RE
Why RE matters:
Religious education is vital to the development of responsible, global citizens. Eighty-four percent of the world’s population identify as religious*. Therefore, to understand the world from a variety of religious perspectives, is to understand the people of the world, their cultures, habits, customs, beliefs, motivations and actions.
When taught and engaged with appropriately, as a rigorous academic subject, it stimulates essential qualities such as critical thinking, tolerance, respect and mutual understanding. Attributes crucial to our vision for our children.
The study of RE in our school enables us to realise our vision of life in all its fullness by:
Integrity - Providing children with the confidence and tools to critically reflect on their own beliefs. Recognising that the UK is a Christian country and exploring how the Christian beliefs of people throughout history have shaped how we live today - shaping our laws, customs and culture.
Kindness and Joy - Establishing curiosity, understanding and respect for what other people believe and other people’s opinions. Encouraging children to have an openness to the wider world and to the mutable nature of their own and others’ beliefs. Investigating the similarities and differences between world religions and belief systems and how this teaches us about what it is to be human.
Growth - Introducing children to many academic disciplines - philosophy, literature, theology and even the evolution of scientific theories and people’s understanding of the world. Engaging critically with religious source material (sacred texts, testimonies of people of faith, artefacts, visits to places of worship) to explore core theological concepts.
How we deliver it:
RE is taught once a week in a protected one hour 15 minute slot specific to each year group’s timetable. As necessary, this time is supplemented by a block of lessons, for example where an extended piece of writing, artwork or performance is prepared as an end of unit assessment.
We use the LDBS scheme of work, adapted where necessary to the needs of our school, cohorts and classes. This scheme of work is chosen because it is academically rigorous and rooted in biblical teaching while providing high quality units to teach other world faiths.
Our long-term, subject overview ensures key concepts and knowledge are introduced in a logical sequence and revisited each year so that learning is remembered and built on over time.
Work is not always recorded in RE books. For more active lessons involving drama, music, art and debate, photographs and children’s comments should be recorded and displayed on the class RE display to reflect current learning and later transferred into the Class Faith Journal. The unit’s current ‘Big Question’ will be on the RE display along with the key question for that week’s learning and children will be given opportunities to add their comments and questions to these throughout the topic.
The current unit materials, especially if not Christian, should be clearly separate and demarcated from the more permanent Christian fixtures to avoid students getting beliefs mixed up.
Classes have RE ambassadors whose role is to ensure that children’s reflections and answers are retained in the Class Faith Journal each time the RE display is updated.
How we know we are doing it well:
Assessment - Children should be given regular opportunities to reflect at length on their learning, by producing more extended pieces of writing in their RE books or through deeper whole class discussions (once per unit of learning). This piece of writing should inform assessment at the end of a unit, along with children’s comments in the Class Faith Journal and their contributions in class throughout the topic.
Monitoring - The subject leader monitors the subject, including through reviews of RE books, journals and learning walks which often include a member of local clergy and a governor and through pupil and staff voice. Work recorded in the RE books should be of the same standard as that in the English books.
The RE Leader attends LDBS Subject Leader Network Meetings. When adapting the LDBS scheme to meet the needs of particular cohorts, the RE Leader works with the charity 'Insight' and our local clergy to make suggestions to enrich, unpick and adapt certain lessons so that they are accessible for all children. The RE Leader delivers training and development to staff, sharing their expertise as necessary.
*("Religious Composition by Country, 2010-2050". Pew Research Center. 2 April 2015)
Right to withdraw from RE lessons
Parents have the right to withdraw their child from all or part of RE lessons. This should be made in writing to the Headteacher. No reason needs to be given. However, we would encourage parents to discuss their concerns with the Headteacher.