Saturday 22 June 2013

Tower Hamlets parents protest about abuse of science National Curriculum

Parents in Tower Hamlets will be taking to the street to protest about children being taught about sex in science lessons, which they claim is an abuse of the National Curriculum

While children at Arnhem Wharf Primary School, E14 3RP, are having a statutory science lesson on the afternoon of 26 June, parents from around the borough will be staging a protest outside the school against the content of the lesson taking place inside.

The parents are angry because the inclusion of the word "reproduction" in the science curriculum is being seen as a green light by teachers to transfer explicit teaching about sex to science lessons. There is nothing in the primary science curriculum at Key Stages 1 and 2 which mandates teachers to teach children about sexual matters.

SPUC's Safe at School campaign is supporting the protest which has been organised by the Tower Hamlets Parents Action Group - SRE.  The parents' group has sent an open letter to the school and members of the Local Authority, which sets out their grievances. Full text: http://www.spuc.org.uk/campaigns/safeatschool/arnhemwharf20130622

Antonia Tully of Safe at School said:
"Parents at Arnhem Wharf, and other primary schools, are being denied their legal right to protect their children from sex education which is unacceptable to them. Teaching children about sex in science lessons is effectively compulsory sex education by the back door. The Department of Education needs to wake up to what's going on."
Comments on this blog? Email them to johnsmeaton@spuc.org.uk
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