A religious, moral and philosophical studies class

This case study was provided by a registered teacher

A teacher initiated a discussion with an S4 RMPS class regarding their attitudes and beliefs regarding same-sex marriage.

She asked the direct question, “So what are your views regarding same-sex marriage?”.

After one pupil expressed an opinion supporting same-sex marriage, a boy gave a contrary opinion in which he stated his belief that the Bible made clear that same-sex sexual relationships were sinful and that was why marriage had been designed to be between male and female.

The teacher reacted to the boy’s statement by telling him that what he had said was discriminatory and she sent him from the class to go to a ‘Time Out’ room.

The boy was furious and instead of going to the Time Out room as instructed, headed straight to see a Depute Head Teacher to complain about his treatment.

The boy wanted to complain that he had suffered religious discrimination because the teacher had put him out of her room for giving a religious opinion she disagreed with.

He felt that if a teacher asked for an opinion on an issue in an RMPS class, he should be entitled to give his opinion without being punished for having an opinion she didn’t like.

He felt that by putting him out of the class, the teacher was sending a message to anyone else who shared his view to keep their opinions to themselves – she only wanted to hear opinions that supported same-sex marriage.

The Depute Head Teacher spoke to the RMPS Teacher later in the day to get her version of events.

She agreed that she had asked the class for their opinions on same-sex marriage but then panicked when the boy gave his viewpoint as she felt that any pupil in her class who may have been struggling with issues around their sexuality could have felt uncomfortable to have heard what he said.

She felt she had to be seen to stand against discriminatory beliefs and comments.

Questions for reflection:

1. Do you agree that ‘opinions regarding same-sex marriage’ is a valid issue to be exploring and discussing in an RMPS class?
2. The boy felt that being punished for stating his religious beliefs on the topic was ‘religious discrimination’? Was he correct?
3. If No, must pupils who share those religious beliefs keep their opinions to themselves or accept that punishment is possible?
4. If Yes, how could this outcome have been avoided?
5. The teacher felt the boy had ‘discriminatory beliefs’ and had made ‘discriminatory comments’ – do you agree?
6. If No, how could pupils who find it uncomfortable to hear such opinions be protected in classes, or should that be an objective?
7. If Yes, is it possible to have discussions or debates in class on topics like this, even within RMPS, if certain religiously held viewpoints are not allowed to be aired?