# FILE NAME: 00000034.soc
# TITLE: Should we allow parents to take children out of school on the basis of religious grounds? [84c1f81c132959164c85d61131ed421b]
# DESCRIPTION: 
# DATA TYPE: soc
# MODIFICATION TYPE: original
# RELATES TO: 
# RELATED FILES: 
# PUBLICATION DATE: 2025-10-12
# MODIFICATION DATE: 2025-10-12
# NUMBER ALTERNATIVES: 4
# NUMBER VOTERS: 5
# NUMBER UNIQUE ORDERS: 4
# ALTERNATIVE NAME 1: Statement 1 - In general, the group was in favour of allowing children to miss school on the basis of religious grounds. The general feeling was that children are only at school for a relatively short period of their life and for the most part they are not actually learning about important subjects. Many participants felt that children should be allowed to attend religious festivals, but there should be restrictions in place. These included restricting the number of days that children can miss to no more than a certain number per year, and not allowing children to miss during exam periods. There was some debate about how the line between religious reasons and cultural reasons should be drawn. It was felt that these should be separated as much as possible as cultural reasons could easily be fabricated, especially when religious beliefs are not clearly defined. Overall, the consensus was that there should be limitations on children missing school for religious reasons, but that they should be allowed to do so to some extent.
# ALTERNATIVE NAME 2: Statement 2 - There should be some room for manoeuvre on this, and to an extent it should be allowed to a limited degree. We should not make exceptions for religious reasons unless they are clearly supported and the reasoning is clear and verifiable. The reasoning should also have an underlying theme of education and not just social or cultural celebration. The next question was: Is there any current legislation that exists which might give some insight into this question? Here is the response of one of the participants: The Education Act 1944 is the main law regarding the school system. There are three parts of the Act: the part on elementary education, the part on further education, and the part on the children and young persons service. There is a duty on the parents of a child of compulsory school age to ensure that their child receives efficient full-time education suitable to his/her age, ability and aptitude, and to any special educational needs the child may have, either by regular attendance at school or otherwise.
# ALTERNATIVE NAME 3: Statement 3 - Religion is a vital part of many peoples lives. Religious beliefs can provide comfort and support for people when times are hard. Therefore I think that people should be allowed to take their children out of school on the basis of religious grounds. This would also allow people to observe their religious holidays as a family.
# ALTERNATIVE NAME 4: Statement 4 - No, parents should not be allowed to take children out of school on the basis of religious grounds. However we think this decision should be up to the school and the local community. Some schools may have an extremely diverse community and therefore may need to accommodate for the religious festivals of each of the religions within the community. Other schools may be more homogenous and not need to accommodate for the different religions. This is something that should be discussed and agreed upon at the beginning of the academic year and then rules and regulations should be set for the duration of the year. If these rules and regulations are adhered to, then parents should be able to take their children out of school for the religious festivals.
2: 3,1,2,4
1: 1,2,3,4
1: 1,2,4,3
1: 1,3,2,4