The current school enrolment form asks parents whether they prefer their child to attend scripture lessons, ethics lessons or other supervised activity.

Who would believe that the Premier of NSW would rule that this form must be changed so that parents will no longer be able to select ethics lessons for their children?

Premier Mike Baird and Minister for Education Adrian Piccoli at Ryde East Public School. Credit:Peter Rae

Well, following intense lobbying by the churches, that's what Mike Baird has done. Although parents have a legal right to send their children to ethics, the only choice on the form will now be scripture. The decision deliberately discriminates in favour of scripture classes to the disadvantage of ethics classes.

This discrimination against parents who want their children to attend ethics classes is profound. Unlike the providers of scripture classes, Primary Ethics, the charity that is the sole approved provider of ethics lessons in schools, may never know that there are parents at a school who would prefer ethics to scripture or quiet supervision for their children.