annual report - wasacre 2012... · i am pleased to introduce the annual report of pembrokeshire...

Standing Advisory Councilfor Religious Education

2012-2013

The

AnnualReport

of thePembrokeshire Standing

Advisory Council forReligious Education

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Letter from theChairman of SACRE

I am pleased to introduce the Annual Report of Pembrokeshire SACRE forthe academic year 2012 – 2013. It has been a privilege to Chair SACREduring the course of the year and also to represent Pembrokeshire onWASACRE.

The support and guidance of the Director for Children and Schools, Mr JakeMorgan, is greatly appreciated as is the professional support offered by MrsYvonne Jones. We also value the willing cooperation of all Officers.

We recognise the commitment of SACRE Members and the support given bymembers of various denominations on a voluntary basis. I look forward tocontinuing this strong level of commitment during the course of the comingyear.

Cllr. Rev. Huw GeorgeChair SACRE 2012 - 2013

Standing Advisory Council for Religious EducationCyngor Ymgynghorol Sefydlog ar Addysg Grefyddol

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Information about SACRE

Duty to establish SACREAll Local Authorities are required to constitute a Standing Advisory Council for ReligiousEducation within their local area.

Composition of SACRERepresentation on SACRE is required as follows:

• such Christian and other religious denominations as, in the opinion of the LocalAuthority, will appropriately reflect the religious traditions in the area

• associations representing teachers• the Local Authority

It is the duty of the Local Authority to ensure that members of the groups are appointedand that they are representative.

Members of SACRE

Religious Denominations :Union of Welsh Independents: Mr E PhilipsRoman Catholic: VacantMethodist: VacantChurch in Wales: VacantBaptist: Rev G RogersCongregational: Rev C GillhamOn behalf of the Diocese of St Davids: Mrs Margery Brown, Head of St Oswalds School

Local Authority Representatives :Councillor Pat DaviesCouncillor H M George Councillor E A MorseCouncillor S T HudsonCouncillor D W M ReesCouncillor D R SinnettCouncillor D G M JamesCouncillor J L Adams


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Local Authority Representatives (continued):

Associate Adviser: Mrs Yvonne Jones

Officer: Kate Evan-Hughes,Head of Education

Teacher Associations: UCAC Miss Glenys GeorgeNAS/UWT Mr Martyn WilliamsNUT Mr Andrew KennedyNAHT Mrs Jan Llewellyn

Functions of SACRE

l To advise the Local Authority on Worship and the religious education to be given inaccordance with the agreed syllabus, including methods of teaching, advice onmaterials and the provision of training for teachers.

l To consider whether to recommend to the Local Authority that its current agreedsyllabus should be reviewed by convening an Agreed Syllabus Conference.

l To consider applications from schools for determinations (to be exempt from therequirement that worship be “Christian”)

l To report to the Local Authority and Welsh Government on its activities on an annualbasis.



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Meetings of SACREMeetings were held on the following dates:-

23rd April 2013 4th July 2013

The main matters considered in each meeting included the following:-

Meeting held on 23rd April 2013

l Annual Report 2011-12l Matters relating to WASACREl Annual Lecturel Report of Adviser

Meeting held on 4th July 2013

l Matters relating to WASACREl Report of Adviserl Annual Report


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R.E. WORKING GROUPSPRIMARY R.E. ASSOCIATE ADVISOR REPORT

Pembrokeshire Primary SACRE Working Group

In the last Annual SACRE report 2013 it was reported that work had begun to produce acomprehensive ‘scheme of work’ for Key Stage 2. This work was completed during theSummer term 2013. All the materials and resources produced have been posted on thePembrokeshire E-portal and have been well received by schools.

There are 4 blocks of work – which could be used as straight Yrs 3 – 6, or in a rollingprogramme for Juniors or by slight adaption a whole school theme (Bearing in mind thatthe Yrs 5 & 6 themes have more complex themes than Year 3 & 4).

Next steps

In line with the current focus on the Literacy and Numeracy Framework (L.N.F.) the smallfocussed group of R.E. enthusiasts consisting of Helen Brandrick, Haverfordwest JM VC(Tasker Milward), Lisa Cook, Saundersfoot (Tenby) and Yvonne Jones, Neyland (STP) havesince been further developing these units of work to include ‘rich’ pieces of literacy tosupport teachers with their planning.

Examples of this work – from the topic ‘Pilgrimage’ were shared with members ofPembrokeshire SACRE on 28th November.

This work is ongoing.

Year 3/4 Year 3/4

Our World/Creation (approx. 18 lessons) Religious Communities (approx 15 lessons)

Worship and Celebration (approx.8 lessons) Dress (approx. 8 lessons)

Easter Christmas (approx. 5)

Year 5/6 Year 5/6

Food (approx 12 lessons) Pilgrimage (approx 12 lessons)

Leaders and Texts (approx 12 lessons) Fast and Festival (approx 12 lessons)

Religious Communities – other faiths Afterlife (approx 10 lessons)


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Foundation Phase

Yvonne has also been working closely with Sally Abadioru (Foundation Phase Advisoryteacher) to develop planning support materials for the Foundation Phase. The aim of thisis to ensure that religious education remains an important focus within the FoundationPhase curriculum. Yvonne has also shared some exciting new resources gathered fromthe Farmington Institute Conference which she attended in June 2013.

Resources

Mary Parry (R.E. Advisor, Carmarthen) kindly donated packs of her R.E. ‘Big Books’ toPembrokeshire Schools. These were distributed during the January 2014 Headteachersmeeting.

Courses / Training

Due to the change in CPD there were no R.E. courses ran again at a County Level this year

Secondary INSET

Resource pressures experienced by secondary schools resulted in difficulty in achievingviable numbers on several of the courses planned during the year and these have beenpostponed until a later date.

Pembrokeshire SACRE Annual Lecture 2013

This article focuses on Islam, however, there will be future opportunities to highlight otherbelief systems.

"Understanding Islam"

A meeting entitled Understanding Islam was organised by SACRE (Standing AdvisoryCouncil for Religious Education) and took place in County Hall on 4th July 2013.

Information about the Islamic faith was delivered by members of our Islamic communityincluding the Imam Mr A Wahid, the Mosque Chairman Mr A Mannan and Mr M Hussein,one of Mr Mannan's sons.

The aim was to provide an overview about the Islamic faith with an explanation about theFive Pillars of Worship in Islam and Islam's Five pillars of faith.

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The Five Pillars of Worship in Islam

In the Islamic faith, Muslims are expected to fulfill five fundamental acts of worship. The FivePillars of Worship (arkan al-`ibada) are the basic acts involved in being a believing andpracticing Muslim, but each Pillar is also a gateway to deeper understanding and greaterspirituality as one grows in the Islamic faith.

Shahada • A person becomes a Muslim by making the basic statement of testimonyor witness. "I testify that there is no God but God, and I testify thatMuhammad is the Messenger of God." Variations of the shahada are used inmany different situations.

Salat • Salat is a formal, ritualized prayer performed at five specified times eachday facing Mecca. Salat consists of a sequence of recitations and bodilypositions, including prostration with one's forehead touching the ground.

Zakat • Zakat is an obligatory charitable contribution, theoretically due annually fromevery Muslim at the rate of 2.5 percent of liquid assets and income-producingproperty. Zakat supports charitable works and the promotion of Islam.

Saum • Fast from dawn to dusk each day during the ninth month (Ramadan),Muslims are not supposed to eat, drink, or engage in sexual intercourse. Thisis a time of spiritual renewal.

Hajj • At least once in his or her life, if physically and financially able, each Muslimmakes the pilgrimage to Mecca during the twelfth Muslim month. During thefive main days of the hajj, those on the pilgrimage duplicate the ritual firstperformed by Abraham, including circling the sacred shrine (Ka`ba), standingon the plain of `Arafat, and offering a sacrifice.

The Five Pillars of Faith in Islam

In Islam, the Five Pillars of Faith provide a brief summary of basic Muslim beliefs. Within this table you will notice similarities between the Islamic faith and the Christian beliefsystems.

• Belief in God (Allah) as the only god.

• Belief in the angels of God, such as Gabriel.

• Belief in the book of God and in the messengers and prophets who revealed this book.(These are sometimes listed as two separate Pillars, creating Six Pillars of Faith.) Thebook is an eternal heavenly book that was partly revealed in the Jewish and ChristianBibles and is fully revealed in the Qur'an. God sent his prophets and messengers toreveal his word and to warn people what would happen if they didn't return to the pathof God. Muhammad is the final prophet in a series that began with Adam and includesAbraham, Noah, Moses, and Jesus, among others.


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• Belief in the Day of Judgment and Resurrection at the end of time, when all will beraised from the dead, judged according to their faith and deeds, and sent to thegardens of paradise or to the fires of hell.

• Belief that God is responsible for everything that happens, both good and evil, becauseeverything happens according to the will of God. The individual, however, is stillresponsible for his or her own moral and immoral actions.

Further explanation was provided about the 5 life steps in the Islamic faith:

• Allah created all the souls of the descendants of Adam and Hava (Adam and Eve) whowere predestined to come to this earth,

• Life in the mother's womb, • Life in this world, • Death, and • Resurrection on the judgement day.

Other steps sometimes mentioned relate to Heaven and Hell.

The meeting was informed that the period of fasting "Ramadan" will begin on 9th July 2013.

At the time this is published we will be in the early days of Ramadan and some informationis provided below will give context to this important part of the Islamic faith.

Ramadan is the ninth month in the Islamic calendar. It is a period of prayer, fasting,charity-giving and self-accountability for Muslims in the United Kingdom. The first verses ofthe Koran (Qu'ran) were revealed to the Prophet Muhammad (also written as Mohammad orMuhammed) during the last third of Ramadan, making this an especially holy period.

Muslims have been fasting throughout it for more than 14 centuries.

It is a reflective time for the Islamic community and charitable donations from the Islamiccommunity during this time are much greater than at any other time.

If you would like to investigate this in more detail the following link may help.

http://www.timeanddate.com/holidays/uk/ramadan-begins

The meeting allowed time for people to ask questions within this free and relaxedatmosphere.

The question was raised about jihad which in the media presents an image of violence,discord and fighting.

However, Mr Mannan explained that the original meaning of jihad means much more.


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Muslims use the word Jihad to describe three different kinds of struggle:

• A believer's internal struggle to live out the Muslim faith as well as possible • The struggle to build a good Muslim society • Holy war: the struggle to defend Islam, with force if necessary

Many modern writers claim that the main meaning of Jihad is the internal spiritual struggle,and this is accepted by many Muslims.

However, there are so many references to Jihad as a military struggle in Islamic writingsthat it is incorrect to claim that the interpretation of Jihad as holy war is wrong.

Jihad and the Prophet

The internal Jihad is the one that Prophet Muhammad is said to have called the greaterJihad.

A further question was raised about the segregation of women in the mosque. Theexplanation offered was that it is to avoid man becoming distracted.

Discussion also looked at why pork is not eaten within the Islamic community.

The initial reply was that pork is unclean, however, Mr Mannan did make the statement thatshould you be "in the desert and starving and the only food available is pork then it wouldbe acceptable to eat this in order to stay alive".

The meeting was a great way to raise awareness about the Islamic faith and Mr Mannanextends his invitation to anyone who would be interested in attending Friday prayers.

Recorded by Steve Butler

Photo caption: From leftto right - Mr MartynWilliams (Vice-chair forSACRE StandingAdvisory Council forReligious Education), MrM Hussein (one of MrMannan's sons), Mr AWahid (Imam), Mr AMannan (leading memberof our Islamic communityand Mosque Chairman)and Cllr H George (DeputyLeader and CabinetSpokesperson forEnvironmental andRegulatory Services andthe Welsh Language.



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Estyn inspections in Pembrokeshire secondary schools

Since September 2010, Estyn-led inspections in schools have been phased in to ensurethat schools are more confident about inspection findings. There are three key questionsand ten quality indicators that will be judged. These will focus in particular on learneroutcomes but also the quality of provision and leadership and management.

The main judgements in the report are:

l an overall judgement on current performance of the school; and l an overall judgment on the school’s prospects for improvement.

But there are also judgements on quality indicators i.e.

l outcomes – the standards achieved by pupils and their wellbeing; l provision – learning experiences, teaching, care, support and guidance, and the learning

environment; l leadership – leadership, improving quality, partnership working and resource management.

All judgements are being based on a four-point scale:

l Excellent: many strengths, including significant examples of sector-leading practice; l Good: many strengths and no important areas requiring significant improvement; l Adequate: strengths outweigh areas for improvement; and l Unsatisfactory: important areas for improvement outweigh strengths

Two secondary schools have been inspected since the previous Annual Report - TaskerMilward School in March 2013 and Ysgol Dewi Sant in May 2013. In both schools therewere no specific comments on the quality of RE teaching or standards in the subject. Thereports state, learning experiences effectively promote learners spiritual, moral, social andcultural development. The school promotes effectively the pupils’ spiritual, moral, socialand cultural development”.

The Chairman of SACRE and the local authority have resolved to take steps to encouragegreater involvement and interest in RE by secondary schools in the future.

LIST OF ORGANISTATIONS TO WHICH THE REPORT HAS BEEN SENT:l Welsh Governmentl All Schools and Colleges in the Local Education Authorityl The National Library of Walesl Welsh National Centre for Religious Educationl All Local Education Authorities in Walesl Diocese of St. David’sl Diocese of Menevia Schools Commissionl University of Wales Trinity Saint Davidl Free Church Federal Council


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Pembrokeshire Schools GCSE RESULTS 2013 Religious Studies

SCHOOLS A* A B C D E F G U

Ysgol Bro Gwaun (sc) Total Number 100 4 11 16 20 19 11 11 6 2

Cumulative % 4% 15% 31% 51% 70% 81% 92% 98% 100%

Ysgol Dewi SantTotal Number 53 15 9 11 8 6 3 0 1 0

Cumulative % 28% 45% 66% 81% 92% 98% 98% 100% 100%

Ysgol Dewi Sant (sc) Total number 67 6 12 11 15 8 12 3 0 0

Cumulative % 9% 27% 43% 66% 78% 96% 100% 100% 100%

Greenhill School Total number 62 15 24 12 10 1 0 0 0 0

Cumulative % 24% 63% 82% 98% 100% 100% 100% 100% 100%

Greenhill School (SC) Total number 121 2 11 16 30 25 14 7 5 11

Cumulative % 2% 11% 24% 49% 69% 81% 87% 91% 100%

Ysgol y Preseli Total number 90 2 12 28 26 17 5 0 0 0Cumulative % 2% 16% 47% 76% 94% 100% 100% 100% 100%

Ysgol y Preseli (SC) Total number 168 5 8 14 28 38 40 16 13 6Cumulative % 3% 8% 16% 33% 55% 79% 89% 96% 100%

Pembroke School Total number 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0Cumulative % 100% 100% 100% 100% 100% 100% 100% 100% 100%

Pembroke School (SC) Total number 12 4 2 3 3 0 0 0 0 0Cumulative % 33% 50% 75% 100% 100% 100% 100% 100% 100%

Tasker Milward V.C. School Total number 11 0 1 1 3 0 1 0 2 3Cumulative % 0% 9% 18% 45% 45% 55% 55% 73% 100%

Tasker Milward V.C. School (SC) Total number 165 7 16 33 31 15 22 18 17 6Cumulative % 4% 14% 34% 53% 62% 75% 86% 96% 100%

Sir Thomas Picton School Total number 78 14 17 21 20 5 0 0 1 0Cumulative % 18% 40% 67% 92% 99% 99% 99% 100% 100%

Sir Thomas Picton School(SC) Total number 120 5 16 13 25 19 21 11 6 4Cumulative % 4% 18% 28% 49% 65% 83% 92% 97% 100%

Milford Haven School Total number 20 2 2 3 3 4 6 0 0 0Cumulative % 10% 20% 35% 50% 70% 100% 100% 100% 100%

Milford Haven School (SC) Total number 140 1 4 5 32 30 26 30 8 4Cumulative % 1% 4% 7% 30% 51% 70% 91% 97% 100%

PEMBROKESHIRE Total number 315 49 65 76 70 33 15 0 4 3Cumulative % 16% 36% 60% 83% 93% 98% 98% 99% 100%

PEMBROKESHIRE Total number 893 34 80 111 184 154 146 96 55 33SHORT COURSE Cumulative % 4% 13% 25% 46% 63% 79% 90% 96% 100%

(SC) = GCSE short course


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Pembrokeshire Schools A LEVEL RESULTS 2013 Religious Studies

SCHOOLS A* A B C D E N

Ysgol Bro Gwaun Total Number 8 1 4 1 0 0 1 1Cumulative % 13% 63% 75% 75% 75% 88% 100%

Ysgol Dewi Sant Total Number 16 0 0 3 3 4 5 1Cumulative % 0% 0% 19% 38% 63% 94% 100%

The Greenhill School Total Number 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0Cumulative % 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% 0%Total Number 5 0 0 1 4 0 0 0Ysgol y Preseli Cumulative % 0% 0% 20% 100% 100% 100% 100%

Pembroke School Total Number 8 0 2 2 2 2 0 0Cumulative % 0% 25% 50% 75% 100% 100% 100%

Tasker Milward V.C. School Total Number 14 0 0 2 6 5 1 0Cumulative % 0% 0% 14% 57% 93% 100% 100%

Sir Thomas Picton School Total Number 15 0 5 4 5 1 0 0Cumulative % 0% 33% 60% 93% 100% 100% 100%

Milford Haven School Total Number 12 0 3 1 4 3 1 0Cumulative % 0% 25% 33% 67% 92% 100% 100%

PEMBROKESHIRE Total Number 78 1 14 14 24 15 8 2Cumulative % 1% 19% 37% 68% 87% 97% 100%

Pembrokeshire Schools AS LEVEL RESULTS 2013 Religious Studies

SCHOOLS A B C D E N

Ysgol Bro Gwaun Total Number 8 0 3 3 2 0 0Cumulative % 0% 38% 75% 100% 100% 100%

Ysgol Dewi Sant Total Number 30 4 8 6 5 4 3Cumulative % 13% 40% 60% 77% 90% 100%

The Greenhill School Total Number 0 0 0 0 0 0 0Cumulative % 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% 0%Total Number 7 0 2 3 2 0 0Ysgol y Preseli Cumulative % 0% 29% 71% 100% 100% 100%

Pembroke School Total Number 12 2 3 2 3 0 2Cumulative % 17% 42% 58% 83% 83% 100%

Tasker Milward V.C. School Total Number 11 4 3 0 4 0 0Cumulative % 36% 64% 64% 100% 100% 100%

Sir Thomas Picton School Total Number 24 6 3 10 5 0 0Cumulative % 25% 38% 79% 100% 100% 100%

Milford Haven School Total Number 12 0 1 5 1 1 4Cumulative % 0% 8% 50% 58% 67% 100%

PEMBROKESHIRE Total Number 104 16 23 29 22 5 9Cumulative % 15% 38% 65% 87% 91% 100%

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