Utopian thinking: Forget British Values – teach children they are apes | Jules Howard

Teaching evolution from a young age can remind us of who we really are, where we come from and help a belief in universal human values flourish

It seemed slightly ghoulish seeing her hanging there, in a school. A framed portrait of Theresa May, looking down on the children in the school hall, watching over them Just About Managing not to shuffle their bottoms or pick their noses. At the time I thought it would be a one-off, but I have since seen her hanging in a few schools during my travels. Often she’s next to a big display emblazoned British Values – which is, as of 2014, a topic all schools must talk about with their pupils.

Reading these British Values proves interesting. In our schools, children celebrate democracy, the rule of law and tolerance of those with different faiths and beliefs, which are unique customs and attitudes that sum up in every way modern Britain – at least until the children go home to their parents later that day.

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