Victoria: School’s ‘turban ban’ displays common misunderstanding of equality

Can a school impose a uniform policy that does not take into account a student’s religious or cultural beliefs and practices? This issue is being considered by the Victorian Civil and Administrative Tribunal (VCAT).

Sagardeep Singh Arora, on behalf of his five-year-old son Sidhak Singh Arora, is challenging Melton Christian College’s decision not to enrol his son unless he agrees not to wear his patka, a Sikh head covering.

Continue reading “Victoria: School’s ‘turban ban’ displays common misunderstanding of equality”

UK: How could the teaching of Sikhism be improved in schools?

UK Sikh children at school

An ideal lesson plan on Sikhism might scope to creating small groups, allocating one or another aspect of Sikhism and setting off to research their topic in relation to Sikhism. They may be researching Sikh practices, Sikh language, Sikh culture, etc. They may use the internet, encyclopedias, and other books to supplement their research. The outcomes might be presented as write a song, a poster, a PowerPoint presentation, ‘teach’ the class in a mini-lesson, write a short play, etc. How do we inspire teachers to be confident “out of the box”?

Continue reading “UK: How could the teaching of Sikhism be improved in schools?”