Well-regarded Christian educationalist Dr Trevor Cooling is no fan of the pretence of neutrality held by many advocates of secular education.
"We all have to make judgements of right and wrong," he told the Australian Anglican Schools Network in his 2005 lecture "Transforming Hearts and Minds: the contribution of Christian values to the curriculum'.
"When humanists argue for secular values they are, in my experience, in fact arguing for a distinctive set of values that are underpinned by humanist beliefs," Dr Cooling says. "The truth is that no school can escape being distinctive when it comes to defining its values. The challenge is whether it can also be inclusive of those from other traditions."
So the public school fails if the Christian student feels marginalised. But what of the Muslim student in an Anglican school? It is argued that the current growth of religious schooling runs the risk of creating ethno-religious ghettoes where Protestants, Roman Catholics, Muslims and Jews are educated in their own enclaves. Is it possible for Christians in all schools to do more to provide an inclusive teaching environment, and should they do so?
At this point your humble SC correspondent needs to come clean. My family is heavily involved in the life of a so-called "lower' fee Anglican school in Sydney's West, not least through a new church designed to reach out to the school families. SC has strongly promoted the way our diocesan schools can help build new and vibrant Christian communities. And yet Dr Cooling's argument niggles.
Public school principal Ian Wing is very careful not to sound critical of private Anglican schools, but it is clear he is a passionate supporter of the role State schools play in maintaining a harmonious society. He believes that Australians currently risk "diminishing the peaceful multicultural experiment we have enjoyed" by under-resourcing the State system and this "would be a sad indictment on our society".
"That is the danger" the cauldron of our democracy is the State school system. I believe that the State government has a responsibility to resource the State system first. It has to be well resourced and funded" I'm not speaking against [State] aid to the private system" It's about getting the balance right."
Can he understand that some Christian parents feel they are putting the children's souls at risk by putting them in an environment where their beliefs will be challenged, even mocked and ridiculed?
This is not how Mr Wing sees it.
"The State system is not allowed to preach against Christianity. They are encouraged to put up all options. But this prevents Christian students being proselytised into some other belief system" The values that are inculcated in State schools are acceptable to Christians. There are many values that people of different faiths share."
But is it possible for a "secular' curriculum to be truly "inclusive' and not merely a reflection of humanist values?
Dr Trevor Cooling believes it is: "We do this by promoting shared values. Pupils from different traditions should be encouraged to explore the grounding of these shared values in the beliefs of their own tradition."
He even argues teachers in Anglican schools adopt this approach to the curriculum. The trick, argues Dr Cooling, is to choose "topics with a strong values base" and "design teaching methods that require reflection and response". In this way teachers create "space for pupils to consider the significance of the spiritual and to act on that in their own lives".
Mr Wing agrees with Dr Cooling's assessment at this point.
"We bring our beliefs to the values we adopt and the curriculum we teach and lecture," he says. "That is why it is important for Christians to be well represented in State schools."
But isn't this actually an argument against secular schooling? The fact that non-Christians can't help but promote their own world view is the reason so many Christian parents choose a religious school for their children.
Mr Wing believes this view lacks faith both in God and children's resilience.
"If beliefs are formed early in the home and in the church, as I believe they are for Christians, then it is very appropriate for Christian children to attend State schools where they will be able to live in the world and be its salt and light."
"Because we live in a multicultural, pluralist society I believe it is important for young Christians that they learn to live in such a world," he adds. "We need to learn to live together peacefully."
