Catholic Schools for the non-beliver?

I am looking for a school to enrol my DD#2 in and I am really finding it hard! There are a couple of public schools close by, but I am not sure I am happy with them as a choice for her. There is one out of town that is ok, but what about fuel everyday? My next choice is catholic schools.... The problem I have with Catholic schools is the teaching of one religion, I am also assuming their teaching curriculum involves creation, something I don't believe in and I would really prefer my children not to learn these theories to confuse things.

Should I just rule out Catholic education? I really need help, this poor kid is never going to be enrolled in a school!! :(

I will have the same problem down the track too.

While I am not religious, I do want my children to learn about ALL religions, and this is just not possible in a Catholic school. However, the public schools in our area leave much to be desired.

A friend of mine sends her DD to the Catholic school and the religious aspects come through in almost every subject except maths - so it is very full on.

I went to catholic high school and there were plenty of none believers there but I am sorry to say if you dont want your child to learn about what catholic's believe then this not the school to be sending your child as they WILL learn about creation at catholic school...

Thanx girls... Why are there so many private primary schools for singular religions? Urgh!

My cousin went to the Rudolf Steiner School in Melbourne and if we ever moved back there I would have my children's names on the waiting list they day they were born.

But unfortunately where I live there are only 3 private schools - Catholic, Christian and Anglican!

Hi.
I went to a catholic primary school.
We had non believers, Anglican, & other religions there.
My DD1 is now attending the catholic school here.
I am Catholic, but DH is not & I am not a go-to-church-every-Sunday Catholic.
Maybe you should have an interview & find out what the religious curriculum is.
DD might be learning the Catholic way, but she will still make her own choices about it all later.
She already tells me she doesn't believe in God. Then 5 minutes later will talk about how he made the world.

BTW - None of my kids are baptised

I'm not overly religious myself, and not Catholic (although DH was baptised and is non practicing). DD goes to a Catholic school, and DS will too. I haven't found the religious curriculum to be too involved. IMO I think its important for children to learn about all faiths, I teach her about Christianity, Judaism, Islam and Paganism, we've also discussed Buddhism as well. When Paris asks us questions about things we say "Some people believe..." and it works fine. Now the difference here is she is baptised Catholic but I am still one who believes that tolerance and understanding of all religions is important. They do have Catholic rituals like Mass, morning prayer and other things but I have no problem with her learning these things because it is part of her "heritage" if you will, and whilst it is not something either of us necessarily "believe in" we want her to take part and when she is old enough to choose a faith that suits her we will support her no matter her decision. And we do encourage her to question things now, and we try not to give her a biased view. But there is so many benefits to Catholic (or any religious education) IMO as the community spirit, the act of thinking of others (during morning prayer they are asked to think of someone or something to pray for - kids will say homeless, my sick grandma, the endangered species, war torn countries, kids who are absent etc which is such a beautiful thing to see even though I'm not religious!).

It works for us, but it may not work for all. We are happy for her to learn all about being Catholic because she is baptised and its her heritage but I think even if we weren't I'd probably be happy to send her to a religious school even if the faith wasn't her own as I think its a good base of morals and community spirit for any child.

Yeah, unfortunately if you don't want them to learn about the Catholic faith then probably best to find another school. I hope you find one that suits!!!! :hug:

Hi Tanya,

I'm the product of a Catholic education (albeit a long time ago). I'm Catholic but lots of non-Catholics went to my primary and high schools and were treated no differently from the rest of us. However I know for certain that Catholic schools espouse Catholic beliefs and values etc. At least it did in my day and I doubt things have changed, although "tolerance levels" have probably improved.

Catholic schools do teach kids about other religions - it's part of being accepting of other people/religions etc. However, if you as a parent were to tackle the school's christian/catholic teachings (particularly about how God created the world) and ethos head on, I don't think you'd get on too famously with the principal. I'd imagine that most catholic schools would be of the understanding that if you enrol your child in the school, you accept that your child will be taught in the catholic/christian way - or at least, you'll go along with it and not buck the system, iykwim. Could be a bit confusing for your DD too, I wonder?

Anyway, good luck with it all. I agree - there should be more non-denominational primary schools as there's obviously a need for it.

Cheers, Andie

I'm in the same situation, looking for high schools for my now 9 year old. I went to the local comp and the local catholic school, and there was just no competition for me. The local high school had posters in every window saying..Think you might be pregnant? Gay,wanna give up smoking? Have problems with anger? Taking drugs? The list was endless. Great that they are supporting all these kids that might be having a tough time. But then I went to the Catholic school, and their posters were so so positive, about art festivals, about helping kids in Africa, after school activities. So much more in line with how I want my kids to view the world, and how I view the world myself.
We are complete atheists, but I figure we can balance out their education at home, I would rather give my kids the opportunity for an excellent education, which I believe they will get at the catholic school, than give them access to a poorer education, where expectations are clearly lower, just because they arnt catholic. If that makes sense?
The Catholic school was warm, bright, they had dance, art, and a Cross in every room..but not a Nun in sight (which was my mothers issue) The teachers do not have to be Catholic and their intake is 50% of non Catholics, so I figure its Ok.
Now I just have to pray they get in! :)