Non-Catholics to be taught ‘ethics’ in classroom

Young people opting out of Catholic religious instruction in schools should be offered lessons in ethics, a consultation document on the new National Curriculum Framework issued by the education ministry states.

At present religious education in Malta is compulsory in primary and secondary schools, but parents have a right to decide whether their child follows Catholic religious education or not.

Presently these children are not offered a secular alternative to religious instruction and enjoy a free lesson while their colleagues follow religious classes.

The consultation document gives no details on the curriculum for the new ethics programme, adding that this will be “developed following discussions with stakeholders.”

The development of the ‘Ethical Education Programme’ will fall under the responsibility of the Education Directorate, while Catholic religious education will remain under the responsibility of the Maltese Episcopal Conference.

The document recognises that Maltese society is “becoming more pluralistic like the rest of the European continent.”

It also states that “deeper knowledge of different religious traditions” contributes to the “social and civic formation of young people.”

According to new curriculum, the emphasis of Catholic religion education should be on educating young people on the “dignity of the human being and the responsibility of each individual towards others for the building of a better society and a better world.”

The spiritual dimension should also promote values like “justice, personal responsibility, respect, reflection and active engagement in moral issues.”

Humanist Association welcomes reforms

Malta Humanist Association chairman Godfrey Vella welcomed the proposed change as a “decoupling of the inculcation of ethical and moral values from religious instruction.”

Vella noted that the imparting of ethical values to youngsters within the education system has up to now been seen primarily as a function of religious education.

Although parents have, for many years, had a Constitutional right to not have their children attend religious classes this “potentially could have left a void in the ethical formation of these students” as there was nothing to substitute these religious classes for these students.

He also welcomed the fact that an Ethical Education Programme is being proposed instead of a study in comparative religions.

“Although an awareness of the ideas behind the world’s major religions should be something that all students should have, a detailed course in comparative religions does not set any concrete moral guidelines which an ethics course would seek to inculcate,” Vella told MaltaToday. 

The MHA has already had positive meetings with the Education Department and other stakeholders to express its support for this idea and to explore how it can help in the implementation of this concept.

The MHA is also studying how this issue is being tackled in other countries and is preparing a report, which it will submit within the coming weeks, to the Education Department.

The MHA is also proposing that an element of ethics education should be provided to all students and not just those who do not choose religion as an option.

This could be introduced as part of the current personal and social development (PSD) curriculum. 

This will also mean that whereas content for religious instruction in the Catholic faith remains the prerogative of the Maltese bishops, “the State will take a more direct responsibility for ensuring that our youngsters are instilled with appropriate ethical and moral values,” Vella said.

What will the kids learn?

The curriculum states that children should learn about accepting “diverse family situations” and should learn to “overcome homophobic prejudice” and reject “discrimination” with regard to gender and ethnicity.

The new system, in practice, cuts down on the hours of religious teaching and makes the new subject compulsory in all elementary and secondary schools.

The proposed Maltese curriculum refers to the need for citizenship education which is included in history, geography, social studies, environment studies and personal, social and health education.

Through citizenship education, students are expected to develop “positive attitudes and respect for human rights, learn to adopt sustainable lifestyles and develop a sense of belonging in their locality, country, European and international community” and participate in democratic decision-making.

Religious instruction in Europe

Malta is not the only country in Europe where teachers approved by religious authorities provide religious education.

In most of Germany, religious instruction is offered as part of the curriculum but secular students can opt out and can follow courses on ethics.

Students in most states have the option of religious lessons by Protestant, Catholic, Greek Orthodox and Jewish religious education teachers. Currently the introduction of Islamic religious education is also being discussed.

Teachers who teach religion in public schools are paid by the State but are answerable to the churches for the content of their teaching.

From the age of 14, children may decide on their own if they want to attend religion classes.

Left-wing Berlin, where ethics classes are compulsory, is an exception to the German rule. Ethics classes were made compulsory in Berlin’s public schools after the honor killing of a Turkish woman by her brother in 2006.

A referendum in April 2009 to give religious classes, which are optional, an equal status to ethics confirmed that no one wanted to change the status quo. Only 14% voted to make religious education compulsory.

In  2008, Quebec installed a compulsory ethics-and-global-religions course across the Canadian province.

And in Spain, José Luis Zapatero’s leftist government introduced a new compulsory school subject called Education for Citizenship. Before this, religion and ethics were optional subjects in both private and state schools.