Muslim schools 'more liberal and tolerant'

Muslim pupils are more liberal and tolerant than their white counterparts, according to a study released today.

Nearly a third of white youngsters questioned in Burnley, Lancashire, - the scene of race riots in 2001 - believed that one race was superior, compared with 10% of Asians who thought the same.

Almost half of the white pupils felt that respecting others regardless of religion was not important and a quarter did not feel it was important to tolerate people with different views.

The research was carried out as part of the Burnley Project, a Home Office-funded investigation in the wake of the riots.

More than 400 15-year-olds were surveyed about their attitudes towards race, religion and cultural integration earlier this year. The research was conducted by Lancaster University's religious studies department.

The pupils came from three unnamed non-religious schools, all in deprived areas. One in Burnley, attended mostly by white pupils, and two schools in Blackburn, where one had mostly Indian or Pakistani pupils and the other was ethnically mixed.

Study author Dr Andrew Holden said a "disturbing" finding of the survey was the response to the question of racial superiority.

Nearly a third of the white pupils believed one race was superior compared with a tenth in the Asian school and under a fifth in the mixed school.

Dr Holden said: "The greater degree of racial tolerance in an overwhelmingly Asian/Muslim populated school again calls into question the common sense assumption that mixed schools represent the most tolerant environments."

Dr Holden added that most pupils at the mainly Muslim school were well integrated and loyal to the UK.

He said: "The overwhelming majority supported liberal democratic values such as showing respect for others, freedom of speech, being friendly to people from other religious and ethnic groups and tolerating those with different views."

Source: PA, HT: IW

Comments

[Ted]

"common sense assumption that mixed schools represent the most tolerant environments."

Well, er, yes, they would, generally speaking. Perhaps we should introduce segregated transport on the grounds that mixed transport is not necessarily a guarantor of tolerance, and God forbid, you may even get some racists on a mixed bus. Ergo, it's best simply to separate everyone.

I can't believe intelligent people are still arguing in 2006 that children have to be taught about, say, Physics alongside other children of the same religion. Mindless.

[Sadat]

Muslim schools are a safe environment to cultivate discipline and all-round personality.

Otherwise, your ward will be ruthlessly exposed daily to £1 ganja sachets available in the nearest CostCutter franchise and pimps posing as event managers.