Freedom of education
It also establishes the importance of diversity in education, to allow parents the choice of sending their child to a school that aligns with their views.
[3] In the Netherlands, a political battle raged throughout the nineteenth century over the issue of the state monopoly on tuition-free education.
While this plainly means children, it can also be interpreted to apply to parents' rights to have their valued beliefs or principles taught to the child.
Following a general change in attitudes within the Netherlands there has been controversy surrounding balancing the freedom of education with the other rights of non-discrimination that might be seen, particularly towards women in many conservative Islamic schools.
[7] Most religious schools in the Netherlands have also since stopped acting within their own subset of institutions, thus lessening their power within the education system.
Combined with the growth in diversity, and an overriding importance of non-discrimination, the ability for religious groups with conservative views in the Netherlands to educate their children in the manner that they were has been tarnished.
However, on August 13, 2021, even though some legal analysts posited this disposition would be overturned, the Council ruled it wasn't unconstitutional to submit homeschooling to a regime of authorisation.
The Dutch constitution (article 23) protects freedom of education and means the government must hold private and state schools equally.
Compared with the rest of the continent, religious educational groups have had strong levels of freedom, and have been able to establish schools that receive considerable State funding.
While religious schools can select their own staff or students, the national regulations clearly state what can and cannot be omitted from teaching, such as gender.
The ability to teach a notably Islamic curriculum is restricted, however, which meant that the rating of Sweden came close to being downgraded to medium.
[10] Public schools are required by certain state laws to educate their students in a secular manner so as not to endorse any specific religion.
However, most public schools in the US have become more responsive to a variety of dietary requirements, such as nut-free or vegetarian options, and children are allowed to be exempt from activities that would normally be inconsistent with their religious teachings.
[citation needed] Negative news reporting combined with the general attitude of American citizens places pressure upon parents who want to send their children to religious private schools.
[11] While there is still some frequency of religious discrimination in South America, the legal and societal restrictions have been overcome through a combination of influence by the Vatican, the spread of Protestantism and Constitutional change.
[13] There is legal support for free and open religious education within the Australian public schooling system, but its actual application is very rare.
[citation needed] A 2001 Human Rights Watch report claimed Arab school students were getting an inferior education from fewer resources and poorly constructed institutions.
[16] Women in the Arab world may still be denied equality of opportunity, although their disempowerment is a critical factor crippling the markets of the Arab nations to return to the first pitch of global leaders in star commerce, teenage learning and pop culture, according to a new United States-sponsored report in 2012.
