DARTINGTON C of E PRIMARY AND NURSERY SCHOOL RELIGIOUS EDUCATION POLICY Rationale At Dartington, as a Church of England Voluntary Controlled School, we aim to enable children to develop a personal spiritual understanding, to begin to comprehend what it means to be a person of faith, and to accept and value those whose commitments, values and ways of life are different from their own. The importance of religious education in the curriculum Religious education provokes challenging questions about the meaning and purpose of life, beliefs about God, issues of right and wrong and what it means to be human. RE develops children s knowledge and understanding of Christianity (which is taught throughout each key stage of learning) and the other principal religions; Buddhism, Hinduism, Islam, Judaism and Sikhism. Consideration is also given to other non-religious perspectives. RE offers children opportunities for personal reflection and spiritual development. It considers the influence of religion on individuals, families, communities and cultures. RE has two central attainment targets. AT1 AT2 Learning about Religion Learning from Religion In Learning about Religion children learn about different beliefs and teachings, practices and ways of life and how religions express themselves in different ways. In Learning from Religion children reflect on and consider important questions of identity and belonging (e.g. who and what matters to me?) questions of meaning (e.g. what do people believe about how life began?) and values and commitments (e.g. who and what do I value?) Key Skills in RE RE is more than just developing children s knowledge and understanding. It seeks to develop children s skills in investigation/enquiry, communication, interpretation, analysis and evaluation. These are important skills for children to develop. These include: Investigation/enquiry (finding out what people believe, how their beliefs affect the way they live and the different ways people express their beliefs). Communication (sharing their ideas and those within religions and beliefs in a lively, informed way including different styles of writing, oral contributions and the use if ICT). Interpretation (recognising and talking about religious symbols, stories and sacred texts). Analysis and evaluation (developing their own views and ideas, recognising the views of others). 1
Key Attitudes in RE As with skills RE has a number of key attitudes it seeks to promote. These include self-esteem (so that every child feels valued and significant), respect (including being sensitive to the beliefs, feelings and values of others), open-mindedness (being willing to learn and gain new understanding) and appreciation and wonder (developing children imagination and curiosity). Objectives These objectives will be developed at Key Stages 1 and 2 The teaching of religious education will reflect the foundation of this Church of England Primary School, whilst taking into account appropriate information about teaching and practices of principal religions represented in Britain. The four principal religions to be studied are Christianity, which is covered in depth, Judaism, Islam and Hinduism. Teaching will be based upon the new diocesan syllabus and, in both key stages, both AT1 learning about religion and AT2 learning from religion will be taught. Other faiths will be taught as part of the syllabus and it will be recognised that many pupils will have value systems that are not based upon religious belief. Units of work will be planned within the school s system of Gateways, so that pupils will acquire knowledge and understanding of other faiths whilst taking account of the Church of England foundation of the school. Gateways will be planned where pupils can learn RE discretely, and also where links may be made to other curriculum areas where appropriate and relevant Pupils will be given opportunities to: name and describe the functions of key objects, symbols, people, places and events as outlined in the programmes of study; Identify the key points in the life stories of important religious figures; Talk or write about religions; identifying to which religion key aspects belong; Show an understanding of what it means to be a person of faith, in terms of beliefs, practice and values; Explain some of the interpretations of symbols, stories and language used by believers; Recognise that different religions share similar features; e.g. beliefs, values, holy books and places of worship; look for similarities rather than differences; Make simple comparisons based on key features; Understand the significance of the key teaching of the religions they have studied; Make comparisons between significant experiences of key religious figures and their own feelings and experiences; Understand why certain things are right and wrong and how moral values may be embodied in religions. Organisation The Diocesan Board of Education recommends that religious education is taught for a minimum of 5% of curriculum time. RE may sometimes be taught discretely or within our Gateway cross curricular planning.. RE is taught through a range of religions and beliefs and key themes. These are outlined below 2
Key Stage Themes Religions studied Reception Families Special People Special Places Christianity and one other religion Key Stage 1 Who are we? (Myself) stories special? times special? How do we celebrate our journey through life? (Celebrations) How should we live our lives? Where do we belong? (Belonging) symbols and places special? Christianity, one other religion and other worldviews Key Stage 2 (Beliefs and stories) journeys and places special? (Worship, Pilgrimage, Sacred Places) How should we live and who can inspire us? (Inspirational People) What is important to me? (Leaders and Teachers) How and why do people express their beliefs in different ways? (Symbols and Religious Expression) (Symbols) Why do religious books and teachings matter? (Teachings and Authority) Religions to be covered, in a systematic way: Christianity, Hinduism, Judaism and Islam, What does it mean What does it mean to belong to a to belong to a religion? and non-religious religion/belief system? worldviews such as Humanism (Religion and the Individual) How do we make moral choices? (Religion, family and community) What do people believe about life? (Beliefs and Questions) How do we make moral choices? (Beliefs in Action (1) The Environment) (The Journey of Life and Death) (Beliefs in Action (2) Faith in Action) Teaching and Leaning Strategies Teaching and learning includes a wide range of strategies and the approach is creative, lively and experiential where possible. Effective teaching and learning will be based upon: a focus on both learning about and learning from religions, so that pupils not only gain knowledge, but are given opportunities to reflect and respond; a study of both the historical and current aspects of four principal world religions: Christianity, Judaism, Hinduism and Islam; 3
the consistent use of a variety of interesting, engaging and challenging approaches to learning, including the use of drama, art, poetry, design and technology, written and oral questioning, class and group discussion, different styles of writing and communication; pupils will learn outside and from the natural environment wherever possible; the constructive use of a range of resources including artefacts, books, and IT; the regular use of first-hand experiences, including visits to places of worship and visitors to the school; an emphasis on using child centred key questions which will be based on pupils experiences, building a bridge to the spiritual content. Equality of opportunity and meeting individual needs Equality and justice for all people form a central concern for all religious education and are represented in one or our Forest Families as a Christian value. All the religious education in our school will ensure an understanding of the following principles that: people have different lifestyles, beliefs and values but share a common humanity and are independent; all people have a right to their own beliefs, or no beliefs and should be respected; the diversity of the roles of both women and men in religion should be explored; no one should be discriminated against because of a code of dress, diet or religious observances a global perspective is necessary as the experiences of a faith community in Britain may be different from those of the same faith elsewhere; faith and culture are not one and the same thing and should be explored as separate concepts; that within any faith community there are different traditions, customs and practices; stereotypes should be challenged and material explored for bias; the language used is not sexist or racist; good practice in religious education will challenge discrimination and prejudice. Assessment, Recording and Reporting The assessment, recording and reporting of pupils progress in RE will be conducted in a way that is consistent with the school s approaches. It will : help pupils to recognise the degree of progress which they have made in RE; enable pupils to identify ways of improving their work; provide information which is useful to the intended audience in language which can easily be understood; ensure that pupils are actively involved in the process of reviewing their own work; be manageable in the time available, make reasonable and realistic demands on teachers and minimise the amount of unnecessary duplication; be conducted positively, supportively and constructively be based on shared understanding of the criteria which are being applied and the significance of any feedback which is awarded; facilitate the provision of summative information which meets any statutory requirements and the needs of transfer institutions. In RE we provide annual reports based on the assessment of children s learning drawn from each unit of work and teacher knowledge informed by observations over time. We also recognise that some of the most important learning in RE (e.g. how RE contributes to spiritual development) cannot be formally assessed. 4
Conclusion In essence we are aiming to help our children develop respect and sensitivity for all people and to understand more about the importance of religion in today s world. This policy was adopted by the Standards & Curriculum Committee of the Governing Body in the Autumn Term 2017 and is due to be reviewed in the Autumn Term 2018. Additional Notes: The contribution of RE to the wider curriculum While RE has its own distinctive subject matter it does make an important contribution to other aspects of children s learning. The key ones are outlined below. RE contributes to children s spiritual development by:- Discussing and reflecting on questions of meaning and truth such as the origins of the universe, good and evil, life after death, beliefs about God and humanity and values such as justice, honesty and truth. Learning about and reflecting on important concepts and experiences such as love, trust, forgiveness, obedience and sacrifice. Valuing relationships and developing a sense of belonging. Considering how religions and beliefs regard the value and purpose of human beings, the importance of the environment and the significance of emotions such as love, anger, joy, jealousy, happiness and pain. RE contributes to children s moral development by:- Enabling children to value themselves and others. Exploring the influence of family, friends and other sources on moral choices. Considering what is of ultimate value both to children and within religious traditions. Developing an understanding in key beliefs and teachings in religion and values and moral choices. Considering ethical issues especially justice which promote racial and religious respect. Reflecting on the importance of rights and responsibilities and developing a sense of conscience. RE contributes to children s social development by:- Considering how religious and other beliefs lead to particular actions and concerns. Reflecting on the importance of friendship and positive relationships. RE contributes to children s cultural development by:- Encountering people, stories, artefacts and resources from differing cultures. Promoting respect for all, combating prejudice and discrimination. Challenging stereotypes of religion and beliefs. RE and the use of language RE can also make an important contribution to children s use of language by enabling them to:- Acquire and develop a specialist vocabulary Communicate their ideas with clarity. Listen and respond to the views and ideas of others. 5
Be inspired by the power and beauty of language. Write in different styles such as poetry, diaries and extended writing. Highlight their own ideas and those of others. RE and Computing RE can make an important contribution to children s use of Computing by:- Helping them make effective use of the research tools to investigate and learn from different religions beliefs, teachings and ideas; Use of communication media to collaborate with other schools in different locations; communication on a worldwide basis; Use multimedia and presentation tools to communicate their own ideas and those within religions and beliefs; Engagement through the use of Digital magazines and APPs; Closer integration and greater awareness of faith. 6