First Hindu school in Britain ready to begin term
September 15th, 2008 - 10:34 am ICT by IANSLondon, Sep 15 (IANS) Students will shortly begin their term at Britain’s first Hindu school - the Krishna Avanti Voluntary Aided Primary School in Edgeware, north London, the area with the largest concentration of Hindus in the country.The ‘bhumi puja’ (ground breaking ceremony) of the school was performed this June. The school will follow the national curriculum, but offer education based on Hindu values. Concepts of inclusivity and equality of all human beings, meditation, yoga and a strict vegetarian diet will reflect some of them.
The first batch has 30 students, who are now housed in a temporary accommodation nearby, while the new school building is completed. The eventual strength will be 240.
Rasamanbla Das of the Oxford Centre of Hindu Studies, who helped with the integration of Hindu values in the school curriculum, told BBC News: “We have tried to enhance the syllabus by looking at what Hinduism can add, such as inclusivity and the equality of all living beings. It recognises the agency of the individual. It’s very much an interactive and experiential approach to education.”
However, organisations such as the Hindu Council and Accord - a secular front of multiple faiths - are sceptical about faith schools, saying there is a danger of such schools eventually focusing on a single faith, turning it into a “religious ghetto”.
However, Bharat Pandya of the Hindu Forum of Britain said the school was the result of a demand from Hindu parents to impart faith education to their children. The school has said it will spend as much time studying other religions as its own.
- Britain's first Hindu school to begin term (Lead) - Sep 15, 2008
- UK's 2nd Hindu school to open next September - Nov 27, 2010
- UK's 2nd Hindu school to admit non-Hindus also - Dec 30, 2010
- First Hindu state school in Britain eyes expansion - Jan 30, 2010
- PM Britain's first state Hindu school wows with marble temple - Jan 30, 2010
- Here's a sneak peak into Britain's first Hindu state-funded faith school - Jun 21, 2009
- Britain to fund school that teaches Indian meditation - Aug 29, 2011
- First state-funded Hindu school in UK to train kids in yoga, meditation, prayers - Sep 15, 2008
- Why teach only Gita in schools: Madhya Pradesh minorities - Mar 10, 2010
- Uttar Pradesh mosques double up as primary schools (With Image) - Feb 07, 2012
- Sports becomes part of school curriculum in Kerala - Nov 08, 2009
- Transcendental Meditation 'improves Math and English scores' - Mar 22, 2011
- Britain's Exam System "Almost Corrupt" Says Mick Waters - Sep 18, 2010
- CBSE launches curriculum for schools abroad - May 26, 2010
- Madras High Court orders uniform school syllabus - Jun 10, 2011
Tags: bhumi, edgeware, experiential approach, faith education, faith schools, ground breaking ceremony, hindu parents, hindu studies, hinduism, hindus, inclusivity, national curriculum, north london, offer education, oxford centre, pandya, school curriculum, secular front, strict vegetarian diet, temporary accommodation
