Liberal Forum

[Ifti]

Multilingual Britain
The miracle of human variety is in danger of disappearing, if all of us speak alike, dress alike, eat the same food, read the same fiction and enjoy the same music. It would be a great loss to our colourful planet. Public sector needs a multilingual work force. Teachers and police officers can help with race relations in the classroom and in the community. Public sector is seeking multilingual recruits to serve multicultural Britain. The ability to speak languages from Arabic to Urdu is considered to be an asset. Linguistic skills, in addition to the usual entry criteria, will boost the number of recruits in teaching, police, medicine, nursing and the civil service. Bilingual teachers, police officers, doctors and nurses are in a better position to serve the bilingual Muslim community. The language system has been used successfully in the United States. Mary Doherty at TTA, points out those bilingual teachers can be particularly welcome in state schools for bilingual pupils. Various studies show that bilingualism increases overall intelligence. Monolingualism leads to isolationist and inward thinking.

Exposure to different languages and cultures can increase tolerance. Language learning in childhood lays the foundations for developing real fluency in that language. Every child should have the opportunity to study a foreign language and develop their interest in the culture of other nations. Languages can be seen as an important way of putting more fun into primary learning and of broadening the children experience. Learning a second language boosts your intellectual powers by physically increasing the number of nerve cells in the language centres of the brain. A study at University College London shows that the brains of bilingual people are structurally enhanced compared to the brains of people who can only speak one language. The effect is even more marked in people who learnt a second language before they were five. Speaking a second language is like having access to another world. No other subject expands mental horizons in the same way. In an ordinary inner city school in England, nearly 100 languages are spoken, yet still essentially this is still a monolingual nation. London is the most multicultural city in the world with over 300 languages spoken everyday.

Bilingual Muslim children need state funded Muslim schools with bilingual teachers as role models during their developmental periods. All state schools where Muslim pupils are the majority should be designated as Muslim community schools. They are in a better position to provide balanced education by teaching the National Curriculum along with Arabic, Islamic studies, Urdu and other community languages. An Islamic atmosphere will help to develop Islamic Identity crucial for mental, emotional and personality development.
Iftikhar Ahmad

[northwarkslib]

we're having a by-election here at the minute and the BNP are all over the place,yet again,spreading division.
the simple truth is that we are encouraged way too much as a society to focus upon what seperates and divides us instead of focussing upon what we all have in common : that which binds us all together regardless of our differences.

personally i would much prefer a secular state,as opposed to a system of government showing any preference to any one religion.our civic loyalty should be towards our nation and our democratic way of life,our traditions and liberal values must take prominence over faith-related matters.religion is purely a matter for the individual and,in my humble opinion,there it should stay.

my own view is that i don't like the idea of faith schools being state-funded.what is so diverse and mulitcultural about attending a school where every other pupil is of the same opinion as you ?.by that i don't mean an attack on islamic schools,i mean the same for christian,hindu,jewish and sikh schools too.
this is not a muslim country and i don't really think it's an especially christian one either and sometimes i worry that the religious groups here in the UK also spread division.we are,after all,all equal under the same laws and the same head of state - or that's how it should be.

[Ifti]

The research evidence of the past 40 years shows that many young native children learn prejudiced attitudes before they go to school. The abuse and prejudiceSalaam

The research evidence of the past 40 years shows that many young native children learn prejudiced attitudes before they go to school. The abuse and prejudice migrant children have to put up with on a daily basis makes stamping out playgrounf racism a priority. All schools, headteachers and teachers try thier best to hide racist incidents under the carpet. They feel uncertain about how to deal with or even recognise childhood racism.

According to OFSTED, enforcement of racial equality policy is patchy. In Engliand and Wales, there were nearly 5000 racist or religiously motivated assaults that resulted in wounding and more than 26,000 cases of racial or religious harrassment in 2007-08. Britain is not a tolerent country and people are still abused and beaten because of their colour and belief. If British media demonises Muslims every day, then children will pick it up. The victim of racism suffer from self-confidence, self-esteen and learning. The teaching of citizenship is not going to help the victims of racism migrant children have to put up with on a daily basis makes stamping out playgrounf racism a priority. All schools, headteachers and teachers try thier best to hide racist incidents under the carpet. They feel uncertain about how to deal with or even recognise childhood racism.

According to OFSTED, enforcement of racial equality policy is patchy. In Engliand and Wales, there were nearly 5000 racist or religiously motivated assaults that resulted in wounding and more than 26,000 cases of racial or religious harrassment in 2007-08. Britain is not a tolerent country and people are still abused and beaten because of their colour and belief. If British media demonises Muslims every day, then children will pick it up. The victim of racism suffer from self-confidence, self-esteen and learning. The teaching of citizenship is not going to help the victims of racism
Iftikhar Ahmad
www.londonschoolofislamics.org.uk

[northwarkslib]

i have to disagree.i think britain and the british are both very tolerant indeed.believe me,having visited several other countries our attitude has always famously been one of live and let live.
also,i believe we are (all of us together) one of the more progressive countries.i back this up with the statistic that,on the whole,the BNP remain,despite all their big talking and trouble making,a very small,minor party.

having said that i suspect you and i have more in common than you may think.it is no surprise to me that the muslim world is suspicious of the west,look how our political leaders have behaved....in our name,i hasten to add,in MY name.
maybe if our "leaders" were to hand over the war criminals and morally corrupt suppressors of true democracy to an international war-crimes tribunal then the true voice of the british people would be heard.
and what would we say ?.well,we wouldn't be seeking a war with islam for a start,and neither would we be conjuring up some bogus bogey-man image of muslims and their religion.
i agree that you have been demonized and it causes me great sadness,take away this totally artificial trumped up version of the "islamic threat" and what have these crusaders got ?.--nothing.
my dad told me recently "when i was a boy we were supposed to hate the germans,when you were a boy it was the communist soviets...and now ?..well,the political powers that be have installed "islamist extremists" as the enemy".

there are many of us who choose to opt-out of this ridiculous brain-washing,we choose to think for ourselves and that's,i think,what makes us liberals.

i hope you have a good weekend,sir.