Jan 2015 - catch up.

I’m blogging because I read it is good for my health. So this post is all about me.

I finished the year feeling better than I had for about two years. More exercise. No more napping. Feeling normal. Then I got the results from my checkup. My doctor told me I have some deficiencies - need to take supplements. That’s fine. The worry is that I’m clinically anaemic. Which could be caused by internal bleeding. Which we need to investigate. Also, it means I’m on a very strange spectrum for tiredness. Now I just feel like I need to nap.

I have finished the coursework for my degree. I’ve packed up my readings to pass on to other students. I’ve learned that online learning is a vastly inferior form of delivery compared to being with people. I literally could have studied a whole degree without saying the words. We are taught that we need to know our students, build relationships, cater to their needs, deliver information in various modes, work collaboratively, and then we are given readings and told to write. The feedback I’ve had on my assignments have been close to worthless. Not good. I’m sitting on a GPA of 5.9, which makes me realise I should have asked for remarks which would have toppled my GPA to 6. Even though I know no-one will care, I do. I have two pracs to undertake to finish my degree. I’m getting back to exercising to make sure I’m ready.

Then I’m ready to work. I know not to expect I’ll get a permanent teaching job right away. I know I’ll have to network to get casual work. I’m looking at making my own work if I don’t get a job. I have a Plan B.

At the new year everyone was saying how crap 2014 was. I didn’t feel that way. Then I took a look at what had happened and agree. It was a crap year. In some ways it has continued to be a crap year. Horrible things have been happening to people. There is a lot of sadness. I know what to do to help the people around me. I’m not sure what to do to help on a wider scale. Like everyone else I’ve been thinking about the role of religion in terrorism, and what we need to teach people so that basic human rights are respected. I understand that people don’t think logically when they feel their beliefs are being attacked. I need to learn more about what to do. I want to read Sam Harris’ book ‘The End of Faith: Religions, Terror and the Future of Reason’ and Andrew Scott’s ‘Northern Lights: The Positive Policy Example of Sweden, Finland, Denmark and Norway’. I’m also thinking about the intersection between being authentic and being kind. I’m not suggesting that kindness isn’t authentic, just that sometimes it takes some thought and control, and that living an authentic life, being true to yourself,  isn’t always responsible and kind.

On the home front I’ve been working out what our new routines will be. The children’s schedules have changed. We’re looking into joining a new dance school (looking at the online photos has been somewhat stomach churning). I know I won’t get everything I want and am prepared to compromise. We’re making a cleaning schedule, based on aspects of Flylady. We’re talking about what we need from being part of this family - how we need the home to be the safe place where we can relax and regroup. Matilda will be going on four camps this year, she has a job, and will be doing the Duke of Edinburgh award. She has been invited to perform in Prague. She won’t be going. Clancy‘s band is proposing going on tour in NSW. I’ll be arguing against that. Banjo is now old enough to walk to and from school herself. It means I’m not so involved in the primary school. This is my tenth year at the primary school. I’m ready to move on.

I kept a record of the children’s expenses for last year. Matilda: $7585, Clancy: $5199, Banjo: $2295. Some expenses were waived for us because we’re unemployed, so the real figures are higher. These aren’t just school expenses but include dance and music.

I’m starting a feminist book group. I will set up a FB page after we work out how to run it. There is lots to talk about.

We’re working on organising Mamapalooza. The plays this year are about domestic violence. We are having an art exhibition at ANU in Canberra, and I’ve proposed we do a presentation at the Symposium at the The Editorial Collective of Lilith: A Feminist History Journal,  Flesh and Blood: A Feminist Symposium on Embodied Histories, ANU on Friday May 8, 2015.

I’m taking Feburary to get organised and build up my energy again. I’m happy to see friends and exercise and have fun. And talk. Talking is good.

Who's afraid of moral relativism? I'm afraid of moral absolutism.

I keep hearing about the dangers of moral relativism, but what about the dangers of moral absolutism?

Accusations of moral relativism were made against the pilot of the Philosophical Ethics program delivered to primary schools by Primary Ethics. It is usually Christians who make this accusation. Even Christopher Pyne recently stated, as reported by The Australian 16/10/14

“When something is wrong it should be called for what it is,” he said. “The danger often in the West is this idea that as all voices need to be heard somehow they might all have some kind of moral equivalence.”

Miranda Devine wrote this about Kevin Donnelly in the Daily Telegraph 05/02/2014 when it was announced he was to review the new Australian Curriculum.

“Clear-thinking Donnelly is the perfect choice. An unabashed critic of moral relativism, he wants education to be about "objectivity and truth". He believes students should understand the foundations of Western civilisation and Australia's Judeo-Christian heritage. He thinks academic rigour and phonics and even - shock, horror - rote learning might be a good thing. He is against the fashion of students "constructing" their own knowledge.”

It came as no surprise when Donnelly announced that the curriculum should focus more on Australia’s Judeo-Christian heritage (whatever that means - That we should teach the Ten Commandments? Is Judeo-Christian code for anti-Islamic, anti-atheist, or does it signal non anti-Semitic? That our Judeo-Christian heritage begins in the Middle East? That Judaism has been superseded by Christianity or that Judaism and Christianity are equally valued? ) Before beginning the review he was reported as attacking the curriculum for “uncritically promoting diversity” and undervaluing western civilisation.

Multiculturalism is connected to liberal values, such as ideas of freedom, tolerance and equal respect. It means we embrace pluralism in a democratic society. Multiculturalism isn’t about cultural relativism (the idea that everyone’s culture is of equal value), but it is about protecting people’s rights to identify as a part of a cultural group, to practice their culture and that the state should not impose a religion or culture on people. People can live as they choose so long as their choice does not impinge on the freedom of others. It is the way to go if we want a peaceful society. The option is colonisation, and assimilation, which is discriminatory, divisive and usually racist.

In the world of education it seems an appreciation of multiculturalism, tolerance, and respect for diversity has collapsed into ideas about student-led learning and constructivism. The constructivist model for learning does value what the student brings, and does appreciate that all students bring a set of tools and skills and knowledges to the classroom, even though they may not be the ones most valued by white western culture. It’s important for teachers to know where students are at before they can be taken somewhere else. The idea is that people’s learning builds upon what they already know, and yes, people can attribute meaning. Everybody does construct their own knowledge. That doesn’t mean they deny facts and evidence.

People who believe that morality is objective, that is, it is factually true (usually because they believe it comes form an ancient text), seem to apply that to knowledge. They fear morality being subjective, even culturally or historically subjective. People who believe morality can be subjective don't necessarily apply this idea to knowledge. Principles of mathematics and science are still true no matter what a person believes about morality. 

The accusation about moral relativism made by some Christians is that ‘anything goes’ because life has no meaning for people who don’t follow their ancient text. For some Christians, this ancient text provides a moral compass (even though this text is compiled, translated, interpreted). The same is true for people of other faiths who look to an ancient text. Lots of people of religious faith believe they know right from wrong because their book tells them so. They are moral absolutists. Never mind the circumstances that aren’t, and couldn’t have been, covered by their ancient texts, or the reasons those texts were written which might not be applicable in modern society. Never mind the very concerning idea that people are good because they are told to be and they fear they are being watched and will endure punishment for transgressions.

There is no evidence that people of one faith or another are any more moral than people of none. There are people who do good and who don’t, and they are pretty evenly spread across belief systems. I’d go so far as to suggest people who engage in moral reasoning are more moral because they aren’t motivated by fear of punishment.

I’m not exactly sure what people mean by moral relativism and why so many people warn against it. It seems to be a way of enforcing a religious divide and protecting their position of moral absolutism (which I’ve never heard discussed sensibly). I’ve heard moral absolutists say things like, ‘what if one culture thought it was OK to eat babies? We know that is wrong because the bible tells us’. Well, we all think it is wrong to eat babies, but for other reasons.

There are other ways of working out a system of moral reasoning, ethics, or moral philosophy. There is a long history of considering what it is to lead a good life, and how to determine the right course of action. Virtue ethics is based on the writings of Aristotle, and focuses on having a virtuous character. Being virtuous will lead to happiness. Kant talked about the universal law - what if everyone else was doing it? What would that look like? He is concerned with motive, not outcome. However, he was concerned with valuing every person’s right to human dignity. His ideas informed the UN Declaration of Human Rights. Deontologists consider the role of duty - duty to family, the social group, to country, to following the rules. Personally happiness is not a factor. Consequentialists judge according to the consequences of an action. Utilitarians consider what is the greatest good, or greatest happiness, for the greater number of people. This idea was developed by Jeremy Bentham and J. S. Mill. They assume that people are moral and of equal value. From this point one can argue for equal rights, separation of church and state, and freedom of expression. Others might consider moral reasoning on the basis of sentience (that people have the capacity for reason, and can feel pain). There is also Buddhist ethics, which focuses on compassion. All follow logical reasoning. All will apply evidence to their arguments. For Absolutists there is absolute right and wrong, usually ascribed to God (which makes them religious fundamentalists) or patriotism.  

Lets look at who tries to impose their will on others. Lets look at who refuses to examine another person’s point of view. Lets look at who cannot consider the possibility of being wrong. Lets look at who threatens violence at those who disagree, whether it be by killing them, or condemnation to burn forever in the fiery pits of hell.

It isn’t people who apply moral reasoning. It isn’t people who value human rights.

Which brings me to this: the Dunning-Kruger effect. Dunning and Kruger, psychologists at Cornell university in 1999, conducted experiments on the disconnect between perceived and actual competence. People of low ability rated themselves highly, because they didn’t know enough to know they were incompetent. People with high competence rated themselves lower than their ability, because they were so competent they thought everybody else must be the same or better. David Dunning said, ‘If you’re incompetent, you can’t know you’re incompetent. […] the skills you need to produce a right answer are exactly the skills you need to recognize what a right answer is.’ Others have expressed similar sentiments over the years, including (and this is from Wikipedia)  ‘Confucius ("Real knowledge is to know the extent of one's ignorance"), Socrates (“I know that I  know nothing”), Bertrand Russell ("One of the painful things about our time is that those who feel certainty are stupid, and those with any imagination and understanding are filled with doubt and indecision"), and Charles Darwin, ("ignorance more frequently begets confidence than does knowledge") and Shakespeare, who wrote in As You Like It "The Foole doth thinke he is wise, but the wiseman knowes himselfe to be a Foole" (V.i)).

I’m thinking moral absolutists suffer from the Dunning-Kruger effect. What other explanation is there?

Removing SRI in Victoria and SRE in NSW

This is what is happening to Special Religious Instruction (SRI) in Victoria and Special Religious Education (SRE) in NSW.

In Victoria the rules around SRI have changed. Schools now have to provide more information about the content and delivery of SRI. Parents need to opt their students in each year. As a result the enrolment has fallen, so much so that some schools can’t justify running the program. VIctoria does not have Special Education in Ethics as an option, so when students opt out of SRI they are in non-scripture, doing nothing.

At the same time there has been more examination of what is being taught and rejection of the content. The main provider of SRI in Victoria is Access Ministries, an evangelical group who says they have the right to use public schools to grow their church. Their messages include ones of intolerance, homophobia, and asking children to evangelize.

This is  a blog post from a Victorian parent who managed to have SRI dropped at her child’s school. It wasn’t difficult. What she did was build coalition - both inside the school community and with groups who support education over indoctrination. She presented a letter to School Council outlining what she wanted and why. It was passed. Done.

http://jacquitomlins.com/2014/06/18/removing-special-religious-instruction-from-your-school-a-how-to-guide/

In NSW things are happening too. A state review in SRE is being started.

The issue isn’t only a problem in primary schools. High schools are part of the story too. Most high schools abide by the policy by running SRE. They schedule it at the end of the school day so most students just go home. The problem in high schools is the Scripture Union position. This group is authorised to run a voluntary lunchtime religious club called Inter School Christian Fellowship (ISCF). In practice, the person holding this position is removing students from their mainstream classes. In one school, teachers have been told that when this happens they are to cease giving any new information to the remaining students. Obviously, this is not OK. As much as one can argue about how many ways this is wrong, the only thing that matters is how it breaches policies. Which it does in various ways. Scripture Union is not an authorised SRE provider. It is not exempt from Department of Education policies. These policies include ones about values, homophobia in schools, respect for diversity, teaching controversial issues in schools, and the general capabilities of the new Australian curriculum. One school website says the club contains about 120 students with extensive activities listed.

I’ve been looking at the relevant policies and finding out what is happening in local schools. What I’m finding is lots of breaching of policy. In fact, I haven’t found one yet that abides by the policies. I’ve been writing to schools, stating what is happening, what the policy is and asking principals to ‘please explain’. I’ve successfully taken a case to P&C.

I’m surprised that principals have been permitting these policy breaches for years. All they needed to do was call the Department of Education or to check with their local directors. I do understand that principals can feel bullied by the religious groups. (And principals are busy people with many serious matters to deal with.)

I’ve been talking to other action groups including Human Rights Advocacy Australia and The Greens (who have a policy of removing SRE from schools, but will be satisfied for now with closing the door on evangelists in public schools). I’ll also be talking to Marion Maddox.

I have written to the NSW Minister for Education and the Secretary for the Department of Education.

I know what I’ll be asking for in the review.

I’ll ask that these rules be implemented.

• that parents are given information about the content of all SRE options
• that parents are given information about  who delivers each SRE, including links to websites
• that food, lollies and other tangible enticements are banned from SRE
• that students opt in rather than opt out, and this decision is made each year
• that the school seeks to have authorised providers deliver SRE based on student and parent interest rather than to deliver students to interested SRE providers
• that parents are told they have the right to complain to the school about the content and delivery of SRE, in accordance with Department of Education policy
• that the school run an inclusive, non-denominational, non-faith based end of year celebration, or none at all in SRE time
• that members of church groups who deliver SRE sign an agreement akin to the Access Ministries CRE one in Victoria, which states that teachers do not evangelise; do not teach faith as fact; do not express views which are derogatory, biased or discriminatory on the grounds of lifestyle, culture, religion, family structure or sexuality; do not pressure students to participate in faith responses such as in prayer or singing; and do not ask students to proselytize or evangelise within their school.

These are all reasonable requests which should be implemented. They bring SRE into compliance with other Department of Education policies. These policies are about values in schools, about controversial issues in schools, about respecting diversity and about the general capabilities in the national curriculum. Currently SRE instructors during SRE time are exempt from these policies. That means that currently in public schools there is about 40 minutes a week  for each student in which all these policies are suspended.

I’ll also be asking that schools have the option of running their SRE programs on four days a year - teacher development days which are otherwise pupil free days. In this way SRE students can opt -in and no-one else’s teaching and learning is disrupted. This would fulfil the current school year time requirement for SRE.

I expect there will be many media stories coming out of the review.

I am confident that things will be changed in NSW as a result of the review. My only reservation is the possibility that SRE remains in NSW schools on the basis of the availability of the Primary Ethics program. Wouldn’t that be ironic.

If you want to know more, ask me.

Links to relevant documents here:

Department of Education SRE Policy

https://www.det.nsw.edu.au/policies/curriculum/schools/spec_religious/implementation_1_PD20020074.shtml?query=special+religious+education

Controversial Issues in schools

https://www.det.nsw.edu.au/policies/curriculum/schools/cont_issue/implementation_1_PD20020045.shtml?level=

Values

https://www.det.nsw.edu.au/policies/curriculum/schools/cont_issue/implementation_1_PD20020045.shtml?level=

Homophobia in schools

https://www.det.nsw.edu.au/policies/student_serv/student_welfare/homoph_sch/homophobia_sch.pdf

Human Rights Advocacy Australia

https://www.facebook.com/humanrightsadvocacyaustralia?ref=stream

Fairness in Religion in Schools (Victoria)

https://www.facebook.com/secularschools?ref=stream

The list of authorised providers of SRE in NSW

http://www.curriculumsupport.education.nsw.gov.au/policies/religion/assets/approvedproviders19112014.pdf.

The list of schools that have a Scripture Union person at their school for ISCF

http://www.sunsw.org.au/teams/schools

Opting in and opting out

I'm sick of opting out.

Ask me what I want to opt into.

I don't want to opt out of religious celebrations at public schools. I want them to just not be on.  Do your religious celebrations in your own time. If you can't cater for everyone, don't run the event at all.

 I don't want to opt out of overseas trips at public schools. Aside from language studies, I don't understand why they are offered, except as a way of competing with private schools. A band playing in a room in Sydney isn't any different from the same band playing in a room in another country. Don't we have world class teachers and facilities in Sydney? Do students get tired of playing at the Opera House? Schools don't have to provide every experience for students before they turn eighteen. Are their privileged experiences not enough of an opportunity? Do your overseas trips in your own time*.

I know public schools want to offer everything to everyone (except people who can't afford such things) and I wonder if these things are driven by vested interests - church groups, travel agencies - rather than by students and parents. The people who are in the in crowd argue that others can opt out, and that's fair. That's not fair. Opting out means not being included. It means other people are having experiences and building relationships and gathering points of reference that the opting out people are excluded from. The opting out students are left behind. They are marked by their difference - either by religion or by expendable income. You shouldn't have to declare such things at a public school. Children are not asked to opt out on the basis of gender, race, class, ability or sexuality, and they should not be asked to opt out on the basis of religion.  Again, if everyone can't attend, don't run it at all.

Ask me what I want to opt into. I want to opt into transparency, inclusion and respect for everyone. I want equality of experience regardless of gender, race, class, ability, sexuality and religion.

Public schools are supposed to be compulsory, secular and free. If you want your religious celebrations and overseas trips, opt into another school system.


*High school band touring Europe. Total cost $379,170.00 for 66 students and some teachers. 

A tale of three schools

I did some fundraising recently for one of my kid's schools. Lets call it school A. I approached businesses for donations we could give as prizes for our Trivia Night. It was fun. Very sociable. People were kind. It took longer than I expected but I enjoyed it. The event didn't raise a lot of money, but that wasn't our intention. I enjoyed giving prizes to lots of people who volunteer their time for the school.

I attended the P&C of another of my kid's schools. Lets call it school C. The funding is being reduced, because the demographic of the local area is changing. The school could do with some assistance and greater parental participation.

I received an email from another of my kids' schools. Lets call it school F. They are doing fundraising for their band event. I agreed to buy some food to contribute, and emailed back, saying I'd just done fundraising for another school, and after emailing certain businesses they sent us tickets we gave as prizes. The reply came. Oh, yes, we usually receive tickets from the Sydney Symphony, etc, but mostly our prizes are donations from parents, including one from an artist parent (there are other known figures who are parents at the school). I'm feeling a little embarrassed. Then another email. I seem to be a good person to take over the fundraising role for the band (which happens to be going to Europe next year). Would I like to take on the role?

Nope.

The 'true meaning of Christmas', and the facts

Some Christians will tell you they know the ‘true meaning of Christmas’. Here are the facts about Christmas.

The Jesus Story

There were more than four gospels written about Jesus. The four that are in the New Testament were selected. The others were lost (and some have been partly found). Two include the story of the birth of Jesus: those written by Matthew and Luke. These are inconsistent.

The gospels were written after the death of Jesus. Jesus and his disciples were illiterate peasants. The gospels were written c.65 -100 CE, so they weren’t written by anyone who actually knew him. The only other existing reference to Jesus in ancient writings is an oblique reference to him in regard to his brother, James. The gospels were written after the Romans destroyed the temple of Jerusalem in 70 CE. After this event the early followers of Jesus, who were Jews following a Jewish messiah, became a new religion for Jews and Gentiles. This change was driven by Paul, who was Saul and converted on the road to Damascus. Again, Paul never met Jesus. He was a Jew and and a Roman citizen, who took the message of Christianity to the broader world, and wrote about half of the New Testament. There is evidence of him breaking with the original followers of Jesus, who, after the death of Jesus, were led by his brother, James.

The story of Jesus states he was born in Bethlehem. There is no evidence of this. If Jesus was born in Bethlehem he would be known as Jesus of Bethlehem rather than Jesus of Nazareth. The story places his birth there to connect him to the line of King David, in order to fulfil an ancient Jewish prophecy. There were about forty generations between King David and Joseph. King David had multiple wives, so would have had tens of thousands, if not a million, heirs. If Jesus is the son of God and Mary is a virgin, then the lineage of Joseph is irrelevant. Virgin births were common in ancient mythology. The story says that Mary and Joseph travelled to Bethlehem for a census. This is not true. It doesn’t fit with other Roman documentation. Luke says Jesus was born when Quirinius was governor of Syria. Quirinius was governor of Syria when Jesus was 8-10 years old. There were censuses in ancient times, but not ones under the rulers as stated in the story and not ones that asked people to travel. To travel from Nazareth to Bethlehem would have taken seven to ten days, in the heat of the day and the cold dark of night, resting in fields, and eating only the supplies that could be carried. The is no mention of Joseph outside the birth stories. There probably was no star. Ancient peoples didn’t know about how the planets and the universe worked. They believed that a bright star marked the birth of a prophet. Matthew writes that Herod ordered the slaughter of baby boys. This is not true. Its purpose is to link the story to the story of Moses. Again, this is written to conform with ancient Jewish prophecies, which were inconsistent. The early readers of these stories would have known them to be untrue. There were not written as historically true stories.

In Mark’s earlier gospel he writes that someone says  ‘Is this not the carpenter, the son of Mary?’ This would have been an insult, akin to calling a person a bastard, since men were named according the paternal line. Mark doesn’t mention the birth story. Paul, writing 50-64 CE says that Jesus was born of a women. The stories about Jesus’ birth hadn’t started yet.

There is nothing in the gospels about Jesus being born in December. In the early Christian communities the birth of Jesus was not celebrated. Emperor Constantine, who declared Christianity the official religion for the Roman Empire, declared in 336 AD that December 25 would be celebrated as the birth of Jesus. This was reinforced by Pope Julius I a few years later.

Some people think that Jesus was actually born in April or September.

Pagan Celebrations

Before the birth of Jesus pagans celebrated the winter holidays. In the northern hemisphere winter solstice was celebrated on December 22.  In Rome, Saturnalia meant feasting and fun. The festival of Juvenilia celebrated children. Romans also celebrated the birthday of Mithra, the god of the sun, on December 25th.

These celebrations, in the cold and dark of winter, included bringing the outside in. In ancient times people believed that having evergreen branches in their homes would keep out evil spirits. A yule log was burned in the fireplace.

Pagan rituals were turned into Christian ones. The early Puritan settlers of America banned the celebration of Christmas because of its pagan roots.

The Story of Santa

St Nicholas was a priest, and then Bishop, who lived in Asia Minor about 300 CE. He was kind and generous. The Roman emperor declared he was a god, but Christians did not worship that way, so Christians and St Nicholas were imprisoned. He was imprisoned for five years. When he was released his reputation grew, as it did after his death. In the 17th Century Dutch immigrants brought the story of St Nicholas to America. In 1822 the story ‘The Night Before Christmas’ was written. In the 1920s the image of Santa became a jolly fat man wearing a red suit with a white trim. Coca Cola owns the rights to the image of Santa created for their advertising 1931 - 1964. The practice of exchanging gifts began in the late 1800s. It became a national holiday in the US in 1870.

Christmas

The first recorded use of the word Christmas was in Old English in 1038 CE. The words ‘true meaning of Christmas’ were first used on the blurb for Dickens’ book ‘A Christmas Carol’.

Christmas today can bee seen as a celebration of friends and family. It can be valued as an time of economic upturn. It can be seen as a festival of excess and waste.

So, you can see, the story does not have one true meaning. The meaning is constructed, contested, and shifting.

We need to talk about god.

I was raised a Catholic, but I’ve been an atheist for a long time; about 35 years. As a single person, and before having children, I didn’t really have cause to think much more about religion. I expected to live my life amongst like-minded atheists. When I moved into the suburb in which I now live and started having children, I had to rethink my views about religion. My community is one in which there is an evangelical Anglican church. This church supports men who are studying ministry (and their families) and missionaries, who travel overseas to spread the word.

Members of this church attend the local public school. There aren’t any other community hubs in our suburb (unless you’re Catholic), so the church and the school share some resources. It is often church-going parents who are available for volunteering at school. I’ve been socially involved with these families, and have asked members over the years about aspects of their faith. I understand that they believe they are right and want to spread the word. I understand they think they are doing the will of god. I’ve done my own further research about the life of Jesus and the beginnings of the church. I’ve always questioned their belief that they have a right to access children at public schools. Some evangelical Christians attend public schools as ‘salt and light’, that is, as an example of Christians living in our community in an effort to convert other people to Christianity. For an atheist family to say they were at a public school as an example of an atheist family would be considered preposterous. Some evangelical Christians attend public schools to grow their church. For any other religious group to state that they use public schools in this way would cause an outcry. I’ve been interested in, engaged with and understanding of the local church group. I have a degree in ancient mythology, and understand the need for the ritual and community that religion provides. My view has always been to live and let live. My aim has been to emphasis what we have in common rather than what divides us. It is easier when you like the people involved. I’ve even defended church members against their critics, asking for understanding, and hoping for a harmonious community.

I can no longer remain polite about allowing the local church to fulfil its aim of using the public school to seek converts. I believe it is morally wrong. It is wrong to gain access to non-Christian children with the aim to convert them. It is wrong in primary schools, where children may not have developed the ability to reason and question. It is wrong in high schools, where children are concerned with fitting in to a group. It is wrong to approach children with lollies, balloons and parties, knowing that children will be attracted by these things. It is wrong to market religion to children. It is wrong to tell Christian children to talk to their little friends about Jesus. More than morally wrong, I say it is sinister. It is time to get churches out of public schools.

This includes chaplains, scripture teachers and ministries such as Access and Generate, who, by their very names, are clear about their intentions. I argue that if it isn’t OK to have Muslim or Jewish groups entering schools to preach to those of other faiths, then it isn’t OK for Christians. If it isn’t OK for atheists to tell Christian students that there is no god (which is quite different from ‘not believing in god’ which assumes there is a god and atheists don’t believe in him), then it isn’t OK to tell non-Christians that there is. We are respectful enough to not tell children who believe in Santa that their belief is wrong, even though Santa is used to reward and punish children in order to manipulate their behaviour, even though all adults know there is no Santa, yet some Christians feel they have the right to preach about sin, heaven, hell, and the mythologies of the bible to non-Christian children. It makes me wonder if Christian children are being taught that non-Christians and atheists are to be regarded with pity or in a disparaging or disrespectful manner because they are going to hell and should convert, yet these other groups are given no right of reply. I don’t understand how anyone could consider this acceptable. 

At our school Protestant Scripture has recently been rebranded as Christian Scripture, even though the school also offers Catholic and Greek Orthodox Scripture classes. This appears to be an attempt to cast a wider net, attracting Christians who may not be Protestant. 

If the message from the church is strong enough to withstand scrutiny, then approach adults, not children.

Some people think Christian groups should be present in public schools in order to teach values. Anyone who has spent time in public schools would see that values are stated in policy documents , embedded in the school rules, modelled in respectful relationships and are reinforced every day.  The core values, as stated in a policy document of March 2004 are: integrity, excellence, respect, responsibility, cooperation, participation, care, fairness and democracy. The general capabilities embedded in the new Australian curriculum include: critical and creative thinking, personal and social capability, intercultural understanding and ethical understanding. These are the aims of a secular education. How do these sit with religious indoctrination and the belief that people of one religion have the to right to try to convert public school students?  I say they don’t.

World-wide we are doing a very poor job of respecting difference, emphasising what we have in common and allowing others to believe what they please. Future generations will look at this time in history in wonder and disbelief that people in the 21st century held religious beliefs, fought over them, colonised and killed over them. There is now more archeological evidence of stories in Greek and Roman mythology than there is for some stories in the bible. That doesn’t mean we need to practise a religion around them. The only way forward, which is sure to come, is to actively teach atheism. Surely we are grown up enough, and knowledgeable enough, that we can let religion go. There is no other hope for world peace.

I have a passion for using the correct word*

I’ve already had my rant about the overuse of the word ‘grab’.

I also take issue with the use of the word ‘nightmare’. Too often I’ve heard people say things like ‘the renovation is such a nightmare!’. Well, no. You can afford to update a house you own. It is an inconvenience, and manageable, and you chose to do it. Being a woman in the DRC or Afghanistan would be a nightmare. Being raped in front of your children would be a nightmare. Being caught in a tsunami would be a nightmare. Have some perspective.

Recently I’ve added another to my list.

When I used to read the mum forums whenever there was a disagreement someone would say ‘we’re all passionate mums’. I thought the use of the word was silly then. The silliness has grown.

I had someone say to me recently ‘oh, so you’re passionate about road safety’. No. I’m concerned about road safety. I care about children not being killed getting to school. Lets save passion for passion.

My partner was asked at a job interview what he is passionate about. The correct answer was supposed to be ‘coding’, which would be ridiculous.

I’m expecting to be asked the same question when I’m applying for jobs, but it’s one I just can’t take seriously. Better to ask what I care about, or what I’m concerned about . Or what I’m compassionate about. That I can answer truthfully.

Lets leave passion for the bedroom (or anywhere else you might like to encounter your preferred sex partner).

* This doesn't mean I always do use the correct word. But I try to, and I'm willing to learn.

Teaching Feminism

With the despairing conversations resulting from the tumblr posts on Women Against Feminism, there has been raised the suggestion that feminism needs to be taught. Many groups have been compiling responses to enlighten people who believe we no longer need feminism, or who don’t understand what feminism is. Good work. I’m all for teaching feminism.

A group of Melbourne students at Fitzroy High School want more resources for the teaching of feminism, and want to rewrite the curriculum to include women’s studies, so did crowdscourcing to raise funds. I’m not sure what the fundraising is for. The new Australian curriculum isn’t about to be rewritten anytime soon - it's just being implemented. (From what I've seen of the history curriculum, the knowledge one would hope students wouldn't leave school without - genocide, civil rights movements - are in the elective strand rather than the compulsory strand.) Although there is no explicit unit of work in the history curriculum on women, it is possible that an aware teacher can include aspects of women’s studies in any syllabus unit. I don’t know what they are trying to achieve by creating curriculum resources for the nation. I plan to teach feminism as part of any unit of work where the issue is relevant.

http://www.abc.net.au/news/2014-08-08/becoming-a-teenage-feminist/5655274

Everything people need to learn about feminism is available online. Start a Facebook page and have regular meetings to discuss the issues. Anyone can like the Facebook pages for feminist activist groups and receive their regular posts about women in art, business, entertainment, about gendered education and toys, about political issues, about books and conferences and panel discussion, and about campaigns for action. There are lots of creative ways to be a feminist:

From the US: Miss Representation, Brave Girls Want (these groups pass on videos and infographics from Upworthy and Buzzfeed), Feministing, Feministe, Everyday Feminism, and the writing of Jessica Valenti (who started Feministing).

From the UK: UK Feminista, The F-Word

From Australia: Destroy the Joint, Collective Shout, the writings of Andrea Fox (blogs as Blue Milk), Clementine Ford, Anne Summers, the blog News with Nipples, Hoyden About Town and their Down Under Feminist  Carnivals, and our Sex Discrimination Officer, Elizabeth Broderick.

From Canada: Motherhood Initiative for Research and Community Involvement

For global issues, read Half the Sky by Nicholas Kristof and Sheryl WuDunn, and look at the United Nations groups, UNIFEM and Women Watch.

That should be enough to get started.

There are new books coming out all the time - mostly saying the same things but saying them to new audiences.

At one of my daughter’s schools there is a feminist club. At my other daughter’s school the principal and teachers talk about feminism. Nina Funnell visited the school recently to talk to the students. All good stuff. And good for the students hear about feminism from someone other than their mothers.

Whilst I’m happy to prepare and present programs for schools about Feminism (and many other issues), school students are able to get these activities started for themselves, with teacher assistance. If the students from Fitzroy High School can get started with a discussion in English class and teacher assistance, surely they can continue. If the fundraising is to pay for people like Nina Funnell, Danielle Miller, and the above-named (or me) to visit and present at schools, then carry on.

Meanwhile, I’m planning to attend the conference in Brisbane, run by The Association for Women Educators: Reclaiming Feminism, EnGendering Change, where I hope to find out more, (or, doing the sums, perhaps for now it is enough to know this group exists) and I think it’s time I started a feminist bookgroup. I’ll keep you posted.

http://www.awe.asn.au/drupal/content/reclaiming-feminism-engendering-change

Women in Sydney Theatre

There’s been some controversy lately about gender in theatre. A production of Oleanna in the US, a play written for a man (the uni lecturer)  and a women (the student) was staged with two males in the roles. David Mamet pulled the plug after one performance.

http://m.tapmilwaukee.com/mamet-letter-forces-alchemist-to-cancel-oleanna-after-1-performance-b99295992z1-264051181.html

In Sydney, at Belvoir  St Theatre, a male has been cast as the lead in a production of Hedda Gabler.

http://belvoir.com.au/productions/hedda-gabler/

The production is directed by Adena Jacobs, a woman, who calls it a ‘post-gender’ production.

Ash Flanders, who plays Gabler, say “... I think Hedda is ­almost beyond gender, she is ­almost a mythical creature.”

Now I’ve ranted here before about the state of Sydney theatre, about the work of directors Simon Stone and Benedict Andrews, and how tawdy, misogynistic and base their productions are. (I blame Barry Kosky. Compulsory masterbation scene, anyone?) I’ve asked that we have more female directors and that productions have a vision of what the world may be, not of how depraved the world is. These productions are not what I want to see at the theatre. Yes, I know people watch Big Brother on tv, but we expect a little more critique and insight from theatrical experiences. When I see nudity, excrement and bad behaviour on stage, as someone who has lived with small children, it just makes me think of more mess for women to clean up. I was hoping a female director at Belvoir would be different. I need to think again.

So far, I’ve only read this review, which views it poorly.

http://www.smh.com.au/entertainment/stage/hedda-gabler-review-frigidly-moody-production-leaves-audience-beyond-caring-20140703-zsunm.html

If we really did live in a post-gender world, casting men in women’s roles would be fine. If there were loads of great roles for women, it would be fine. If casting against type added some insight or critique, then that would be fine. I’m all for shaking up the classics - transport them to different times and places - that would be fine. But don’t just do it for the sake of it, or for sensationalism. You need to actually have something to say. So now I'm not sure if it is a gender problem, or a Sydney theatre (STC/Belvoir St) problem.

And I wonder what all the underemployed great female actors think about their limited roles going to men.

Writing on mothering/motherhood - a review in LRB

An article here by Jacqueline Rose, about mothers, published in the London Review of Books. It’s a long article, covering a number of texts, but worthwhile. Here are some excerpts.

There was a time when becoming a mother could signal a woman’s entry into civic life. In ancient Greece, a woman was maiden, bride and then, after childbirth, mature female, which allowed her to enter the community of women and participate in religious ceremonies. Established in her household as a mother, a woman gained new economic and affective power (she had ceased to be an object of exchange). She could fulfil her destiny only by becoming a mother, but according to one account of Greek motherhood, in doing so she became more rather than less engaged in the polity. Having a child ushered the woman on a path that led to something other than motherhood itself – an idea which modern times seem progressively to have lost. This version of motherhood expanded horizons. It gave women a voice. ..

But why in modern times is the participation of mothers in political and public life seen as the exception – Great Britain lagging behind the rest of Europe and the US? Why are mothers not seen as an essential part of a contested polity? Why are they exhorted to make their stand in the boardroom – to ‘lean in’, as the ghastly imperative of Sheryl Sandberg’s bestseller has it – as if being the props of neoliberalism were the most mothers could aspire to, the highest form of social belonging they could expect. Today we are witnessing what Angela McRobbie has described as a ‘neoliberal intensification of mothering’: perfectly turned out middle-class, mainly white mothers, with their perfect jobs, perfect husbands and marriages, whose permanent glow of self-satisfaction is intended to make all the women who don’t conform to that image – because they are poorer or black or their lives are just more humanly complicated – feel like total failures.​ This has the added advantage of letting a government whose austerity policy has disproportionately targeted women and mothers completely off the hook...

‘What we have, for the most part,’ Daisy Waugh writes in I Don’t Know Why She Bothers: Guilt-Free Motherhood for Thoroughly Modern Women, ‘is a repressive sentimentality, a smiling acceptance of female martyrdom, which teeters, at times, beyond martyrdom into a sort of approved, mass-culture masochism.’ But Waugh’s insights are trounced by her breeziness, which makes you feel that mothers have only themselves to blame – that ‘thoroughly modern’ in the title is the give-away…

Perhaps, then, we should be asking a slightly different question: not what a mother is or should be, but what version of motherhood might make it possible for a mother to listen to her child? For if Western culture in our times, especially in America and Europe, has repeatedly conspired to silence the inner life of the mother by laying on her the weight of its own impossible and most punishing ideals, if the term ‘mothers’ is a trigger for a willed self-perfection that crushes women as mothers, then how can mothers be expected to hear their children’s cry – the cry not of wailing babies, which is hard enough, but the cry of protest and plaint? How can they bear to watch their child cast off the yoke of false mental safety, turning on its head what was meant to be the psychic legacy of their own version of motherhood?...

http://www.lrb.co.uk/v36/n12/jacqueline-rose/mothers

Cultural Diversity in Education

I’ve just done a unit of study on cultural diversity in education. Because I’m an external student I didn’t get to discuss all the interesting issues I wanted to talk about, so I’m raising them here.

Multicultural Public Speaking Competition

I wonder how much about multiculturalism the primary school students understand. I wonder if the topics the students can choose from are really suitable. It’s all a bit more complex and confronting than primary school students, and their teachers, might be comfortable with. And although I’m all for disrupting the norm, I’m not sure this is the right way to go about it. The topics don’t point to the idea that white culture is a culture, but they do assume that, and assume that every other culture is ‘other’. The topics don’t touch on white privilege, although I wonder how far any discussion on multiculturalism can go without mentioning it.

I have reservations about telling my children about racism. Although I’ve told them about issues in history, I don’t want to plant the ideas that people of some races have been regarded as lesser human beings. I don’t think they’ve ever heard an Irish joke. My instinct is to let these ideas die out. The research says they should be acknowledged and  addressed. Some say that being colourblind is the way to go - to stop talking about racism. Researchers disagree. I can make a comparison with sexism. It won’t go away by ignoring it.

I suspect there is a market in selling speeches for this competition. I know that a lot of parents write them for their children, because the concepts are difficult. Writing a speech is difficult. We need to teach multiculturalism in primary schools but surely there is a better way to do it than having a public speaking competition.

How to engage migrant parents.

This question was raised at a P&C meeting recently, and is something I’ve thought about before, noticing that it is usually the white parents who volunteer and participate at school. (This doesn’t hold true for the selective school, where parents are more into the concerted cultivation style of parenting.)

Schools are white institutions. Parent bodies at schools are white institutions. Some cultural groups may not be comfortable with the model of sitting in a circle and everyone having their say. Some may  want to hear only from elders, or those in authority, or may make their point more circumspectly, taking more time. Their style may not suit a fast talking, let’s stick to point and make a resolution type of meeting.

In some families, parents aren’t available in the evening. They may consider this family time, or be working shift work, or be single parents and have no babysitter. It is possible that migrant parents see no value in attending school meetings and functions. If they considered it to have value, they would come. It may be worthwhile asking migrant parents why they don’t attend. If they want to come, but don't feel comfortable, then that is something to work on.

For some families, the family comes first. That may mean helping with younger children or helping with the family business. Education may not be a priority. It is also possible that migrant families may be helping their children’s educations in way we don’t see. For some cultures the school is expected to manage all school related issues, and if parents are at the school it is only because there is a problem. There may be a sense of shame associated with the parent being at school.

It is much easier to involve migrant parents when there is a large culture group at the school. Most studies that have been done in the USA are about Latino or African-American families. Where there is a large parent population who speak another language the school can translate announcements and newsletters to that language, such as Spanish for Latinos. For African-American students they can talk about code switching between Standard English and Ebonics. It is more difficult to address the issue when families are from a wide range of cultures, such as the situation in my local area.

To involve migrant families most schools immediately reach for celebrations of festivals and food. This is now regarded as shallow and tokenistic. If we want to really engage migrant parents then we need to listen to them. We need them to know that their culture is reflected in school materials. We need to invite parents to schools to tell us about themselves and their culture. The way to go is probably to follow the policy guidelines for Aboriginal Education, which states that elders must be invited to the school, and be involved in the school community. But, having listened, we might not always like or agree with or be able to deliver what people want. We can’t assume that involving migrant parents is going to end happily for everyone. Do we really respect cultural diversity or do we want everyone to do things the white way?

The situation may improve with the new Australian curriculum having intercultural understanding as a General Capability.

What is a minority?

If a group claims to have minority status, even if they seem quite powerful, does that mean they do? I remember in the late eighties or early nineties, when minority groups were gaining more attention and receiving funding support. White males were saying they were a minority, and were discriminated against because, according to them, you needed to be lesbian in a wheelchair to acquire funding. Another example would be a religious group that once was persecuted but now is powerful. At what point do you stop being part of a minority? If you identify with the original persecuted group, are you still a minority?