Friday 29 May 2009

Another Muslim scare story bites the dust

Teacher sacked after 'making pupils kneel and pray to Allah' during RE lesson is the headline on a curious story on the Mail website. Curious because, as the third sentence makes clear: 'an investigation by the school concluded that there was no truth in the allegation'.

As someone who did re-enact Islamic prayers during RE at school, I fail to see much of a problem with learning about other religions in this way. Of course, that might make them a little less scary and the Mail wouldn't want that.

But the story goes on (and on) quoting outraged parents, quotes re-heated from the Mail's original story on the incident from July 2008.

That article was strident from the first line: 'Two schoolboys were given detention after refusing to kneel down and 'pray to Allah' during a religious education lesson'.

But the school says after a nearly year long investigation that: 'the governing body wish to make very clear that they were completely satisfied that at no point did that member of staff make children pray to Allah or put boys in detention for refusing to do so'.

Hmm. Which still leaves a question as to why she was sacked. And also - why has the Mail not apologised for printing what now appears to be a misleading story in the first place?

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