Britain's strictest headteacher: My High Court case to ban prayer in school
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- Опубликовано: 15 май 2024
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UnHerd's Freddie Sayers meets Katharine Birbalsingh, 'Britain's strictest headteacher'.
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Katharine Birbalsingh is the founder and head teacher of Michaela Community School, a free school in London. Since opening in 2014 Michaela has become a lightning rod for the culture war around education, and Birbalsingh has replaced the “student-centred” approach of modern teaching with a no-tolerance code of behaviour.
And as it turns out, “the strictest school in Britain” seems to work. Michaela is rated by Ofsted as “outstanding” and rivals the top-ranking private schools in England for exam results. But this week, it was announced that Birbalsingh would have to defend Michaela’s ethos at the High Court, after she banned prayer at the school. A Muslim pupil claimed that the ban was discriminatory, and is seeking to have it overturned.
The case speaks to a wider battle in Britain over social cohesion and multiculturalism. In an exclusive interview, Katharine Birbalsingh joined UnHerd’s Freddie Sayers to talk about it.
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// TIMECODES //
00:00 - 01:18 - Introduction
01:18 - 07:41 - Katharine Birbalsingh explains the Michaela Community School
07:41 - 14:45 - Why kids need boundaries and discipline
14:45 - 19:32 - Understanding the court case against the Michaela school and prayer
19:32 - 21:59 - Why are more kids and teens praying at school?
21:59 - 29:33 - Delving deeper into the court case
29:33 - 30:51 - Is this a specially Muslim issue?
30:51 - 34:23 - Everyone must sacrifice for multiculturalism to succeed
34:23 - 37:01 - Is Katharine Birbalsingh optimistic about the case?
37:01 - 37:36 - Concluding thoughts
#UnHerd #KatharineBirbalsingh #MichaelaSchool
I was a trainee teacher at a school whilst Katherine was there. She was dedicated, smart, dynamic and cared deeply about the children she taught. The educational establishment should listen to her, she was always unafraid to take on the bullies (whether they were the pupils or management). The outstanding results at her school show that the proof is in the pudding.
Can see why she is an inspiring woman.
As a teacher you should teach that the proof the pudding is in the eating, not whatever that other nonsense you wrote was 😉
I think you need to check your grammar @@jonathanmahoney1672
@@jonathanmahoney1672nope. The shortened version originally quoted is perfectly acceptable and is the more contemporary version of the expression.
@@robatkinson8746 I suppose you are another lazy teacher?!
Katherine Birbalsingh is basically doing what used to be NORMAL in British schools - upholding standards, discipline, fairness and accountability
Proves how far we’ve fallen😞
Accountability and fairness, like offering students an option to pray outside (because there was no prayer room) and then taking it away.
She's basically doing what we ALL used to do in the class room. I'm Canadian and this is exactly how the class rooms I went through were run. There was more "freedom" in high school but elementary and middle school (junior high) were just like this...and it worked. During my final year in highschool, 179 out of 183 students graduated (minimum C- average) and everyone I know who applied to university was accepted
I think you are very much mistaken. Prayers have been part of school assemblies (rightly or wrongly) for decades.
@@yusufgleason6478 In the 70’s when I went to secondary school the Muslims would leave assembly during the Lord’s Prayer 🙏
"People imagine order and discipline make children unhappy, but actually chaos makes children unhappy" This such an excellent and overlooked idea.
It’s not overlooked. Every teacher knows that
@@sadiemakesmesmile I know a lot who do. I also know some who dont.
Give an inch and they'll take a mile. We have become so stupid and naive.
“Chaos makes children unhappy.”
Correction: Chaos makes EVERYONE unhappy.
No. Some people revel in it.
And the agents of Chaos?
Well that wouldn’t have worked within her sentence would it? She was specifically talking about children.
So her point doesn’t really need correcting.
@@vevrvivnv miserable people revel in it
not for artists
Thanks Freddy for allowing this remarkable woman to air her views, which I find so honest and inspiring. We oppose her vision at our peril.
I'm surprised this lady says she doesn't believe the parents of these Muslim children are not involved. How old are these children?
@@ruthbashford3176absolutely. There’s no way this is coming from the kids alone. Similar cases have emerged in Luton over jilbabs in school uniform policy (highly impractical and even unsafe in some classes). The local imam was actually pushing it using a teenage girl and her family as a proxy.
I admire this lady so much. She is 100% correct in what she says. The UK would be a better place if all schools were like hers.
For a parent to encourage a child to take their school to court is ridiculous. The parent should support the schools rules
The irony here is these parents CHOOSE to send their children to her school, because she has what I would consider to be the correct standards in education and is the highest ranked school in the country with the majority of students leaving with '8s' and '9s' at GCSE. This seems like an example of people having cake and eating it too.
@@jasonburns7897And the parents would have signed an agreement that they understand and support the ethos, too.
@@rb1062 Exactly, hopefully this case is thrown out at the High Court.
Islamists crave power and want to have schools like the middle east , these fckers forget they are in England , we should get all rhe flags out just to remind them
These news shows all say this teacher wants to Ban Prayer in School like it’s all schools - it’s just Her school. I don’t understand why this student’s parents didn’t choose an Islamic school instead? It’s clearly told to applicants that their main values are school unity and academics.
Discipline seriously lacking in schools throughout the western world.
Thanks to radical leftists being allowed to run amok unchallenged in our institutions for decades
Discipline is a lack of resilience!
I have known two schools similar to the one in discussion, how Blessed, and how tragic that evil is trying to destroy.
I agree, although I'd boil it down to "Vision is lacking in schools from the western world".
It's not just discipline, it's the unanswered question of why we need discipline that's confusing so many children, I think.
We need trunchball mentality
LOVE, LOVE , LOVE The interviewer. Sensible, intelligent questions, detached, and fair. He also knows how to listen!! This teacher deserves a medal!!
The fact that Katherine's methods are so threatening to large sections of the teaching profession is such an indictment of our progressive education system.
I could listen to her all day. She knows exactly what she's doing and most importantly she knows why she's doing it, so she speaks with incredible clarity and passion.
I love this woman!
As the mother of two teachers one at an academy in England the other in China, i can totally agree with Katherine. One suffers daily abuse from rude kids who should be expelled whilst the other enjoys teaching a class of well behaved students who want to learn - guess which is the English school🤔
Thank goodness for this lady.
Of course she's 100% right.
Children need boundaries.
I never needed boundaries, I set my own. It is society that fails to adapt, not the individual!
The individual will without any shadow of doubt learn the consequences of their actions.
Society at best can be a guiding force, teaching the individual lessons of history.
Don’t stick your hand in the fire for it will burn and hurt, but some still seek to learn the hard way. No matter how the lesson is learned, it is learned!
@@robertholland7558 That's you though. I learned a lot from a Superhead not unlike Catherine, who took a failing school and turned it around within a year. The school was in a deprived area and many of the kids had difficult home lives. Their home lives impacted on them and they brought their anger or upset into school, and that then impacted on other kids around them - sometimes involving bullying. By imposing boundaries, discipline and structure she gave those kids security which, for at least 8 hrs a day (she had breakfast and after school clubs for this reason)- took the chaos out of their lives. Their academic and emotional outcomes improved as a result.
@@pennylando3145 you are comparing guidance and boundaries, two completely separate concepts . I don’t like the concept of “ super heads”. I learned from the university of hard knocks! But sure it might work for some who lack self discipline. Life itself is the greatest teacher of them all. I spend more time in libraries than classrooms.
@@robertholland7558 You pick a lesson that is hard on you but what if the lesson is hard on someone else. What if the lesson is, 'if you put someone else's hand in the fire it hurts them'? Individuals can adapt in many ways, not necessarily for the wider good.
@@robertholland7558 I certainly don't disagree that life is a brilliant teacher, but where you start in life and who is in the background of it causes different outcomes for different personalities.
To clarify though, the Superhead I'm talking about ran a middle school. 9yr olds who are witnessing domestic violence before they've left for school in the morning and reacting to it isn't a matter of them lacking self-discipline. In my opinion they are helped to acquire it by teachers like this one removing some of the chaos from their lives for a few hours, providing them with structure and fairness and showing them that there is another way. Middle school pupils are aged 9-13yrs and without writing an essay on the subject, during her tenure at the school, the anti-social behaviour among this age group in the area dropped significantly.
What really makes children unhappy is being bullied by other children. And bullying flourishes where children are left unsupevised. Plus, good kids don't bully.
But clever kids do. I know this from my experience at school
Islamists are known to bully 🤷🏻♂️
Happy children don't bully others... unhappy children do bully others... often in schools that are great academically, or without adequate outlets. Silent corridors mean that some other venue for self-expression is needed. Hopefully, frank discussions are welcomed in tutorials.
Bullying flourishes where children (and adults) feel controlled, coerced and without agency. School - the institution, and environment - has coercion and removal of agency, at its heart. There seems to be a markedly lower prevalence of bullying in the home education community. I agree that bullying needs to be addressed in schools, for those who have to be there, along the lines you've proposed. But (1) the very nature of the institution and 'education' system is the root cause of the issue, and (2) for those who are privileged enough to be able to make it work (I realise that's not everyone), home education is an effective alternative.
@@Being_Bohemian Those are genuinely interesting points, but if the root causes of bullying are feelings of being controlled, coerced and being without agency surely those things are par for the course at home? For their own safety and socialisation, parents have to control their children, they may have to coerce and the very fact that they are children means that their personal agency is going to be limited.
I want my son to go to her school after watching this interview. Who wouldn't?
I used to work at a Acquired Brain Injury Rehab Unit and used to try and have strict boundaries, with a clearly outlined timetable throughout and clients had to actively participate otherwise they were asked to leave. Obviously, this was tailored to the clients ability. However, this approach was constantly undermined by middle class professionals who thought having a brain injury was an excuse to ignore all the rules and behave as badly as possible. This also often applies to other groups such as Learning Difficulties/Autism etc. But clients do far better when they have structure and a proper routine. They feel safer, know what to expect and generally are much happier. Its a big mistake to think having a disability excuses you from all responsibility and ends up with far worse outcomes. I applaud this woman and I imagine parents are queuing up to get their kids enrolled here.
I,m 70 l want to go!
I so admire this woman. As a retired teacher, I saw that without discipline in the classroom and on the playground, not only chaos, but violence ensues. Good for her. And prayer does not belong in school unless it’s a religious school!
Same ..totally agree. If prayer was simply well wishing for everyone without exception and an encouragement towards kindness then it would be fine and healthy ( actually I preferred the Catholic schools that I taught in for this reason) …but otherwise better to keep it out of schools.
@@theinngu5560 A priest who is into research did a study into religion and schools. It turned out that as long as they kept religion out of conversation, the kids could avoid violence. (And you can probably guess what religion it was that caused conflict.)
Education is for educating, not indoctrinating.
Please delineate the boundary principle
Making them chant "god save the king" is indoctrination. Your bias didn't let you attend to that.
Get rid of religious state schools.
Secular schools is what they had under Communism; banning religious schools seems a naive misdiagnosis of a problem.
And how is praying indoctrination?
We need more people like this..
She should be the blueprint for all state schools
She is a breath of fresh air. We need more headteachers like her. UK schools are in absolute chaos.
This woman is my heroine! She is standing up for the right thing despite all the noise around her. Keep up the good work, we need you! You are inspirational!
Children thrive on discipline and order. This is a revolutionary idea? Wow, how far we've fallen away from common sense.
Woke has destroyed these values.
No they don’t. They thrive On the building of self confidence, reliance and resilience!
@@blueberry3168They thrive on both, discipline doesn't need to involve the physical punishment of the past. I was born in 57.
Proof that ‘progressivism’ is an oxymoron.
@@robertholland7558 confidence is built through discipline. Reliance? They thrive on relying on someone else? I assume you meant self-reliance…which is also built through confidence, which is developed through discipline.
This woman is absolutely pure gold.
She is putting the needs of the children first, and she needs to be followed NOT bullied as she is being. It comes as no surprise that it is by those we are increasingly expected to give in to.
How so very very sad, and utterly infuriating
Pure common sense here. What an amazing woman. I hope she wins this landmark case.
She is right - well done Katherine and Freddie
This woman deserves a medal! This was one of the best interviews I've ever heard. If more people/teachers were like her, our societies would be much better.
I agree, she runs a tight ship and children not only respect it but NEED it
Absolutely..she is a rare treasure and it’s sick that she has had threats. If there were more like her, we would be a happier, more balanced society.
She has been rightly honoured with a CBE by late QE2
@@theinngu5560 Shows how bad society is these days that they threaten people who are trying to bring order and structure back to it.
@@roviannematovu3756 Excellent!!!
the flak this woman gets from certain types on social media amazes me. she clearly has the recipe for schools to be highly successful. we should be rolling it out in every state school
It absolutely is a test for British society. Her school is a microcosm of British society. Her methodology should be applied to all schools nationally, AND should be applied to the country as a whole in terms of how a multicultural society should function and accommodate.
The lady proved her approach successful. Government should support her and use the same approach in other schools. Instead they fight the good work and amazing achievement.
Yes, it would be a great shame is the most successful state school in the country was made to change its ethos. Alas, in this crazy world it is all too easy to imagine that being the outcome.
@@missABR1 yes it would be a great shame if those with little wisdom and ethics have more power of those with greater wisdom and better morals. It is a huge shame that the case even went to court. I hope this troublesome pupil goes to another school .
Exactly. Dont send your child there if you don't like it.
We need so many more educators like this woman.
Trust me…we don’t!
Sure as hell I will NOT.... RESULTS TRUMP TRUST every time .She gets results you say "Trust me " NYAH! NYAH NYAH! ...you are talking to god....right?
💯 As an ex teacher who had a headteacher who was very weak in discipline, I absolutely see that this woman is so effective. Also tough love very much works….even good kids will get away with what they can…human nature. The strictest teachers that did the extra work by not allowing anything to go by but who also clearly loved the kids were by far the most popular with the kids and got better academic results and harmony in the class room. No one benefits from chaos. When people/kids get away with stuff and/or lapse into apathy/victimhood they really are not very happy. She is a brilliant headteacher, who cares and the results are there. Even the best will always have their detractors who don’t understand or have their own agendas….no need to argue with them but they should go elsewhere and not ruin things for others.
@@yusufgleason6478and why would that be? Do you have a problem with discipline? With kids being responsible and respecting their peers and teachers and generally people around them? Rather than being indoctrinated into the latest progressive madness?
I wouldn't trust you with scissors, pal.
What an absolute gem! Watch and learn from this hero.
I am half Indian, half English. 100% British. This is what she is talking about. Not fighting for our differences, but what unites us. Otherwise we fall apart. We should all be British and proud of it.
I wish I had a teacher like her. She is a blessing, she should be training teachers. Discipline is everything, not only to be a responsible well adjusted member of society but also to develop self worth.
If the educational establishment cared about educating children, they'd be studying what Katherine is doing at her school and copying it everywhere. Why aren't they...?
They are. They've studied it and decided to do precisely the opposite. What does that tell us
FEAR, that’s why…
The problem is a big in part due to a large majority of parents attitudes who do not know how to raise kids properlly too love nurture discipline teach good manners and respect !! If a school banned smartphones there would be total anarchy ! bs about kids rights and everything😂😂Guess what if kids did not have smartphones till they are adults it would be greatest thing ever 👍👍👍
@@michael-sz3ff Completely agree about the smartphones. I can understand why parents might feel their children are more secure if they have the means to call for help, especially inner city kids or those who live in the sticks, and of course, there are no phone boxes now as used to be the case. But they don't need smartphones - they just need their predecessors.
@@pennylando3145 exactlly you can get simple phones anywhere we all had them in late 90s txting or calling all thats needed.would stop huge amount of social media problems bullying underage porn veiwing kids sending indecent pictures then getting bullyed etc.its too late now but parents are 100% for this giving them smartphones !!
she is brilliant and inspriring ...I hope she inspires millions of people to be like her ; shame on the negligent politicians
Take away the court case , the government need to get their heads from up their backsides ,and support this lady 100% school is there to educate not bend to people who think , they are above laid out working rules
What an amazing woman. What an amazing school. What a privilege for the children going there. We need to embrace her ethos and deep understanding of children and education, not taking her to court! This is so totally wrong!
Yes quite ridiculous that it has even got to the stage of being taken to court.
I agree about stricter rules. Children need to be socialized🇨🇦
Please win this case. Well done school for standing up to these people.
She won
Thinking back to my education in 80s/90s, as a Christian I was surrounded by Muslims, Hindu, Jews… I was completely aware of their cultural backgrounds mainly from visiting their homes. But I can’t think of any occasion when that would seep into daytime hours and give reason for division. Katherine is bang on the money with this.
The headmistress is admirable for her commitment and work helping form children. The model should be replicated instead of wasting time through the courts. As the parents of the one girl who wants to pray at school were aware of the rules prior, they should move her to another school instead of wasting tax payers money.
🎯🎯🎯🙏🙏🙏❣
100 %
As a teacher I agree. Let them choose another school.
Such an amazing woman and so proud to be British. ❤
This is the parenting that most kids are missing at home
?
Absolutely right - "order and structure make children happy, chaos makes them unhappy" It also allows an atmosphere of creativity. What a fabulous woman, I pray (no pun intended - lol) that the Michaela system spreads.
This is the system we used to have! My schools were still like this in the 1950s and early 60s; it was the norm. I was lucky to dodge the modern chaotic schooling that came in soon afterwards.
quite so - we must be a similar generation.
What a breath of fresh air. Wish we'd had that ethos in the school my children went to. Thank you Katherine for such clarity and vision. Truly inspirational.
The head mistress is 100% correct. Only this way she says multiculturalism can work
Multiculturalism can never work you have to have an overarching dominant common culture or you don’t have a country or unity - you might be thinking of multiracialism which is not the same thing
Multi culturism is a failed model and was doomed to failure from the start, it's divisive and leads to ghettoization.
We are a multi ethnic society, but we need one thing that brings us altogether, a shared culture religion is a personal choice and should be a private matter and left out of the shared social realm.
@@jamesmarshall4530 what she meant is to have multicultures at homes but one dominant british culture as a uniting factor. You can't say it is a monoculture either.
@@maximr6576
At her school it is a monoculture.
@@jerribee1 yeah as it should be. Multiculture could be at homes, in shops, in parks but not at schools
This woman must be an inspiration to those around her. She's articulated her ethos succinctly, whilst utilizing practical, common sense measures within the school to enable that ethos to become tangible. The beneficiaries of this are primarily the children of course, but also our society in general, as when they become adults their participation and contribution to society will be so much better.
Katherine Birbalsingh appears as a wise and caring lady. She responds to the questions with superb intelligence and caution. I wish her well in this.
As a teacher, I stand with Katherine. ❤ Teachers like me ARE the silent majority, it's the minority that are stupid, they're just very loud and annoying!!
How are you silent though?
Well, you couldn’t possibly support Katherine on EduTwitter without a massive pile on (often from people with #AntiRacist, #BLM, #ActuallyAutistic or SENMum in their bio) so we just stay silent.
@@LeekowalskiWalker I personally am not, I also blame some of my spineless colleagues who refuse to speak up about things like this, and also the trans problem.
Pray the pendulum swings back…..
@@SkepticalTeacher "Teachers like ma ARE the silent majority" ... "How are you silent though?" ... "I personally am not" the level of education of teachers is clearly very poor.
There's a huge sense of entitlement coming from parents these days. They want the system to bend to their individual needs. Impossible.
I disagree. It is coming from the system itself. The public schools and US dept of Education say it constantly. Changing schools to be "transformative ", and it is not an improvement at all.
Depends on what your definition of individual needs is...
yes but more so bymuslims parents hell of a lot
So why doesn’t the Muslim child go to a school where they can pray? Because, they NEED to change how we do things. They MUST change how we do things. This is just another example.
I went to a secondary school where I had the best head of year who was a Sikh lady just like the headteacher in this video. She was strict and firm and no-one could mess about with her. She wrote me a pass for lunch time so that I could find a classroom and pray. I was the only student who prayed and she was so understanding and accommodating. I've gone on to complete a BA and doing an MA right now. ...and I won't forget Mrs Chagger who I'd like to say thank you to for showing compassion to me when I was 14 years old.
Anyone else think she would make a good education secretary?
I was thinking PM.
"If we can run a school along these lines then why not a country?"
She makes a very compelling case for how to deal with the challenges of a multicultural Britain, would be fantastic to see her taking those approaches to the country as a whole.
She was the chair of the Social Mobility Commission (an advisory committee to the DfE) for 18 months but resigned last year so she has tried to some extent
Yes…I like her philosophy a lot..
all sounds great but far too simplistic, she goes against the entire left wing educational blob who will work against her
a PM indeed
Katharine runs a fantastic school. She is a shining light and a voice of reason.
I love this courageous woman, the school and mindset she has cultivated is to be praised. On the matter of the pupil being used by whoever to bring a complaint, according to the Mail if it can be believed, was suspended last year for threatening someone with a knife. This Head has a great vision for the pupils under her authority and I would have no issue with my kids attending such a school.
Amazing clarity of thought and conviction . Need more teachers like her
I’m sick of people of a certain faith using their children to disrupt. If you don’t like the school your child is in move them elsewhere. This school should be a model for every school in the country because their success speaks volumes
@jackybrown3917 I understand what you are saying, but if you flip that idea to the US,. the public schools have created a "faith" of nonsense. The transformation as they call it, (and want) of the system itself is intimidating children to change their mindset to accept nonsense as truth. UNESCO wants this. To reduce dissonance. It is awful. Nowhere to go in public schools since most have been changed already.. they have been taken by ideology.
@jackybrown3917 A M E N !!!
👍🏼 absolutely!! You’re there to bloody learn and get a career after to support yourself independently. These days all I see is religion being used as an excuse to think people are better than others!
In Kenya, if a Muslim goes to a Christian school, they have to adhere to the school's rules and vice versa (of course Christians don't go to Muslim schools).
That doesn't sound like a very inclusive idea mate! I thought the whole idea of this school was to integrate communities of all backgrounds??
Katharine Birbalsingh is one of my all time favourite people. Staight talking and effective. I've been a volunteer maths teacher in a couple of local Islington schools where the cohort was almost exclusively immigrant and poor. One school spent a lot of time on crowd control because the discipline was awful - the teacher in charge of one class left the room for a while whilst I was there and I banged desks and shouted at the children to sit down and shut up. Which they did very quickly and looked relieved to have someone in control. The other was more like Michaela - much more discipline and peace and quiet. The children thrived with the discipline. I recall meeting a parent with her child on the bus and the boy told his mum that I was one of his teachers - she was very grateful for all the help that I gave him even after I explained that I was not a full time teacher but a volunteer. The issue seemed in both cases to boil down to the ethos of the head.
This case has brought the issue of Islam to the fore for me - always and everywhere Islamists will insist on having their own way - even after buying in to the ethos of the school this Islamic parent/child decided to try it on. Enough already - the message to Islamists must be a loud FIFO. They are drinking in the last chance saloon.
I keep hearing so-called Lefties say, "I'm not a fan of hers but..." as if they need that preface to save face.
Agreed, but look at how they've completely infiltrated West Yorkshire...
Absolutely depends on the headteacher, as the leader in any place. A decent leader, with clear boundaries, discipline, ethics and that will filter down to everyone…otherwise it’s extra hard for individual teachers to maintain the discipline if they are not backed up by the hierarchy.
Poor people and immigrants in Islington… Surely not? Haven’t you heard? We’re all rich and trendy here, according to the press. To be serious though, while I agree having boundaries is necessary, I do worry that if a school is too strict it can entirely squash individuality. I also worry that if ‘no excuses’ are valid, there is little empathy. Some children will have legitimate excuses for not always being able to finish homework e.g. they are a carer for a parent, have sub-optimal living conditions or live with a drug addict or alcoholic parent. Not every child has stability at home, not every child has a parent that can either help them with their homework or; cares about their education. How does the school support those children if there are no valid excuses. I’m not knocking Katherine, I attended bog standard comprehensive schools in Islington myself, many moons ago - I know how unruly kids can be. I’m just not sure prison like ‘single-file, look straight ahead’ and ‘no excuses’ strikes the right balance.
its scary to see that a judgemental person like you is a teacher.
we must stand with this woman for all our sake
A lady whose pragmatism puts ideologies both political and religious to shame
It sounds Victorian?? I'm eighty & that's what school was like in the 1950s. I think that Katherine Birbalsingh is extremely impressive & the children are lucky to have the Michaela Academy. Of course the child who's taking the school to the High Court will be getting legal aid so it'll cost the tax payer. It's outrageous & will make more people Islamaphobic.
Islam is an evil , primitive ideology. David wood , Robert Spencer have totally exposed this evil ideology
If you are already islamophobic.
It is difficult to imagine how one pupil could organise a law suit of this nature without some 'guidance' from others. The Michaela School ethos has been under attack from the more left-leaning education institutions since it's inception, and even more so as it's success rate has been confirmed by experience. I would hope that the Muslim parents who's children have benefited from the school would be a bit more vocal in their support.
There are always NGO, pro-bono lawyers, funding and similar for minorities, especially Islam.
If you are White working class then good luck accessing 'justice'.
The Muslim parents would likely defend the things they like about the school, they are highly unlikely to suggest that a prayer room isn't needed, even if that's what they think. The community pressures are very real, so is their fear of upsetting the local imam or even the allah god.
It is a highschool I think and not impossible.
@@RichardEnglander And that's why western countries should never have allowed non Christian immigration.
It has nothing to do with Left leaning, what if Karl Marx was taught continuously, would a law suit by right wing parents be considered a an attack by the Right? You are politicizing the actions of one parent from one faith as if it was a Left wing plot.
I just love what she said about freedom & needing to restrict children to allow them to develop & become educated & therefore to be truly free as adults. Children are not mini adults, adults have a duty to protect & develop children
I am so in awe of this fantastic woman.
Katherine Birbalsingh should not merely be a headteacher at a school; she should be the education minister for the country thereby being in a position to dictate policy for all schools to adopt and strictly adhere to. It seems unthinkable to me that it is not a widely held principle amongst Britain's headteachers that allowing indiscipline to thrive in a school is, and always will be, a recipe for chaos; or that allowing a culture of bullying and coercion to hold sway over children's lives within a school is, and always will be, a step along the road towards the facilitation of tyranny.
This woman clearly, in fact very, very clearly indeed, has respect for all her pupils and staff and, it seems to me, for the wider community as well. On the other hand radical progressives, as well as selfish people of every stripe, who preach endlessly about rights - but seem unable to grasp the fundamental importance of the responsibilities which underpin the functioning of a balanced and well ordered society - really care only for themselves and will unthinkingly divide and alienate us until no-one believes that there is anything in our society worth bothering about at all.
“Chaos makes children unhappy.”
A famous character said "Chaos is a ladder"
I am impressed with her attitude and Ideas. Great interview.
We are not a multi-cultural country. We have let multiple cultures create colonies in various places around the country and Islam has taken over in about 50 locations. This is all about Islam's naked ambition to take over as it always does when it gets close to parity in a society and it is no accident that the increase from 30% to 50% has occurred and then this has followed. We must assert English culture deliberately and doggedly and KB is doing us a great service in this regard. Unless our elected representatives do what is necessary, there will be a great deal of trouble ahead and a civil war. Look at the history of the 56 Islamic totalitarian countries to see where this is heading.
Correct ^ I made a similar point.
I'm Australian and I believe that only Christian prayers should be said in schools and the Bible should be the only Holy book permitted. We were until five minutes ago Christian and it's a valid part of our culture. If Islam becomes dominant they won't think twice about inflicting it on our children. If Islamic families are unhappy it's their parents problem to provide the money to fund private Islamic schools or perhaps reconsider which country they move to. It is not the British taxpayers responsibility to make foreigners comfortable. It is the foreigners responsibility to assimilate.
Spot on
@@grannyannie2948 good thing you are an Australian, that sort of backwards thinking creates disharmony in schools which is absent of faith and growth of reason. We must be on guard against Islam true but also be on guard against Christians too. All faiths need to be curtailed in order for reason to blossom. That is why the Aborigines in Australia are so bad off, due to these lesser British who became Australians.
It's about Islam wants to submit everything to their brainwashed ideology
Silent corridors made me recoil in horror but by the end of the interview I could see the wisdom. We're treating children like adults
I am a committed Christian and thoroughly enjoyed assembly and RE at school,however,the forced change of the demographic on British Society makes it impossible for schools to cater for all religions. This teacher has the correct answers and should be fully supported by the authorities,not having to face High Court action.those parents who are unhappy with the regime should be asked to take their children from the school as they are the ones sowing the seeds of division. All power to Ms Birbalsingh
I remember RE as well and I also remember when we had prayers in primary school. This is a Christian country, we used to have Christian values but now it's gotten away from that tradition.
Very well said ❤
Spoken like a true ignoramus. Please conduct a deeper research into religious freedom of expressions, in addition to multiculturalism. Research themes: tolerance and acceptance
Without discipline very little can be accomplished, here in US parents think discipline hurts kids emotionally. She's correct kids, even digs, are happy creatures
I am 70 years old and what is being described here are normal things that used to happen in schools but have since been abandoned, ie single file in corridors walking on the left. Standing up when a teacher enters, being responsible and representing the school when travelling to and from etc. Creating ordet out of what could be chaos !
English culture is what the English do, there is nothing that will ever change that
I am 60 and you are correct it was normal in my school and at home.
@@indi_primeculture can absolutely change & be changed.
@jayjaydubful culture can hybridize, but historically this happened through intermarriage of 2 groups, not the infusion of every group in the world with desire to live here but no desire to act as the English do. No people who have any care for themselves would ever accept becoming a minority in their own nation, but we're told to accept it, I never will
I'm 65 and it was the same at my schools.
Outstanding! This lady is very special and brave standing up against these evil attacks against her and this is why she is being targeted because of her well organised school and achievements being made.
Really interesting
I completely agree with these ideas
After 25 years of working in various schools I can see that the way things have been isn’t working
I was born in the 60s and this is how myself and my siblings were brought up at home. There were four of us with 2 and 3 years between us. Myself and my sister are both Autistic, however, it was not known then and we were treated exactly the same as our older siblings. We were brought up to respect each other. We had structure with set bed times dependent on age and chores. We all ate at the table together and taught manners and respect for everyone. If we went to one parent and asked if we could do or go somewhere, we were asked what our other parent had said, and if the answer was no, then we were told no by both. Our parents stuck together.
School was exactly the same.
It is a shame that discipline and resoect within families and school is lost.
I think this lady is a valuable and insightful individual who understands what children need from a vety young age.
Well we’re not in in the 60s now 😂
@@irfanmurtaza9445 You are so right and look at the behaviour exhibited by children today. Violent, aggressive and abusive.
@@irfanmurtaza9445fools always miss the point n laugh at their stupidity cos there's no joke cracked here.
@@lindayhukutwana3861 are you ok?
Miss Snuffy is truly a wonderful head mistress with a clear vision, principles, and compassion.
Whilst I am wildly in disagreement with the quality of 21st-century immigration and find myself sympathetic to eloquently laid out reasoning by Rafe Heydel-Manoo, this is where we are. These children need the prescription that Katherine Birbalsingh is offering, a 'British Umbrella' of shared culture and identity to share and coalese around. More schools could learn something fundamental from her.
I hope Katherine Birbalsingh and Michaela are successful in their legal battle to maintain their ethos and standards. ❤
"This is the school I remember from 1955 to 1965. We were always expected to stand in line and not run around. Learning was a serious business."
Thank you for this insightful discussion. I have immense respect and admiration for Katherine. Her approach is vital for facilitating a cohesive and safe learning environment that allows all students to thrive. I truly hope the outcome of this court case is in Michaela’s favour.
Please lets have these attitudes adopted more broadly than just this school! If I ever have kids I want them and all other British kids to have this experience.
I pray to God that he bans prayer in school.
Capital G please!
This is the only way the education system can be saved before it goes down the drain. Unfortunately I presume they r more afraid of the Muslim anger and being called a racist.
@@fraulotte I think the wildly innapropriate and incessant sprinkling around of the words 'racist' and 'Islamphobe' have caused them to lose their currency now. At least in the public square. I couldn't care less if someone called me a racist - it would be a joke coming as I do from a wider family comprising two Caribbean men, one from the Middle East, biracial children and Catholic, Church of England and Jewish faiths - but I'm sure they'd try anway.
The only places it still has any traction is in the establishment and workplaces - and even then I'd imagine only a few idiots truly believe that refusing someone the right to do as they please is 'racist'.
Ironically, if the student wins, they all loose.
The goose is loose
🎯🎯🎯
* lose (loose is the opposite of tight -- sigh)
(that's the aim)
@@DieFlabbergast wow, round of applause for knowing how to spell... congratulations 👏
Children respond well to good discipline and gives children a strong foundation for their future
We need more teachers like this.
A veggie school. I had no idea!
If that was the cost of sending my kid I would do it!
You did not hear the screetchers complain that no ones allowed to eat meat - but they complain about the pray issue.
God I’m slowly hating my country.
Keep up the great work KBS - I’d love a job there!
Kids certainly don't need to eat meat with every meal of the day. A school lunch program that's well-balanced but meat-free makes economic sense and also avoids all the issues around pressure to provide "halal" meat, which many non-Muslims find objectionable due to the slaughter methods.
@@KathyPrendergast-cu5ci They may not need to, but veggies and vegans are insufferable tosspots as a general rule.
I don't believe for a moment that a child is the main actor in this lawsuit. There are adults behind this legal move and they show a remarkable degree of insolence, arrogance and stupidity. They knew very well what kind of school this is and yet they entered a contract, accepting rules that they now want changed to suit them. I'm glad to see that Freddie emphasised the point that the claimant in this suit is Muslim. No other religious group seems to be so aggressive in trying to change the developed country that accepted them as immigrants to suit themselves and to make it more like the country they left behind. Which obviously wasn't a good place if we consider that it is very hard to change one's country of birth and you have to be really motivated to do so.
I immigrated more than three decades ago to my present home, Canada, and not for a moment did it occur to me that I should ask for special treatment on religious, racial or any other grounds.
Bravo to Katharine Birbalsingh for her work. I am of a generation fortunate to have had teachers like her.
Well said
It's the Trojan Horse approach.
This case is bound to be coming from adults who want to destroy her model. I hope they lose but I'm not holding my breath
Well said.
It’s because she’s of a different faith “ Sikh “ 😅
Katharine is a great communicator, warm, funny and dedicated. Let's hope the ruling goes the right way; and quite why someone has managed to obtain Legal Aid for such a cause is beyond me when we see how difficult it is for the majority of applicants.
Kids need structure & boundaries and self discipline - it does no harm. I agree with her. 💜
Stand firm, we all agree. Hats off to you lady:
'Give me a child until he is 7 and I will show you the man.'
- Aristotle
This lady has described what happens when Islam takes over.
Total agreement and respect
This is absolutely disgusting that it is even happening and should be thrown out of court and public money should not be being used.
That is how British society has progressed, so get over it.
Part of the problem which we face is that in Islam there is no guidance as to how to share power and influence in a pluralistic society. Islam tells the followers what to do when in power, and when not in power how to work towards being in power, but nothing about sharing power.
And that very problem shows its head in so many facets of the 'multiculturalist' problems this nation faces.
If we had no Islam then a whole raft of problems would vanish, we all know that to be true, but we also know that we arent supposed to notice or admit that the Emperor is Naked. 🤡🌎
So be well said! Your observation is spot on! No Islam - a 1000 less problems!
I am OUTRAGED that the mother’s legal claim is being paid by the British taxpayers. Does this mother work? I am SO sick and tired with this Islamic creep that our inept leadership has enabled. Look around the world at any Muslim country…….conflict, discord, poverty and a complete lack of joy!!!
You don't seem to be very joyful at the moment....
@@michaelmjack3336yes, strange how muslim srudents holding a school to random with demands for "prayers" doesn't fill one with joy.
@@phoenix51472😂👏
@@michaelmjack3336 Perhaps when you are forced to pay a dhimmi tax under sharia law you won't feel too joyful either.
Conflict in Qatar, UAE, Brunei, Malaysia, Indonesia, Saudi Arabia? Lol since when
This school provides the best learning experience for children. Nobody can learn anything in a loud chaotic environment, when the teacher is pleading with the children to just be quiet! Call it Victorian, call it traditional, or just well disciplined. It works. Look at her school results. These children become well behaved and a delight in society. Many many schools in the U.K. have fallen so far below these standards. In stead of raising standards, most schools have sunk to mediocrity. English is so badly spoken too. Well done! Keep up your amazing work.
Fascinating.She is of course right about the need for discipline and boundaries.Her school success proves that.
Go Birbal Singh!!!
School should promote equality and diversity.
You are an inspiration. As a woman, I feel super proud to see you. You are country’s pride. I have a Muslim acquaintance who told me that he is trying so hard to get his children to study in your school. You endorse discipline and that is the need of the hour for kids. I wish you continue your services for ages!!
This unbelievably inspiring woman has obviously dedicated her life to giving deprived children the best possible start in life - completely insane and an absolute disgrace that this is being taken to court!
Why would any school need a prayer room?
Sadly, you can't reason with the irrational.
Unless it is a religious school then I think it is illegal to have it.
This lady should be schools’ Minister. Politicians, wake up!
Through this approach students learn respect for others and themselves and the value of personal responsibility and accountability. Well done
I am a Christian living in a muslim majority country .I can understand clearly what kathrine is saying about intimidation and how actually Muslims change cultures .what happened in her school Is a microcosm of what will happen on a broader spectrum to the whole society if those people won the case .My respect to this lady 🙌 ❤ she should stand firm 💪 stand for your culture .stand for your country. Don't be intimidated .
But your living in a muslim majority culture. Its sad about the intimidation. But people do not thrive when they are having to deny soemthing as integral to them as prayer, for Muslims this is mandatory at the given times. This should be offered in a respectful manner with as little disruption as possible, but to deny them the choice is wrong
@@zb2119 The main point is that they don't have to do this at school. I promise they'll be fine.
@@zb2119 But that's the point Katherine made - not only will it cause disruption, it will also pull at the thread of the entire ethos of the school, affecting ALL the children and their academic outcomes. They certainly won't thrive without those! I don't know the child concerned but if her case causes this to happen and the school fails, how will she cope with that knowledge when she's mature enough to realise what her actions did to others?
I'm sure there are airline pilots who are Muslim and for whom prayer is integral in their lives, but what if the timing of the prayer coincides with take-off, landing or severe turbulance? They clearly manage that. What of surgeons - they can't walk out mid-way through an operation. Fire-fighters can't put down their hoses and answer the call to prayer, paramedics don't pull over en route to transporting someone to hospital. . Police can't walk away from a crime and pray. These - and so many like them - are doing precisely what Katherine said - sacrificing a little for the good of us all. This is nothing that a kindly Imam cannot explain to the child.
Really, if the child can only thrive if she is not denied this particular prayer time then the answer - for the good of all - would have been to have sent her to another school. It's not a case of the parents and the child knowing the rules and knowing that there was no prayer room, it's that they understood WHY this particular ethos produced results. Their mistake in sending their child to Michaela is theirs - it shouldn't be everyone else's.
@@zb2119 A muslim majority is when they are only 10%. Look what happened to Lebanon when the 50% Christian majority invited the Palestinians in with good faith and charity. Why does no Arab country at all want a single Palestinian in their borders? Absolute ZERO allowed in as "refugees". Funny how all of the "West" must import them all to launch Jihad.
@@zb2119 a school ist not a mosque. There is a place for everything. Muslims should respect the way a non Muslim country works. There is always the choice of leaving the country.
I am a foreigner, and I support her. If you don't like English people's tools, you are free to go back home. We came like guests, and I stay here because I like it.
Well said this is what many decent immigration who came decades ago fit in and got on now because there's too many the government lack of a brain this moderation is best this country was a Christian nation of white people even thou they allow others but that doesn't mean they should lose their identity.
It’s just a shame there is not more schools run the way Cathrine Birbalsingh runs her school. She is an amazing woman…