Public Education: Enforcing True Blue Australian Values (Rule #1: be nice to the ethnic kid)

I don't know whether anyone else finds this disturbing, but I just had to help a year 5 kid write a (excuse the language) 'crapload of politically correct bullshit' for a class speech next week. I feel sorry for these kids, this whole thing would've had me completely boggled in primary school.

(These are only the more memorable ones)

Topics:
-Multiculuralism-the alternative?
-The Importance of Language
-Respect and Responsibility
-One community, many faiths
-Our multicultural school community
-(my favourite) The Australian Identity
-etc, etc...you get the idea

Criteria:
*Must be somehow linked to the concept of multiculuralism
*Have an introduction
*Have a conclusion
*Students must obviously have a passion for the topic and present in a passionate way
*Include research that supports and develops your argument
*Year 5/6 speeches must be 4~5 minutes long

Does anyone else find the government's efforts to promote harmony amongst cultural groups just a little (insert sarcasm here) indiscreet? My kids wrinkle their noses and roll their eyes whenever the words 'harmony' and 'multiculturalism' are strung together in the same breath. It just doesn't work to simply feed them questions and get them to go home and pay their tutors to help them fudge. I mean, I appreciate the thinking behind it, and I do think ethinicity is becoming a rather pressing issue and really needs to be properly addressed in schools in Australia, but really, put some effort into your implementations!

I get the feeling that the teachers are simply doing this to tick off another learning point in the curriculum, and given the current circumstances, with the primary curriculum being crowded enough as it is without having to enforce driver education, sex education (from Kindy, some people say) and "Australian values" in a 30-hour week, it's understandable that they don't have the time, effort or resources to do anything else. (Gargh, long sentence!)

Some schools actually have great programs running which promote multiculturalism but in this case, I think the school has fallen slightly short of the mark.

I think I'm only grouchy about this because I had to help the kid write most of it. The poor girl was so lost, not knowing where to begin nor how to get her speech to 4 minutes (and probably still doesn't, I sent her home with only half of the speech done, promising her that I'd help her on the phone...I'm taking it off the hook after 10, I think).

Sorry for the slightly aggressive post. (Exit, scuttling off meekly)