Maybe you are right. I would certainly leave, but then I am effectively on secondment as opposed to being in it for the long haul and therefore have the financial security to walk away. Perhaps I am overestimating the zeal of my fellow secular Christian expats, but I have a hard time imagining parents' reactions at schools like DESS and ASD to compulsory classes is Sharia and Islamic studies, particularly as the qualifications of the instructors would likely be dubious at best (i.e. where would they find highly qualified teachers to teach these subjects appropriately in a country with an existing shortage of good, qualified teachers?). For one, the international accreditation of the schools would be under threat.
I don't object to my children learning about Islam in the least, but the way it has been described by this group is not simply information, but education with the intent to persuade/convert. For the same reason, I would object to schools in England making classes in Christianity compulsory for all children, but I do not object to classes in English history or culture that include the roles that religion has played.
Regardless, as I said, I cannot fathom the country's leadership letting such a program come to pass.
Isobel--
Maybe you are right. I would certainly leave, but then I am effectively on secondment as opposed to being in it for the long haul and therefore have the financial security to walk away. Perhaps I am overestimating the zeal of my fellow secular Christian expats, but I have a hard time imagining parents' reactions at schools like DESS and ASD to compulsory classes is Sharia and Islamic studies, particularly as the qualifications of the instructors would likely be dubious at best (i.e. where would they find highly qualified teachers to teach these subjects appropriately in a country with an existing shortage of good, qualified teachers?). For one, the international accreditation of the schools would be under threat.
I don't object to my children learning about Islam in the least, but the way it has been described by this group is not simply information, but education with the intent to persuade/convert. For the same reason, I would object to schools in England making classes in Christianity compulsory for all children, but I do not object to classes in English history or culture that include the roles that religion has played.
Regardless, as I said, I cannot fathom the country's leadership letting such a program come to pass.