British ax teaching morals

LONDON, July 31 (UPI) -- Government plans to reform education for 11-to-14 year olds in Britain include ending the practice of teaching the difference between right and wrong.

Also being dropped is a requirement to teach children about the country's cultural heritage, the London Telegraph reports.

The suggestions by the Qualifications and Curriculum Authority are being met with a combination of anger and disbelief.

Conservative Party member Nick Gibb, the shadow minister for schools, says he was aghast when he learned of the proposals.

"The education establishment is constantly engaged in these types of reforms with the result that everyone is horrified," Gibb says. "Ministers must engage with the public so this type of nonsense is not allowed to prevail."

The changes, outlined in a letter to the education secretary, are designed to give schools greater flexibility in the way they teach.

"The idea that they think it is appropriate to dispense with right and wrong is a big alarming," says Professor Alan Smithers, director of the University of Buckingham's center for education and employment research.