Christian school
Encyclopedia
A Christian school is a school
run on Christian
principles or by a Christian organization.
The nature of Christian schools varies enormously from country to country, according to the religious, educational, and political cultures. In some countries, there is an established church
whose teachings form an integral part of the state-operated educational system; in others, the state subsidizes religious schools of various denominations.
, religion is generally not taught by state-funded educational systems, though schools must allow students wanting to study religion to do so as an extracurricular activity, as they would with any other such activity.
Over 4 million students, about 1 child in 12, attend religious schools, most of them Christian.
There is great variety in the educational and religious philosophies of these schools, as might be expected from the large number of religious denominations in the United States. Concerns have been raised that some Christian primary and secondary schools provide little or poor science education due to Christian fundamentalist interpretations of the Bible and belief in creationism
.
s and parish
es.
maintains approximately 1200 schools, of which about 100 have a high school program and which educate about 2% of all students in private schools or 0.22% of the school population in the United States. Although there are relatively few Episcopal schools, many, such as the Groton School
in Massachusetts and St Paul's
in New Hampshire, and have played a significant role in the development of the American prep school. Episcopal schools are far more likely to be independent
, with little outside control, than their Roman Catholic counterparts. Many Episcopal high schools have an annual tuition well in excess of $15,000, slightly higher the average for non-sectarian private schools and far higher than the average for non-Roman Catholic religious schools ($9,537 per annum) and over twice the average for Roman Catholic high schools ($6,046 per annum).
These conservative Protestant Christian schools are privately run, often in conjunction with a church or a denomination. Parents who want their children taught according to the principles of their church, can choose to send their children to such schools, but unless the school is subsidized by their church, or is part of a school choice
or education voucher
program funded by the government, they must pay tuition. Some American Christian schools are large and well-funded, while others are small and rely on volunteers from the community.
Some Christian schools, especially those sponsored by fundamentalist groups, do not accept government funding and subsidies because they can put their school (and potentially their church) operations under more government scrutiny and legislation, which can lead to the government dictating their school's operation. An example of this would be a requirement to adhere to a state Civil Rights
law, in exchange for the subsidy, this would conflict with a Christian school that has mandatory race, ethnic, or religion requirements for admission, or does not allow its students to opt out of attending religious services. Even though a school may accept no government money, it still must adhere to their state education curriculum, student academic performance standards, and state-mandated standardized testing scores (if any). It is also subject to standard inspection by government regulators in the aspect of its in-classroom teaching quality, teacher qualifications. Depending on government regulation, this can go as far as government inspectors sitting in on a class of students with teacher giving the lesson. Overall, not accepting government money, does prevent government management of a Christian school, but does not remove governmental oversight.
The largest Protestant Christian school system in the world is the Seventh-day Adventist educational system. The Seventh-day Adventist Church
has a total of 6,966 educational institutions operating in over 100 countries around the world with over 1.3 million students worldwide. The North American Division Office of Education (Adventist Education) oversees 1049 schools with 65,000 students in the United States, Canada, and Bermuda.
Another large association of Protestant Christian schools is the Association of Christian Schools International
(ACSI). ACSI serves 5,300 member schools in approximately 100 countries with an enrollment of nearly 1.2 million students.
Another, smaller, association of Protestant Christian schools is Christian Schools International
, with approximately 500 schools and 100,000 students.
One movement among Christian schools in the US is the return to the traditional subjects and form of education known as classical education
. This growing movement is known as the Classical Christian School movement, represented by the Association of Classical & Christian Schools, with over 230 schools and colleges, and about 34,000 students.
and The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints also operate Christian schools throughout the United States.
public funding of religious education is permitted, and sometimes required.
Historically, Christian schools in Canada were run by private Protestant or Catholic
organizations. As public education
developed, the majority (Protestant) faith became represented by the public school, and the minority faith (usually Catholic
) became represented by a separate school. Over time the public schools became increasingly secularized as Canadian society became increasingly pluralistic
.
Most provinces originally had separate school boards in each school district for Catholic and non-Catholic students. Many provinces have abolished this, but Ontario
, Alberta
and the Northwest Territories
retain the system. Where this occurs the two schools are usually called the Catholic School Board and the Public School Board.
Many non-Catholics send their children to Separate Catholic schools, preferring the values and standards, despite not supporting the Catholic faith. Typically, such students are exempt from specific religious instruction classes.
The American model is also used on some private Christian schools, usually run by Protestant denominations.
Public school boards (as distinct from Catholic boards) in Canada, normally have no religious affiliation in modern times, but may still accommodate religious instruction for Christians within their community. They may do this by creating an individual special purpose Christian school, or they may offer religious instruction within an otherwise secular school. This practice has become so prevalent in Alberta
that many private Christian schools have been absorbed by their local public districts as "alternative Christian programs" within the public system. They are presently permitted to retain their philosophy, curriculum, and staffing while operating as fully funded public schools. In this regard they have achieved some equality with Catholic schools.
See also: separate schools
was historically a provider of many schools throughout England
. Such schools (called 'Church of England schools') were partially absorbed into the state education system, with the church retaining an influence on the schools in return for its support in funding and staffing. Such schools are required to accept pupils regardless of religious background, though if they are oversubscribed they can, and often do, give preference to applicants of the relevant faith.
Because of the availability of church-run schools and the tolerance for religious activity in state schools, private Christian schools are a relative rarity, but do exist throughout the country. One of the larger ones, the Liverpool Christian Fellowship School, made national headlines in 2001 when they led a campaign (backed by 40 other schools) to halt the decline of discipline within schools and retain their right to use the cane as a threat of punishment. Other Christian schools include Kingsfold Christian School in Lancashire, Carmel Christian School in Bristol, Grangewood Independent School in London, Mannafields Christian School in Edinburgh, Emmanuel Christian School in Leicester, Derby & Walsall, & The River School in Worcester, among others.
were established in Australia
by both Roman Catholic and Protestant churches during the 19th century. Many of these schools, often with long traditions, continue to form the bulk of the private
or independent school
sector in Australia.
The modern Protestant Christian school movement began in Australia through the efforts of Dutch
migrants
who had enjoyed Christian schools for many decades in their home country. Most belonged to one of the Australian reformed churches of Dutch origin (the Christian Reformed Churches of Australia
or the Free Reformed Churches of Australia
, sometimes incorrectly called the Dutch Reformed Church
, which is a name used in the Netherlands
, South Africa
and Sri Lanka
but never in the Australian context). During the 1950s these migrants founded associations of parents who wanted to start Christian schools, and the first schools opened, at first without any government assistance, in the late 1950s and early 1960s.
The Free Reformed Church started the John Calvin School at Armadale, Western Australia
which opened its doors on 2 December 1957 with 70 students. It was followed by schools in Albany, Western Australia
(1962) and Launceston, Tasmania
(1965). The Reformed Churches of Australia (which added 'Christian' to the beginning of their name only in the 1990s) opened their first school at Kingston, Tasmania
in 1962. Their first schools were affiliated with a national body known at that time as the National Union of Christian Parent-Controlled Schools, which later became Christian Parent Controlled Schools Ltd. (CPCS), and in 2008 was again renamed to become Christian Education National.
Whereas the Free Reformed schools enrolled only students from that particular denomination, the Reformed Church-initiated schools were operated by associations of parents who individually belonged to a variety of Protestant churches and who worked collectively for their common aim. These schools were established not because of innate dissatisfaction with government schools, but because these parents wanted schools which would actively integrate their Christian faith into the whole school curriculum. The schools were operated by parent bodies apart from supervision of churches.
From the late 1970s, Christians from many other churches became increasingly concerned about standards and social change in government schools and started establishing Christian schools to provide an alternative education option. In this phase, many such schools were commenced not by parent associations but by churches themselves, although several parent groups from outside the Reformed Churches studied and adopted the parent-controlled model and have commenced schools which, while they have no Dutch or Reformed Church connections, have still affiliated themselves nationally with many schools which do.
The leading umbrella organizations include Christian Schools Australia, Lutheran Education Australia (LEA), Christian Education National (formerly Christian Parent Controlled Schools Ltd), and the Australian Association of Christian Schools. This last body mainly functions as a political advisory and lobby group for Christian Education National as well as a number of Christian schools who are members independently.
In the second half of 2006 there are 6318 Christian schools in the Netherlands; 4955 primary schools, 1054 high schools and 309 colleges and universities.
is the major form of Christianity practiced in Russia. The Orthodox Church began systemic participation in the elementary education field in Russia in 1884 under the "Statute on Church-parish schools". In the following two decades, many privately-initiated, illegal "literacy schools" started by peasants were also regularised by placing them under the control of the Church. Privately-founded Orthodox schools not under direct church control played an important role in the spread of Orthodoxy among Russian minorities, prominent examples being the Kazan Central Baptised Tatar School, founded in 1863, or the Simbirsk Central Chuvash School, founded in 1868.
There are also Protestant-associated schools aimed at the children of expatriates, such as the International Academy of St. Petersburg, Russia
, founded in 1993.
Christian missionary organisations have founded schools, often in places where no other schooling is available. Such schools generally provide a complete education in a Christian context.
School
A school is an institution designed for the teaching of students under the direction of teachers. Most countries have systems of formal education, which is commonly compulsory. In these systems, students progress through a series of schools...
run on Christian
Christian
A Christian is a person who adheres to Christianity, an Abrahamic, monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth as recorded in the Canonical gospels and the letters of the New Testament...
principles or by a Christian organization.
The nature of Christian schools varies enormously from country to country, according to the religious, educational, and political cultures. In some countries, there is an established church
State religion
A state religion is a religious body or creed officially endorsed by the state...
whose teachings form an integral part of the state-operated educational system; in others, the state subsidizes religious schools of various denominations.
United States
In the United StatesUnited States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
, religion is generally not taught by state-funded educational systems, though schools must allow students wanting to study religion to do so as an extracurricular activity, as they would with any other such activity.
Over 4 million students, about 1 child in 12, attend religious schools, most of them Christian.
There is great variety in the educational and religious philosophies of these schools, as might be expected from the large number of religious denominations in the United States. Concerns have been raised that some Christian primary and secondary schools provide little or poor science education due to Christian fundamentalist interpretations of the Bible and belief in creationism
Creationism
Creationism is the religious beliefthat humanity, life, the Earth, and the universe are the creation of a supernatural being, most often referring to the Abrahamic god. As science developed from the 18th century onwards, various views developed which aimed to reconcile science with the Genesis...
.
Roman Catholic
The largest system of Christian education in the United States is operated by the Roman Catholic Church, with 8,500 schools, often called parochial schools enrolling 2.7 million students. Most are administered by individual dioceseDiocese
A diocese is the district or see under the supervision of a bishop. It is divided into parishes.An archdiocese is more significant than a diocese. An archdiocese is presided over by an archbishop whose see may have or had importance due to size or historical significance...
s and parish
Parish
A parish is a territorial unit historically under the pastoral care and clerical jurisdiction of one parish priest, who might be assisted in his pastoral duties by a curate or curates - also priests but not the parish priest - from a more or less central parish church with its associated organization...
es.
Episcopal
The Episcopal Church in the United State of AmericaEpiscopal Church (United States)
The Episcopal Church is a mainline Anglican Christian church found mainly in the United States , but also in Honduras, Taiwan, Colombia, Ecuador, Haiti, the Dominican Republic, Venezuela, the British Virgin Islands and parts of Europe...
maintains approximately 1200 schools, of which about 100 have a high school program and which educate about 2% of all students in private schools or 0.22% of the school population in the United States. Although there are relatively few Episcopal schools, many, such as the Groton School
Groton School
Groton School is a private, Episcopal, college preparatory boarding school located in Groton, Massachusetts, U.S. It enrolls approximately 375 boys and girls, from the eighth through twelfth grades...
in Massachusetts and St Paul's
St. Paul's School (Concord, New Hampshire)
St. Paul's School is a highly selective college-preparatory, coeducational boarding school in Concord, New Hampshire affiliated with the Episcopal Church. The school is one of only six remaining 100% residential boarding schools in the U.S. The New Hampshire campus currently serves 533 students,...
in New Hampshire, and have played a significant role in the development of the American prep school. Episcopal schools are far more likely to be independent
Independent school
An independent school is a school that is independent in its finances and governance; it is not dependent upon national or local government for financing its operations, nor reliant on taxpayer contributions, and is instead funded by a combination of tuition charges, gifts, and in some cases the...
, with little outside control, than their Roman Catholic counterparts. Many Episcopal high schools have an annual tuition well in excess of $15,000, slightly higher the average for non-sectarian private schools and far higher than the average for non-Roman Catholic religious schools ($9,537 per annum) and over twice the average for Roman Catholic high schools ($6,046 per annum).
Conservative Protestant
Many conservative Protestants reserve the term "Christian school" for schools affiliated with conservative Protestant denominations, excluding Catholic schools in particular.These conservative Protestant Christian schools are privately run, often in conjunction with a church or a denomination. Parents who want their children taught according to the principles of their church, can choose to send their children to such schools, but unless the school is subsidized by their church, or is part of a school choice
School choice
School choice is a term used to describe a wide array of programs aimed at giving families the opportunity to choose the school their children will attend. As a matter of form, school choice does not give preference to one form of schooling or another, rather manifests itself whenever a student...
or education voucher
Education voucher
A school voucher, also called an education voucher, is a certificate issued by the government, which parents can apply toward tuition at a private school , rather than at the state school to which their child is assigned...
program funded by the government, they must pay tuition. Some American Christian schools are large and well-funded, while others are small and rely on volunteers from the community.
Some Christian schools, especially those sponsored by fundamentalist groups, do not accept government funding and subsidies because they can put their school (and potentially their church) operations under more government scrutiny and legislation, which can lead to the government dictating their school's operation. An example of this would be a requirement to adhere to a state Civil Rights
Civil rights
Civil and political rights are a class of rights that protect individuals' freedom from unwarranted infringement by governments and private organizations, and ensure one's ability to participate in the civil and political life of the state without discrimination or repression.Civil rights include...
law, in exchange for the subsidy, this would conflict with a Christian school that has mandatory race, ethnic, or religion requirements for admission, or does not allow its students to opt out of attending religious services. Even though a school may accept no government money, it still must adhere to their state education curriculum, student academic performance standards, and state-mandated standardized testing scores (if any). It is also subject to standard inspection by government regulators in the aspect of its in-classroom teaching quality, teacher qualifications. Depending on government regulation, this can go as far as government inspectors sitting in on a class of students with teacher giving the lesson. Overall, not accepting government money, does prevent government management of a Christian school, but does not remove governmental oversight.
The largest Protestant Christian school system in the world is the Seventh-day Adventist educational system. The Seventh-day Adventist Church
Seventh-day Adventist Church
The Seventh-day Adventist Church is a Protestant Christian denomination distinguished by its observance of Saturday, the original seventh day of the Judeo-Christian week, as the Sabbath, and by its emphasis on the imminent second coming of Jesus Christ...
has a total of 6,966 educational institutions operating in over 100 countries around the world with over 1.3 million students worldwide. The North American Division Office of Education (Adventist Education) oversees 1049 schools with 65,000 students in the United States, Canada, and Bermuda.
Another large association of Protestant Christian schools is the Association of Christian Schools International
Association of Christian Schools International
The Association of Christian Schools International is an association of evangelical Protestant Christian schools.-Purposes:ACSI, a protestant association for Christian schools, impacts nearly 23,000 schools and transforms the lives of more than 3.9 million students worldwide...
(ACSI). ACSI serves 5,300 member schools in approximately 100 countries with an enrollment of nearly 1.2 million students.
Another, smaller, association of Protestant Christian schools is Christian Schools International
Christian Schools International
Christian Schools International was established in 1920 and supports Christian school teachers who want Bible-based textbooks for their classrooms, principals and school administrators investigating employee benefit plans, Christian school board members seeking information about governance, and...
, with approximately 500 schools and 100,000 students.
One movement among Christian schools in the US is the return to the traditional subjects and form of education known as classical education
Traditional education
Traditional education or back-to-basics refers to long-established customs found in schools that society has traditionally deemed appropriate. Some forms of education reform promote the adoption of progressive education practices, a more holistic approach which focuses on individual students'...
. This growing movement is known as the Classical Christian School movement, represented by the Association of Classical & Christian Schools, with over 230 schools and colleges, and about 34,000 students.
Other
The Eastern Orthodox ChurchEastern Orthodox Church
The Orthodox Church, officially called the Orthodox Catholic Church and commonly referred to as the Eastern Orthodox Church, is the second largest Christian denomination in the world, with an estimated 300 million adherents mainly in the countries of Belarus, Bulgaria, Cyprus, Georgia, Greece,...
and The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints also operate Christian schools throughout the United States.
Canada
In CanadaCanada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
public funding of religious education is permitted, and sometimes required.
Historically, Christian schools in Canada were run by private Protestant or Catholic
Catholic
The word catholic comes from the Greek phrase , meaning "on the whole," "according to the whole" or "in general", and is a combination of the Greek words meaning "about" and meaning "whole"...
organizations. As public education
Public education
State schools, also known in the United States and Canada as public schools,In much of the Commonwealth, including Australia, New Zealand, South Africa, and the United Kingdom, the terms 'public education', 'public school' and 'independent school' are used for private schools, that is, schools...
developed, the majority (Protestant) faith became represented by the public school, and the minority faith (usually Catholic
Catholic
The word catholic comes from the Greek phrase , meaning "on the whole," "according to the whole" or "in general", and is a combination of the Greek words meaning "about" and meaning "whole"...
) became represented by a separate school. Over time the public schools became increasingly secularized as Canadian society became increasingly pluralistic
Religious pluralism
Religious pluralism is a loosely defined expression concerning acceptance of various religions, and is used in a number of related ways:* As the name of the worldview according to which one's religion is not the sole and exclusive source of truth, and thus that at least some truths and true values...
.
Most provinces originally had separate school boards in each school district for Catholic and non-Catholic students. Many provinces have abolished this, but Ontario
Ontario
Ontario is a province of Canada, located in east-central Canada. It is Canada's most populous province and second largest in total area. It is home to the nation's most populous city, Toronto, and the nation's capital, Ottawa....
, Alberta
Alberta
Alberta is a province of Canada. It had an estimated population of 3.7 million in 2010 making it the most populous of Canada's three prairie provinces...
and the Northwest Territories
Northwest Territories
The Northwest Territories is a federal territory of Canada.Located in northern Canada, the territory borders Canada's two other territories, Yukon to the west and Nunavut to the east, and three provinces: British Columbia to the southwest, and Alberta and Saskatchewan to the south...
retain the system. Where this occurs the two schools are usually called the Catholic School Board and the Public School Board.
Many non-Catholics send their children to Separate Catholic schools, preferring the values and standards, despite not supporting the Catholic faith. Typically, such students are exempt from specific religious instruction classes.
The American model is also used on some private Christian schools, usually run by Protestant denominations.
Public school boards (as distinct from Catholic boards) in Canada, normally have no religious affiliation in modern times, but may still accommodate religious instruction for Christians within their community. They may do this by creating an individual special purpose Christian school, or they may offer religious instruction within an otherwise secular school. This practice has become so prevalent in Alberta
Alberta
Alberta is a province of Canada. It had an estimated population of 3.7 million in 2010 making it the most populous of Canada's three prairie provinces...
that many private Christian schools have been absorbed by their local public districts as "alternative Christian programs" within the public system. They are presently permitted to retain their philosophy, curriculum, and staffing while operating as fully funded public schools. In this regard they have achieved some equality with Catholic schools.
See also: separate schools
United Kingdom
The Church of EnglandChurch of England
The Church of England is the officially established Christian church in England and the Mother Church of the worldwide Anglican Communion. The church considers itself within the tradition of Western Christianity and dates its formal establishment principally to the mission to England by St...
was historically a provider of many schools throughout England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
. Such schools (called 'Church of England schools') were partially absorbed into the state education system, with the church retaining an influence on the schools in return for its support in funding and staffing. Such schools are required to accept pupils regardless of religious background, though if they are oversubscribed they can, and often do, give preference to applicants of the relevant faith.
Because of the availability of church-run schools and the tolerance for religious activity in state schools, private Christian schools are a relative rarity, but do exist throughout the country. One of the larger ones, the Liverpool Christian Fellowship School, made national headlines in 2001 when they led a campaign (backed by 40 other schools) to halt the decline of discipline within schools and retain their right to use the cane as a threat of punishment. Other Christian schools include Kingsfold Christian School in Lancashire, Carmel Christian School in Bristol, Grangewood Independent School in London, Mannafields Christian School in Edinburgh, Emmanuel Christian School in Leicester, Derby & Walsall, & The River School in Worcester, among others.
Australia
Church schoolsParochial school
A parochial school is a school that provides religious education in addition to conventional education. In a narrower sense, a parochial school is a Christian grammar school or high school which is part of, and run by, a parish.-United Kingdom:...
were established in Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
by both Roman Catholic and Protestant churches during the 19th century. Many of these schools, often with long traditions, continue to form the bulk of the private
Private school
Private schools, also known as independent schools or nonstate schools, are not administered by local, state or national governments; thus, they retain the right to select their students and are funded in whole or in part by charging their students' tuition, rather than relying on mandatory...
or independent school
Independent school
An independent school is a school that is independent in its finances and governance; it is not dependent upon national or local government for financing its operations, nor reliant on taxpayer contributions, and is instead funded by a combination of tuition charges, gifts, and in some cases the...
sector in Australia.
The modern Protestant Christian school movement began in Australia through the efforts of Dutch
Dutch people
The Dutch people are an ethnic group native to the Netherlands. They share a common culture and speak the Dutch language. Dutch people and their descendants are found in migrant communities worldwide, notably in Suriname, Chile, Brazil, Canada, Australia, South Africa, New Zealand, and the United...
migrants
Human migration
Human migration is physical movement by humans from one area to another, sometimes over long distances or in large groups. Historically this movement was nomadic, often causing significant conflict with the indigenous population and their displacement or cultural assimilation. Only a few nomadic...
who had enjoyed Christian schools for many decades in their home country. Most belonged to one of the Australian reformed churches of Dutch origin (the Christian Reformed Churches of Australia
Christian Reformed Churches of Australia
The Christian Reformed Churches of Australia is a Christian denomination established in Australia belonging to the Reformed/Presbyterian tradition.-Background:...
or the Free Reformed Churches of Australia
Free Reformed Churches of Australia
The ' is a federation of 15 congregations, 13 in Western Australia and two in Tasmania, with over 4000 members. Their historical roots are in the Reformed Churches of the Netherlands as a result of post-World War II immigration, and their doctrinal roots are in the sixteenth century Protestant...
, sometimes incorrectly called the Dutch Reformed Church
Dutch Reformed Church
The Dutch Reformed Church was a Reformed Christian denomination in the Netherlands. It existed from the 1570s to 2004, the year it merged with the Reformed Churches in the Netherlands and the Evangelical Lutheran Church in the Kingdom of the Netherlands to form the Protestant Church in the...
, which is a name used in the Netherlands
Netherlands
The Netherlands is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located mainly in North-West Europe and with several islands in the Caribbean. Mainland Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east, and shares maritime borders...
, South Africa
South Africa
The Republic of South Africa is a country in southern Africa. Located at the southern tip of Africa, it is divided into nine provinces, with of coastline on the Atlantic and Indian oceans...
and Sri Lanka
Sri Lanka
Sri Lanka, officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka is a country off the southern coast of the Indian subcontinent. Known until 1972 as Ceylon , Sri Lanka is an island surrounded by the Indian Ocean, the Gulf of Mannar and the Palk Strait, and lies in the vicinity of India and the...
but never in the Australian context). During the 1950s these migrants founded associations of parents who wanted to start Christian schools, and the first schools opened, at first without any government assistance, in the late 1950s and early 1960s.
The Free Reformed Church started the John Calvin School at Armadale, Western Australia
Armadale, Western Australia
Armadale is a suburb within the City of Armadale, located on the south-eastern edge of Perth's metropolitan area. The major junction of the South Western and Albany Highways, which connect Perth with the South West and Great Southern regions of Western Australia respectively, is located within the...
which opened its doors on 2 December 1957 with 70 students. It was followed by schools in Albany, Western Australia
Albany, Western Australia
Albany is a port city in the Great Southern region of Western Australia, some 418 km SE of Perth, the state capital. As of 2009, Albany's population was estimated at 33,600, making it the 6th-largest city in the state....
(1962) and Launceston, Tasmania
Launceston, Tasmania
Launceston is a city in the north of the state of Tasmania, Australia at the junction of the North Esk and South Esk rivers where they become the Tamar River. Launceston is the second largest city in Tasmania after the state capital Hobart...
(1965). The Reformed Churches of Australia (which added 'Christian' to the beginning of their name only in the 1990s) opened their first school at Kingston, Tasmania
Kingston, Tasmania
Kingston is a township and region on the outskirts of Hobart, Tasmania, Australia. Nestled 15 km south of the city between and around several hills, Kingston is the council seat of its wider municipality, the Kingborough Council, and today serves as the gateway between Hobart and the...
in 1962. Their first schools were affiliated with a national body known at that time as the National Union of Christian Parent-Controlled Schools, which later became Christian Parent Controlled Schools Ltd. (CPCS), and in 2008 was again renamed to become Christian Education National.
Whereas the Free Reformed schools enrolled only students from that particular denomination, the Reformed Church-initiated schools were operated by associations of parents who individually belonged to a variety of Protestant churches and who worked collectively for their common aim. These schools were established not because of innate dissatisfaction with government schools, but because these parents wanted schools which would actively integrate their Christian faith into the whole school curriculum. The schools were operated by parent bodies apart from supervision of churches.
From the late 1970s, Christians from many other churches became increasingly concerned about standards and social change in government schools and started establishing Christian schools to provide an alternative education option. In this phase, many such schools were commenced not by parent associations but by churches themselves, although several parent groups from outside the Reformed Churches studied and adopted the parent-controlled model and have commenced schools which, while they have no Dutch or Reformed Church connections, have still affiliated themselves nationally with many schools which do.
The leading umbrella organizations include Christian Schools Australia, Lutheran Education Australia (LEA), Christian Education National (formerly Christian Parent Controlled Schools Ltd), and the Australian Association of Christian Schools. This last body mainly functions as a political advisory and lobby group for Christian Education National as well as a number of Christian schools who are members independently.
The Netherlands
In the Netherlands the question whether or not public schools should be Christian and in what way was subject of much debate between 1806 and 1917. During the second half of the 19th century this "School-struggle" reached its summit and dominated politics along with voting rights and the district system. In 1917 most of these 3 matters were resolved by the Pacification of 1917. From now on both confessional (religious) and public schools would get equal funding.In the second half of 2006 there are 6318 Christian schools in the Netherlands; 4955 primary schools, 1054 high schools and 309 colleges and universities.
Russia
Russian OrthodoxyRussian Orthodox Church
The Russian Orthodox Church or, alternatively, the Moscow Patriarchate The ROC is often said to be the largest of the Eastern Orthodox churches in the world; including all the autocephalous churches under its umbrella, its adherents number over 150 million worldwide—about half of the 300 million...
is the major form of Christianity practiced in Russia. The Orthodox Church began systemic participation in the elementary education field in Russia in 1884 under the "Statute on Church-parish schools". In the following two decades, many privately-initiated, illegal "literacy schools" started by peasants were also regularised by placing them under the control of the Church. Privately-founded Orthodox schools not under direct church control played an important role in the spread of Orthodoxy among Russian minorities, prominent examples being the Kazan Central Baptised Tatar School, founded in 1863, or the Simbirsk Central Chuvash School, founded in 1868.
There are also Protestant-associated schools aimed at the children of expatriates, such as the International Academy of St. Petersburg, Russia
International Academy of St. Petersburg, Russia
International Academy of St. Petersburg Russia, abbreviated IA or "'IASP'", is an International Christian school located in St. Petersburg, Russia. Its curriculum and structure is based on the American system and is garnered towards students who plan to attend college in America or other...
, founded in 1993.
Africa
In many parts of AfricaAfrica
Africa is the world's second largest and second most populous continent, after Asia. At about 30.2 million km² including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of the Earth's total surface area and 20.4% of the total land area...
Christian missionary organisations have founded schools, often in places where no other schooling is available. Such schools generally provide a complete education in a Christian context.
Associations
- American Association of Christian SchoolsAmerican Association of Christian SchoolsThe American Association of Christian Schools is a United States organization, based in East Ridge, Tennessee, that unifies individual Christian schools and statewide Christian school associations across the country for the purpose of accreditation, competition, and group benefits.-State...
- Association of Christian Schools InternationalAssociation of Christian Schools InternationalThe Association of Christian Schools International is an association of evangelical Protestant Christian schools.-Purposes:ACSI, a protestant association for Christian schools, impacts nearly 23,000 schools and transforms the lives of more than 3.9 million students worldwide...
- Association of Classical Christian Schools
- Christian Schools InternationalChristian Schools InternationalChristian Schools International was established in 1920 and supports Christian school teachers who want Bible-based textbooks for their classrooms, principals and school administrators investigating employee benefit plans, Christian school board members seeking information about governance, and...
- National Association of University-Model SchoolsNational Association of University-Model SchoolsThe National Association of University-Model Schools was founded in 2002 to promote University-Model schooling in the United States and to assist existing and developing University-Model Schools....
See also
- Parochial schoolParochial schoolA parochial school is a school that provides religious education in addition to conventional education. In a narrower sense, a parochial school is a Christian grammar school or high school which is part of, and run by, a parish.-United Kingdom:...
- Catholic schoolCatholic schoolCatholic schools are maintained parochial schools or education ministries of the Catholic Church. the Church operates the world's largest non-governmental school system...
- Adventist Schools
- Liberal arts collegeLiberal arts collegeA liberal arts college is one with a primary emphasis on undergraduate study in the liberal arts and sciences.Students in the liberal arts generally major in a particular discipline while receiving exposure to a wide range of academic subjects, including sciences as well as the traditional...
- Lutheran schoolLutheran schoolLutheran schools and education were a priority for Lutherans who emigrated to the United States and Australia from Germany and Scandinavia. One of the first things they did was to create schools for their children. This strong educational tradition was handed down from Martin Luther himself. The...
- Nazarene International Education AssociationNazarene International Education AssociationThe Nazarene International Education Association is a part of the Church of the Nazarene. The Church of the Nazarene owns and operates 11 liberal arts institutions in Africa, Canada, Korea, and the United States, as well as 3 graduate seminaries, 37 undergraduate Bible/theological colleges, 3...
- Home School
External links
- Christian College Consortium
- Council for Christian Colleges & Universities
- Private Biblical Homeschooling
- Biblical Life Institute
- Kingsfold Christian School http://www.kingsfoldchristianschool.com
- River School http://www.riverschool.co.uk
- Leicester Christian School http://www.leicesterchristianschool.org
- Emmanuel School Exeter http://www.emmanuelschoolexeter.co.uk
- Christian Fellowship School Liverpool http://www.cfschool.org.uk