Downgrading parents

According to the Christian worldview, families are the bedrock of a strong society.

They are God’s design and intended to be an environment in which children are nurtured. In this worldview, parents are chiefly responsible before God for educating their children. Parents are commanded to bring their children up in the fear of the Lord, which is a weighty responsibility.

Education and the State

Of course, others play a part in helping parents educate their young. Within the local church community, fellow Christians will have an impact. Then there are teachers who play such a vital role in instructing young people in a variety of ways, on a variety of subjects.

We are immensely privileged in the UK that education is so widely available. But herein lies a real tension. If parents carry the primary responsibility for educating their children, what should we do when the State oversteps the mark?

Parental protest

This question has been brought into sharper focus just recently. You may have read or heard about a school in Birmingham where 600 pupils were removed in a protest by parents over the content and age-appropriateness of a course called ‘No Outsiders’. The school has subsequently backed down, albeit temporarily. But it has raised a big debate about the content of sex and relationships education and the rights of parents, and about whether they can withdraw their children or not.

Under the previous law, Primary schools could choose whether to provide sex education. Secondary schools, by contrast, had to provide it.

Head’s decision

The government’s new proposals are for mandatory relationships education in Primary schools with no right of withdrawal, and optional sex education with parental right of withdrawal as now. In Secondary schools, the government is set to introduce new relationships and sex education with no right of withdrawal with respect to relationships education element of the curriculum and a right of request in relation to sex education. So parents can request withdrawal, but it is up to the head teacher and not the parents to make the final decision.

Sadly, this is yet another example of the government going back on its earlier promises. During the key debate about the 2017 Children and Social Work Bill, the government insisted that the parental right of withdrawal from sex education would be maintained. But they have broken their promises. Final authority of requests to withdraw from sex education at secondary school now rest with the head teacher.

Not neutral

The watering down of parental right of withdrawal is unacceptable. It’s hardly surprising so many parents are worried about the potential for indoctrination. This is not an idle concern. The State is not neutral. It makes decisions about what is morally right or wrong. This in a context where the Christian understanding of marriage and family has been jettisoned in favour of a more fluid understanding of sexual ethics. There is the prospect of young people being taught positively about relationships and worldviews that those of us who hold orthodox Christian views on sex and sexuality would strongly disagree with.

Profound philosophical shift

In fairness, not everything included in the syllabus is bad. Some of the proposed content will engage with online behaviour, the dangers of pornography and the need for respect in friendships. But the new guidance and regulations still represent a profound philosophical shift. The government has taken authority away from parents and decided to give it to the State.

The Christian worldview does not see the State as the ultimate answer to every problem. There is an obsession with fixing societal problems through yet more education. Too many teenage pregnancies? More education will fix that. Are you an extremist? We’ll re-educate you. This mentality mar-ginalises parents and also demonstrates a worrying naivety about human nature.

But sin is sin. Education plays a role in shaping character and providing life-skills so we can get jobs and earn a living. Yet no amount of education can save a soul – only Jesus can do that. We need to pray for gospel fruit in these days, for protection for our young people and that they will be given wisdom beyond their years to recognise that God’s ways are best.