Brits - how reliable is Dailymail?

[Gunthr]

I've enjoyed this thread.  I like how you English fellows talk.  I wouldn't know the DAILY MAIL if I tripped over it, though.

I would like to say that it sounds to me like PC madness is sweeping the democratic world, and it seems to me that educators are at fault.  

If England is anything like America, many public schools are full of liberal, left wing types.  I have no idea why.  

it is wrong to "not teach" history because we might not remember it perfectly, or because we might offend students.

what the hell kind of crap is that?  its hard to believe that things have come to this.  its weird.  i think it is based on fear - fear that people may realize that there are conflicting belief systems in the world.    its stupid.  

madras' teach lies, and we are afraid to teach the truth.

[Momus--]

Bozon, teaching about the holocaust is a central part of the curriculum for 20th Century History in British schools and that isn't going to change. A few isolated examples such as those highlighted in the Mail article do not alter this basic fact, irrespective of what the chicken littles on the mail editorial staff, the neo-con blogosphere and the tin-foil-hat wearing eurabia conspiricists want people to think.  

There's a moderator on AGW  who is a retired british army officer who  runs battlefield tours for groups of school children. He recently took a group of predominantly muslim kids on a tour of Ypres and this is what he had to say on this exact issue:

For a slightly more balanced view of how these matters are treated in schools I'd just like to mention that last Thursday we took two schools to the Ypres area in Belgium. All were from year 9 = (age 13-14)

The one I took was a state boys comprehensive school (11-16) from West London. The party of 36 was 80% Muslim including four Afgans, two Iraqis a Libyan a Syrian two Somalis a Sudanese and an Algerian with a sprinkling of west Indians Africans dressed like gangstas. The five white children professed to being "Irish" A lot of the kids were staying in B&B or hostel accommodation. Most had British passports but some were from rather unpleasant places. I am so glad I don't raise my children somewhere where kids have a good knowledge of anti personnel mines and the damage they cause. Collectively you would have avoided them like the plague. Most of the kids were good but some clearly were difficult. Caring parents will spend £100k to move out of the catchment area of this school If you are a Brit you might have seen them on TV on the Fortune Million pound Givaway ITV programme.

However, my bunch of hoodies were praised by the Irish curator of the Ulster Tower as one of the best groups he had ever taken around the battlefield archeology. Two of the biggest ganstas offered to read "Flanders Fields" unprompted - they did it as a kind of a rap which was listend to in silent appreciation by an otherwise noisty group. They had a lively interest in what went on and how if affected the world. One of the kids asked some very good questions about why did the Germans come back for a second attempt and how did Hitler persuade them to do so. This led to a discussion about the holocaust and the evils of blaming your problems on racial or religious minorities.

This school had a very dedicated teaching staff including an ex Tom from 1 Para who had been invalided out and an ex footballer as a mentor (paid for by Coca Cola who are a local employer). The headmaster came on the tour and was gripping incidences of misbehaviour. he was also passionate in the defence of the kids and building up their confidence and self esteem. The head of history was working to make WW1 relevant by focusing on Walter Tull, a Black British hero. We paid our respects to him on the battlefield of 1918 where he died leading his platoon in a doomed counter attack.

There was another group one that a couple of my colleagues took was a Jewish independent school from Essex - mainly girls. An extraordinarily chatty group of kids. These groups followed each other around all day and were absolutely fascinated with each other. I had a moment of concern that the interest might be the fact that one group was walking round with crescents and the other with stars of David. However, these are British teenagers and sod the religion it was the mutual attraction between nice girls and totally unsuitable boys from the wrong side of town. Much exchanging of text messages etc.

There is much more copy and interest in some BS about some isolated incidents of schools wimping out from addressing history than in truth of hard working teachers succeeding with difficult kids that everyone expects to fail.

[cpxxx]

Originally posted by Dowding
The question was how reliable was the paper, not whether the incident occurred.

The Daily Mail has a track record for 'bigging up' mole-hills into a mountains. Any British person will remember the whole paedophilia panic from a few years ago. That culminated in a specialist registrar in paediatric medicine being hounded out of her home by vigilantes.

At least that helps you get a feel for the kind of story they like to run with. Caveat emptor.

The Guardian is a left wing rag suitable only for wiping the arses of elephants (it being of the right size).

Agree with Dowding on the above, the Daily Mail was described by someone as a paper for 'little Englanders'. It recently launched an Irish edition, and wouldn't you know it. it's exactly the same except that it's aimed at 'little Irelanders':o

It's very hard to get a newspaper that doesn't have some kind of agenda.