British teachers being forced to police students

Reading, writing, homework, looking for signs of extremism in the classroom …all it seems now the job of every British teacher.

This after the government’s Prevent counter-terrorism programme made it possible for teachers to face prosecution if they fail to alert the police to concerns they may have about students.

One of the biggest fears for teachers, especially those operating in diverse classrooms in inner-city areas of the UK is how to encourage lively debate about sensitive material without inadvertently touring some students with the brush of radicalism.

The govt programme has received mixed reviews from teachers.

Teaching about the fundamental British values of democracy, the rule of law, individual liberty and tolerance and respect for others is part of our promotion of British values and is at the heart of what every school has to deliver for children.

Nurseries, primary schools and colleges now have to adhere to the guidelines, a move teachers say can make the issue seem worse than it is.

As teachers face confusion about what is – and is not allowed in the classroom, it is the very nature of debate and free speech, critics argue, that will be the first casualty.