Secular education is a system of public education in countries with a

secular Secularity, also the secular or secularness (from Latin ''saeculum'', "worldly" or "of a generation"), is the state of being unrelated or neutral in regards to religion. Anything that does not have an explicit reference to religion, either negativ ...

government or separation between

religion Religion is usually defined as a social- cultural system of designated behaviors and practices, morals, beliefs, worldviews, texts, sanctified places, prophecies, ethics, or organizations, that generally relates humanity to supernatur ...

and

state State may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Literature * ''State Magazine'', a monthly magazine published by the U.S. Department of State * ''The State'' (newspaper), a daily newspaper in Columbia, South Carolina, United States * ''Our S ...

. An example of a secular educational system would be the French public educational system, where conspicuous religious symbols have been banned in schools. While some religious groups are hostile to secularism and see such measures as promoting

atheism Atheism, in the broadest sense, is an absence of belief in the existence of deities. Less broadly, atheism is a rejection of the belief that any deities exist. In an even narrower sense, atheism is specifically the position that there no d ...

, other citizens claim that the display of any religious symbol constitutes an infringement of the

separation of church and state The separation of church and state is a philosophical and jurisprudential concept for defining political distance in the relationship between religious organizations and the state. Conceptually, the term refers to the creation of a secular s ...

and a discrimination against atheist, agnostic and non-religious people.

Actions and controversies

*In

Turkey Turkey ( tr, Türkiye ), officially the Republic of Türkiye ( tr, Türkiye Cumhuriyeti, links=no ), is a transcontinental country located mainly on the Anatolian Peninsula in Western Asia, with a small portion on the Balkan Peninsula ...

the promotion of Imam Hatip Islamic schools by the government following the March 2012 education reform bill, allegedly alarmed some Turkish citizens. The Education Reform Bill was written without public debate or even discussion in the Ministry of National Education's own consultative body; it did not even figure in the government’s 2011 election manifesto. Besides undermining Turkish secularism, the new measures would undermine educational standards and deepen social inequalities, according to education specialists. Turkey’s leading universities, including

Sabancı University Sabancı University ( tr, Sabancı Üniversitesi), established in 1994, is a young foundation university located on a 1.26 million squaremeter campus which is about 40 km from Istanbul's city center. Its first students matriculated in 1999. ...

Boğaziçi University Boğaziçi University ( tr, Boğaziçi Üniversitesi), also known as Bosphorus University, is a major research university in Istanbul, Turkey. Its main campus is located on the European side of the Bosphorus strait. It has six faculties and t ...

Middle East Technical University Middle East Technical University (commonly referred to as METU; in Turkish, ''Orta Doğu Teknik Üniversitesi'', ODTÜ) is a public technical university located in Ankara, Turkey. The university emphasizes research and education in engineering ...

and Koç University, all issued press statements describing the reforms of 2012 as hastily conceived, retrograde and out of step with current thinking.Andrew Finkel in the

International Herald Tribune The ''International Herald Tribune'' (''IHT'') was a daily English-language newspaper published in Paris, France for international English-speaking readers. It had the aim of becoming "the world's first global newspaper" and could fairly be said ...

of 23 March 201
What’s 4 + 4 + 4?
accessed on 7 November 2012 *In Italy the

Lautsi v. Italy ''Lautsi v. Italy'' was a case brought before the European Court of Human Rights, which, on 18 March 2011, ruled that the requirement in Italian law that crucifixes be displayed in classrooms of schools does not violate the European Convention on H ...

case was brought before the

European Court of Human Rights The European Court of Human Rights (ECHR or ECtHR), also known as the Strasbourg Court, is an international court of the Council of Europe which interprets the European Convention on Human Rights. The court hears applications alleging that ...

regarding the display of

crucifix A crucifix (from Latin ''cruci fixus'' meaning "(one) fixed to a cross") is a cross with an image of Jesus on it, as distinct from a bare cross. The representation of Jesus himself on the cross is referred to in English as the ''corpus'' (La ...

es in classrooms of state schools.Full text of the judgment of the European Court of Human Rights
/ref> *In

Romania Romania ( ; ro, România ) is a country located at the crossroads of Central Europe, Central, Eastern Europe, Eastern, and Southeast Europe, Southeastern Europe. It borders Bulgaria to the south, Ukraine to the north, Hungary to the west, S ...

the CNCD Decision 323/2006 was brought to the CNCD by Emil Moise, a teacher and parent from Buzău County, regarding the public display of Orthodox icons in classrooms and was supported by some high-profile activists. *In 2009 a new body was formed, the ''Australian Secular Lobby'', to promote secular education in

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands. With an area of , Australia is the largest country by ...

. *In

Southern Thailand Southern Thailand, Southern Siam or Tambralinga is a southernmost cultural region of Thailand, separated from Central Thailand region by the Kra Isthmus. Geography Southern Thailand is on the Malay Peninsula, with an area of around , bounde ...

, the secular educational system is being undermined by insurgent groups by means of the destruction of schools and the assassination of teachers.''No one is safe - The Ongoing Insurgency in Southern Thailand: Trends in Violence, Counterinsurgency Operations, and the Impact of National Politics''
by Zachary Abuza,

Human Rights Watch Human Rights Watch (HRW) is an international non-governmental organization, headquartered in New York City, that conducts research and advocacy on human rights. The group pressures governments, policy makers, companies, and individual human ...

, p. 23

References

External links

The case for a secular education systemPrinciple of Secular EducationCampaign for Secular Education
{{DEFAULTSORT:Secular Education Secularism Religion and education

Actions and controversies

See also

References

External links