Poll shows most want to keep RE

Shortly after the government announced plans to drop RE from the new EBacc exam, a poll has shown that most people feel it should be kept. Nearly three quarters (71%) of the British public believe society will become more divided, unless children and young people are taught about different cultures and religions in school, according to a new ComRes survey, commissioned by the Premier Christian Media Group.

The same poll also revealed that more than two thirds (68%) of the British public believe that today's younger generations don't know enough about other religions and cultures, other than their own.

This comes as new research, released from the National Association of RE Teachers revealed that a significant number of schools are failing to deliver even the statutory requirements for teaching Religious Education.

Dr Hojjat Ramzy, Acting Chair of the Education Committee for the Muslim Council of Britain and CWC said: "Religious Education is very important in life as it contribute significantly towards building social cohesion in this country-, which is culturally diverse and multi-faith in nature. Young people particularly, should be given the opportunity to learn about other people's traditions and faiths so that they can live together peacefully. If there is no RE in schools, instances of Islamophbia, Anti-Semitism and distrust will be rife in our society as this poll clearly reveals."

MG Harris, Children's author and School Governor commented on the polling: "This research rather undermines Michael Gove's assertion that the fact that RE is compulsory means it need not be included in EBacc. It shows, as if one needed further proof, that when you create an educational metric, many schools will rush to realign their curricula to give the most favourable league table position. It's not about what constitutes a 'basic' education, but pure politics. Note how Ancient Greek (favoured by many public schools) is an EBacc subject yet RE is not."

Premier's poll also revealed a staggering 88% of the British public believe learning about other faiths and cultures is important, with just more than half (57%), agreeing that teaching children and young people about different cultures and religions will reduce instances of religious extremism and fundamentalism in Britain.

This view was significantly high (70%) amongst those who considered themselves to have a good knowledge of world religions.

The RE.ACT campaign was launched earlier this year, with the aim of lobbying the Secretary of State for Education, to ensure RE is included the Baccalaureate. The petition has received well over 140,000 signatures and is to be handed in next week.

Peter Kerridge, CEO of Premier Christian Media, organisers of the petition said: "The public clearly value and understand the benefits of religious education to our young people and that without it, there is a strong possibility they will become ignorant, intolerant and possibly hostile towards those of who hold other beliefs. The public, MPs and faith leaders have all spoken out on the importance of RE. We just hope that this body of evidence, along with public opinion may convince the government to rethink and consider making RE a priority in our schools once again."

To get involved in the RE.ACT campaign please visit www.reactcampaign.co.uk