teaching religious education mark plater ba, pgce, flexi & gtp primary 2010
TRANSCRIPT
Teaching Religious Education
Mark PlaterBA, PGCE, Flexi & GTP Primary
2010
Before we start…
• complete the first box only on your sheets:
• “How I feel about teaching RE”
• (2-3 mins)
By the end of this session, I hope that you will:
• Have a better understanding of the aims and purposes of RE
• Feel more confident about ways to teach it
• Have some practical teaching ideas to take away with you
Legal requirements
• All pupils (unless exempted)• Locally Agreed Syllabus (unless
Voluntary Aided)• Reflect Christianity and other
major UK faiths• Plan, differentiate, assess and
report on progress- like any other subject
Mezuzah(Jewish)
Small case fixed toright door post.
Touched & kissedon entry.
Mezuzah
Contains Shema
from Torah (“Hear O Israel, the Lord your God is One..” Deut.6:4-9)
Reminds of God’s presence & laws.
Shiva NatarajaLord of the Dance
• Creator, maintainer & destroyer
• 4-armed, dancing on ignorance (the dwarf, Apasmara) in a circle of flames
Message 1
Try to include an element of mystery
Message 2
Make sure your RE relates to the children’s experience
AT1: Learning about religionsAT2: Learning from religions
Once upon a time…
There were three knights:
• Sir Mon• Sir Cumference• Sir Percy Vere
(with acknowledgements to Mark Chater)
Sir Mon
• Is a keen Christian teacher whose RE lessons are just like Sunday School
• S/he takes the confessional approach to RE
How to spot Sir Mon…
• Typically Sir Mon• Talks at the pupils• S/he refers to we & us• Can only think of
religion as her brand
of religion• Downplays, ignores or
misrepresents other religions
Sir Cumference
• Is not religious, and feels awkward about teaching RE
• So…avoids RE, but doesn’t mind social & moral issues
• S/he takes the avoidance approach to RE
How to spot Sir Cumference…• Says things like, “How
can I teach RE? - I’m not religious…”
• Feels ill-equipped, insecure, and reluctant
• Fails to see the potential for RE in other classwork
• Falls back on worksheets when OFSTED calls…
Sir Percy Vere
• A solid and conscientious teacher, who does what is expected..
• Covers the RE content, but without much imagination
• S/he takes the boring RE approach
How to spot Sir Percy Vere…
• Has no sense of enthusiasm for RE, but ploughs on regardless
• Presents lots of facts, but without making these relevant to life
• Makes no attempt to create links with the pupils’ experience or with other classwork
How would you describe your approach to teaching RE?
To give children a
knowledge of Bible stories and their meaning
(Bible knowledge)
To help children to be able
to make moral choices
(Moral education)
To make children familiar with the Christian heritage
of their country
(Christian heritage)
To help children to know about & understand the
world’s religions
(World religions)
To enable children to
understand what it means to hold a religious perspective on life
(Religious perspectives)
To foster a reflective approach to life and
experience
(Reflective approach)
To help children explore aspects of life which raise questions about meaning
& purpose
(Exploring ultimate questions)
To help children to see the
part that religion has played in the history of
mankind
(Religion in history)
To promote tolerance &
sensitivity towards people of other religions &
cultures
(Religious tolerance)
To help children
understand more about their own religious faith
and that of others
(Religious understanding)
To develop children’s
ability to make decisions for themselves about
religious issues
(Decision making)
To develop children’s ability to think about
questions of Belief & Value
(Thinking skills)
To offer children values by
which they can live & prosper in society
(Values education)
To foster spiritual
awareness in children
(Spiritual education)
To help children to question their own religious ideas and
practices (Religious questioning)
Resources:
• RE online:• http://www.reonline.org.uk/• RE-XS• http://re-xs.ucsm.ac.uk/
Also... RE Today magazine
A child who is religiously literate will:• Know about religious (and other)
beliefs & practices• Understand the significance of
religion/s for individuals & in society
• Be able to make informed & reasoned judgements about religious issues (cont.)
A child who is religiously literate will:
• Have positive attitudes towards people who are different
• Be aware of their own spiritual, moral & religious development
(adapted from SCAA model syllabuses, 1994)
Some key things to remember:
1. Make sure your RE contains some religious content! (AT1)
2. Make sure it relates to the children’s experience! (AT2)
3. Try to include an element of fun and mystery.
Thank you…
Now could you please fill in sections 2 & 3 on your Feedback Sheet
Happy RE teaching!