A meaningful process…

The last few years have been an interesting journey for me, not only in terms of my career, but also in terms of my thinking. When the Commission on RE’s Interim Report came out in 2017, I admit to being rather sceptical about a change of name for RE. However, I reflected, read and reflected more. I used to find the train or car journey’s useful for thinking about these matters!! Now I have to carve out time in the week to do this. It is important, because I believe what is being suggested in the Final Commission on RE Report (2018) regarding Religion and Worldviews is a vital paradigm shift, and not just a name change, and a potential game-changer for our subject.

On a personal level this has been a challenging and enthralling journey so far, and it is not at an end. My thinking is fluid, I am trying to see possibilities, to continue to read more and to learn from others across the diversity of our Religion and Worldviews community.  At the launch of a recent Theos report Dr Lois Lee talked about being part of a meaningful process. For me, this described not only my personal journey, but also what I think is happening in our subject community at the moment.

This is why I welcome two recent reports. The first is a literature review entitled ‘Worldview: A Multidisciplinary Report’.  This review was commissioned by the Religious Education Council of England and Wales working in partnership with TRS-UK. It aims to provide clarity as to the historical and contemporary use of the term ‘worldview’ in a number of disciplines. This report raises questions and at the end there is an invitation to engage; to be part of the conversation.

The second report, alluded to above is an independent academic report authored by Cooling with Bowie and Panjwani, entitled ‘Worldviews in Religious Education’ and published by Theos. One of the most powerful chapters in this report comprises three autobiographical reflections that illustrate the impact of worldview on academic development. The interaction between personal worldviews and what we might call worldview traditions in this section illustrates to me the educational potential of the worldview concept.

For me both these reports emphasise the fact that as a subject community we are in a meaningful process. These reports are not in themselves destinations; they are to be engaged with, discussed and reflected upon. They provide vital tools to help us work through what the new language means. Alongside these reports I have noticed  conversations opening up; I have observed and read about teachers sharing what a paradigm shift might mean for the curriculum; I have taken part in a media discussion where journalists asked questions about what Religion and Worldviews means; I have listened to Ofsted’s Dr Richard Kueh, talking about new ways of understanding knowledge within this paradigm shift…. All these moves are part of a meaningful process of engagement. The question is, will you be part of this process?

https://www.religiouseducationcouncil.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2020/10/20-19438-REC-Worldview-Report-A4-v2.pdf Literature Review

https://www.theosthinktank.co.uk/research/2020/10/21/worldviews-in-religious-education Theos Report

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hAK1lCS2_y0 You Tube Recording of Theos Report Launch Event

https://www.reonline.org.uk/news/opening-up-conversations-about-religion-and-worldviews/ Includes teachers and other professionals discussing Religion and Worldviews in a series of blogs