer has nothing concrete
to express but wants to convince readers it is a modern and exciting
nothingness that is throbbing with energy.

08.55 Register 09.20 Maths (if your round molten sea is ten cubits from
one brim to the other, how many cubits must a line be to compass it
round about?) 10:50 Crusade against faith school across the road (please
cross carefully) 12:00 Dinner (blood and flesh)

Don't forget to be vibrant as you do so ...

Nick
--
"The Internet, a sort of ersatz counterfeit of real life"
-- Janet Street-Porter, BBC2, 19th March 1996

On 14/02/2013 19:36, Nick Leverton wrote:
In article ,
Arthur Figgis wrote:
On 14/02/2013 08:23, Roland Perry wrote:

[quoting]
Nottingham Emmanuel School is a truly vibrant community on a
faith journey in which unique value is placed on each individual
as precious to God and every effort made to develop students as
whole people to enable them to reach their full potential in all
areas."

Does that lot mean any more than any other mission statement?

When I see the word "vibrant" I know the writer has nothing concrete
to express but wants to convince readers it is a modern and exciting
nothingness that is throbbing with energy.

Also travel guide speak for "best to book a hotel elsewhere in town, and
if you do go there put your wallet in a zip-up pocket".



--
Arthur Figgis Surrey, UK

On Thu, 14 Feb 2013 19:12:31 +0000, Arthur Figgis
wrote:

On 14/02/2013 08:23, Roland Perry wrote:

"Church schools are distinctive because they offer an education
based on Christian values [...]

Nottingham Emmanuel School is a truly vibrant community on a
faith journey [...]

Does that lot mean any more than any other mission statement?

08.55 Register 09.20 Maths (if your round molten sea is ten cubits from
one brim to the other, how many cubits must a line be to compass it
round about?) 10:50 Crusade against faith school across the road (please
cross carefully) 12:00 Dinner (blood and flesh)

Hilarious! Not sure if the school above is a secondary, maybe it
makes a difference. My primary school was CofE and it was an
excellent place -- the religious element was almost homeopathic. I
think the vicar came round once...

Richard.