In Educate Together’s equality-based schools, all students are treated with care and equal treatment regardless of their socio-economic, cultural or religious background.
Students are free to be themselves
Students are free to be themselves in an Educate Together school. They are exposed to different beliefs and perspectives in a respectful way which encourages critical thinking. This affirms each student’s identity and encourages them to see diversity and different worldviews in a positive light.
Students are taught an Ethical Education curriculum
This curriculum includes learning about morality and spirituality; equality and justice; belief systems and an ethical approach to the environment. It teaches students about different belief systems as well as atheism, agnosticism and humanism, without promoting any one worldview over another.
There is no faith formation/instruction in any religion during the school day in an Educate Together school. Schools provide facilities for the teaching of faith formation after school, if requested. No student will ever be asked their religion as part of the enrolment process. No students will ever be separated or treated differently in any way due to their religious or philosophical beliefs in an Educate Together school.
Marking religious festivals
At the core of Educate Together’s equality-based ethos is that pupils in our schools are exposed to different beliefs and perspectives in a respectful way that encourages critical thinking. Our schools endeavour to mark religious festivals such as Diwali, Eid, Christmas, Hanukkah, Vaisakhi and others throughout the school term.
In December of each year, for example, many Educate Together schools host annual Festivals of Lights, Seasonal Get Togethers and Winter Fairs. These are inclusive celebrations that incorporate elements of Christmas, Hanukkah and the Winter Solstice as well as other belief systems and philosophical convictions. Religious aspects of these festivities are approached from a learning perspective, rather than from a promotional perspective. At the heart of these celebrations is the principle that all members of the school community are welcome and equally respected.
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