Increase in religious schools and home schooling could prevent ‘deeper social cohesion’, Julian Hill says | Australian education
A rise in faith-based education and homeschooling risks Australian children growing up without meaningful interaction with peers outside their own cultural and ethnic group, a leading Labor figure says.
Julian Hill, the Albanian government’s deputy minister for citizenship, traditions and multicultural affairs, says recent education trends have seen some children reach adulthood without mixing with people from different cultures and religions.
Hill says education can be among the institutions and systems that “prevent intercultural connections and deeper social cohesion.”
Policymakers should consider the extreme and conservative curriculums some students will be exposed to, including a huge increase in homeschooling since the start of the Covid-19 pandemic, he will tell progressive think tank the McKell Institute on Wednesday.
Hill will propose new efforts to promote better integration of Australian children from different backgrounds, including through sports, extracurricular activities and social activities.
He will point to Singapore as a possible example, where deliberate policies and “co-curricular” activities have brought students from different schools and different backgrounds together for sports and social events.
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According to Hill, 320 new Catholic and independent schools have opened in Australia since 2015, while only 279 new public schools have opened. The proportion of students attending a religiously affiliated school reached 33.9% last year, representing 1.4 million students.
“If trends continue, we can expect to see a steady increase in the number of faith-based schools attended by Christian, Muslim, Jewish, Hindu, Sikh and many more Australian children,” Hill said.
Homeschooling enrollments have skyrocketed by 232% in Queensland, 116% in New South Wales and 85% in Victoria over the past five years.
“There are reports of very extreme or conservative curricula being used that cause pause and reflection if this trend continues.
“What are these children being taught? Are they integrating into wider society?”
Hill, himself a graduate of a religious school, will say he does not oppose faith-based education, but instead raises questions about whether extra efforts to “strengthen bridge capital” are needed.
“When implemented well, cross-cultural initiatives will resonate with Australians and, over time, promote reduced prejudice and social polarization, stronger integration and trust across communities and institutions, and greater resilience to hate-based violence and misinformation.”
Hill’s speech came a day after the first hearing of the royal commission into antisemitism and social cohesion sparked by the Bondi terror attack in December.
On Tuesday Hill challenged One Nation leader Pauline Hanson to leave Stuart Bonds, the party’s candidate for the Hunter seat at last year’s election, over false claims about two men visiting a mining site near Muswellbrook at the weekend.
Bonds claimed the two Muslim men were “looking for explosives.”
“This nonsense is designed to increase tensions in the community. It is dangerous for Australia and a real leader will take action,” Hill said on social media.
In his speech on Wednesday, Bruce MP will argue that the Coalition’s shift to the right has fueled the rise of One Nation and accuse the smaller party of “playing with fire” with provocative statements about the Islamic community.
Hill will say: “The promise of Australia’s multiculturalism, understood simply, is the great promise of Australia’s fair course, that everyone will have a fair share of life here, regardless of background, identity or how long they have been here.” he will say.
