The Catholic Church of England and Wales requires students to know and understand that they are created in the image of God and from that flows much of how they view themselves and the world. It is from this basis that the RE curriculum has been developed to enable students to understand their unique worth in the eyes of God.
This intent is the same for all of KS3 because the whole key stage should be seen as a whole rather than three separate sections. We cover topics that are age appropriate for each of the year groups. To ensure a rounded study of religion, and to prepare students for engaging with those of other faiths, the RE department also teaches Hinduism, Islam, and Judaism at KS3.
For KS4 we follow what is prescribed in the GCSE syllabus, which is designed to give students good knowledge and understanding of the Catholic faith. It expects them to examine and understand the basic beliefs, teachings, and practices of Catholic Christianity.
Not only do students need to have sound knowledge of the course, they need to be able to form their own opinions in respect of how relevant they think the Catholic Church teachings are to Catholics and humanity today.
In addition, KS4 students delve deeper into the beliefs, teachings and practices of Judaism that they studied at KS3 and draw comparisons with those of Catholic Christianity.
At KS5 we follow what is prescribed in A Level syllabus as dictated by the AQA exam board:
Philosophy Ethics Dialogues
This means that student knowledge of Philosophy and Ethics needs to be sound, and they need to be able to apply ethical theories to moral dilemmas such as abortion, euthanasia, etc. with regard to Philosophy, students need to be able to question rigorously the theories to see whether they stand up to scrutiny or not.
RE is taught using a range of teaching resources. Primarily we draw resources from the Bible and Church documents and teachings. Teacher input and independent learning by pupils go hand-in-hand to make for a more holistic teaching experience. The use of online visual aids helps to bring the subject to life, as do school trips and external speakers. Needless to say, the personal experiences of students and their own views of life are hugely important to their learning of RE.
Mainly written work to demonstrate an understanding of what has been taught. Reflection of personal experiences are key to the study of RE. Independent research helps students to open their minds.
Literacy is supported through the reading of relevant texts, particularly from the Bible and Church teachings.
Oracy is developed through sharing of ideas in pairs and class discussions.
Independent research is conducted through homework tasks.
