The "Who Do We Think We Are?" week will see school pupils looking at identity, history, faith and community.
The week was one of the recommendations in a report by Sir Keith Ajegbo, published last year following the London bombings on 7 July 2005.
There is also an Olympic angle to the week, with schools thinking about national pride and international co-operation.
Themes of anti-social behaviour and tackling extremism will be looked at.
Sir Keith's review found there was not enough emphasis on British identity and history in schools.
He said pupils should study free speech, the rule of law, mutual tolerance and respect for equal rights.
Ministers see schools as a key place to promote understanding between communities and to combat intolerance and religious extremism.
...but only in English schools apparently; we've no need for all that "free speech, the rule of law, mutual tolerance and respect for equal rights", not to mention combating " intolerance and religious extremism" elsewhere in the United Kingdom.
5 comments:
"Who do the government think we are"?
Well since the London government cannot decide such things for NI (or Wales and Scotland) what do you expect them to do?
Maybe it's something to do with funding?
HF,
Technically, self-described pro-Union parties are in the majority in NI, Scotland and wales. You'd have thought if they're so keen on the concept of Britishness to take hold and strengthen that thye'd be calling for parity with England.
a-r
More a case of a cowardly Labour govt and party not being prepared to stand up for their professed principles.
More like the English are second-class "Brits" seeing as we're the only ones unable to decide our own education policies.
O'Neill - still nothing to do with the UK government is it, no matter what parties are in the majority.
"Parity" with England you say - maybe the devolved administrations think that what works for England won't work for them (the whole point of devolution). I can't really see a week thinking of British national pride working well here - especially if they want to chuck the Olympics in the mix as well!
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