[6] In religious Islamic schools children are taught to read and sometimes speak Arabic and memorize the major suras of the Qur'an.
The origin of this type of institution is widely credited to Nizam al-Mulk, a vizier under the Seljuks in the 11th century, who was responsible for building the first network of official madrasas in Iran, Mesopotamia, and Khorasan.
The madrasas were a specific educational institution, with their own funding and curricula, in contrast with the Enderun palace schools attended by Devshirme pupils.
Religious education classes must be of either a Catholic or evangelical Protestant basis and are required be taught in all elementary and secondary public schools.
There are organised groups such as the Secular Education Network[14][15] and the NZ Association of Rationalists and Humanists,[16] who are actively lobbying Government to have legislation changed to remove the classes from state primary schools.
[17][failed verification] Religious teachers usually move on a weekly or monthly circuit, staying as guests in private houses in exchange for teaching.
However, children belonging to minority religions, such as Judaism, Buddhism and the Latter Day Saint movement also study religious education in their various denominations.
An exception is the area of Alsace–Moselle where, for historical reasons (it was ruled by Germany when this system was instituted in the rest of France) under a specific local law, the state offers publicly-sponsored catechesis or instruction in some religions (Catholic, Protestant, Jewish) mostly in accord with the German model.
The curricula of the various states of Germany since then have included not only basic technical skills but also music (singing) and religious (Christian) education in close cooperation with the churches.
This has led to the churches being assigned a specific status as legal entity of public law, "Körperschaft des öffentlichen Rechts" in Germany, which is a legacy of a 1919 Weimar compromise still in force today.
The Humanistischer Verband Deutschlands, an atheist and agnostic association, has adopted to the legal setup of the churches and is now allowed to offer such classes.
While there are around three million Muslims, mostly of Turkish origin, now in the country (see Islam in Germany), not many of them are members of a legal entity with which the states could arrange such matters (unlike the Christian churches' representatives and the humanists).
In 2013, for the first time in German history, the state of Hessen acknowledged a Muslim community, the reform-oriented Ahmadiyya, as Körperschaft des öffentlichen Rechts for all of Germany, which has been deemed a historical milestone.
[24] In Greece, students at public primary and secondary schools (typically ages 6–17) learn the basics of the Greek Orthodox faith using the official curriculum.
[26] Alternatively, if religious class takes place in the first or last hour, non-attending students can enter late to school or go out early.
[29] Religious education was first introduced as a mandatory activity in Italy during the fascist regime, following the 1929 Lateran Treaty,[30] but in 1984 it became optional.
The law n. 186 of 2003 instituted the possibility of a national public recruiting for the religion professors to be enrolled within the Italian primary and secondary schools.
A specific norm enforced the right for enrolled religion professors to be destinated to different teaching matters, compatible with their academic degrees, if they were denied of the needy diocesan license or by effect of a personal request for a job transfer.
[33][34] Another has been forecasted until December 2021, after an agreement signed by Cardinal Gualtiero Bassetti and the Italian Minister of Public Education Lucia Azzolina.
[35] On February 13, 2019, the Italian minister Marco Bussetti and the Cardinal Giuseppe Versaldi, Prefect of the Congregation for Catholic Education, signed an agreement for mutual recognition of academic qualifications issued in the universities of Holy See and Italy.
For some, studying Catholic religion is important to understand Italy's historic, cultural and artistic heritage,[40] while for others it is considered in contrast with the constitutional principles of secularity and religious freedom [41][42] and also not appropriate for an increasingly diverse society.
This approach began with the Unity of Education Law, which was first drafted in 1924 and preserved in subsequent legal reforms and constitutional changes.
In 1923, changes such as the acceptance of the Latin alphabet, which is taught to pupils in the national schools, and the Gregorian calendar took place in the new established country.
The faculty of Divinity was introduced in 1949 at Ankara University to educate, raise and train Imams, carry out scientific research about religion, mostly Islam.
[50] After the military coup in 1980, religious education in school was transformed and became a compulsory part of the curriculum, with the "Culture of Religion and Knowledge of Ethics" course.
[50] Schools approach the education of faith and religious matters in divergent manners across the four countries that constitute the United Kingdom (UK).
On the one hand, publicly funded and organized separate schools for Roman Catholics and Protestants are mandated in some provinces and in some circumstances by various sections of the Constitution Act, 1867.
[63] On the other hand, with a growing level of multiculturalism, particularly in Ontario, debate has emerged as to whether publicly funded religious education for one group is permissible.
[68] In India, there are a number of private schools run by religious institutions, especially for Hindus, Muslims, Sikhs, Christians, Jains and Buddhists.
As a result, students in both public and private schools in Pakistan have the opportunity to learn subjects such as arts, science, English, and mathematics.