Religious Studies is not out of date, it is fundamental to today’s world. In RS we essentially learn about people- people are not out of date! Understanding people is as important as it has ever been.
For the majority of the world, religion is a major factor in their lives. Their beliefs influence their actions. Understanding religion is about understanding the majority of people in the world.
In Western Europe, which is less religious and more secular, RS is still important. Even though there are fewer religious people, everyone has a belief or a view. Everyone has a view of the world. Learning about people, whether religious or not, is still essential.
Even in a less religious country we need to know the background thinking to religion, such as the early days and history of a religion, so religious people don’t seem like aliens. We have to make sense to each other.
In society there is disrespect and discrimination, including towards religious people. This can come from other faiths or the dominant group towards minorities.
A really important part of learning about other people is to also learn about forms of discrimination and prejudice- where they come from, what they look like. If you know what Islamophobia, anti-Semitism look like, or forms of racism such as anti-Hindu or anti-India racism, you can see the patterns in articles or on social media. This can help us to become more educated about the world. Understanding the dark side of the world is just as important as the good things.
RS is an essential part of our education, no other Key stage 1, 2, 3 and 4 subject area explores what people think and do like RS. Education is a protection against ignorance. Ignorance can lead to problems such as hate speech or racism.
RS is relevent to our lives, as we meet people outside school and hopefully we understand them better. And other young people who have studied RS will understand us better!
RS is a space in the school week where we can talk, think, listen and try to make sense of things.
In my class we all have different opinions and we really enjoy debating. It is important that we can disagree with other in a safe way. It is important for us as we grow and learn about the world to be able to make sense of things.
I like RS because everyone can have different views, there is no expectation that we will agree on anything. You can work out what you think and argue your case.
Religion is part of current affairs- we need to know this to understand world events.
We can also demystify peoples’ behaviour that we might find strange. For example, we have just watched a documentary about young women, only a bit older than us, who have decided to become nuns. We all found this fascinating.
We really enjoy the philosophical side- we love debating about life after death, free will and how we can prove the existence of God. If we did not have RS we would not have these philosophical discussions.
To conclude: RS is of benefit to teenagers as their brains expand and want to learn more and more about people, events and beliefs in the world.
Finley and Cole were inspired to find instances in daily life where the truth maybe beneath the surface. Listen to their podcast.
Over a decade ago I enjoyed discussions with two influential advisers in the RE world; Mary Myatt and Jane Brooke about their ideas for an accredited award scheme for RE. Here we are in 2022, with an award designed to develop great RE in all settings and contexts. It is a wonderful achievement by all concerned.
I became project director in 2016, appointed by the REC (Religious Education Council). I remember the day clearly – a phone call came through to a garden in Winchester where I was sitting thinking about the interview experience in London, and what leading REQM with the existing team would mean….So pleased I said yes!
Of course I have seen changes over time, not least the move online during the last two years, but one of the great things about REQM is its continuity. It has been one of the longer lasting RE projects and that’s because it was so well thought out in 2011. No major changes were needed until 2017-2018 when the REC agreed that the criteria needed to be updated to take account of changing education contexts, and the CoRE report of the same year. Criteria that made closer reference to the new language of RE, the and the new foci of inspections, were published for schools to use in January 2020.
When I look back over 10 years of the REQM I reflect on the dedication, resilience and flexibility of teachers, and REQM assessors, the gems of great RE emerging from pupil voice evidence, and the impact of the award on wider school development. Senior leaders in schools, universities and local authorities have helped develop the scheme over the years, and it shows. National RE associations promote the REQM, and inspectors are aware of the contributions this Quality Mark makes to education as a whole.
I also reflect on the way that we have not always been able to engage as many schools as we would like, and how we increase participation. To any school thinking of applying for the REQM, my advice is that there is no need to rush. Use the REQM materials on the website as a development toolkit. Only apply when you are all ready for the conversations with your assessor.
If you are not sure how to ensure support (and funding) from the school’s leadership team, ask yourself: where is our school at the moment, what are its wider priorities? REQM materials contribute not only to great RE across the school, but also to curriculum and professional development. The award is an investment in celebrating success, which is not such a hard thing to ask for if the RE is appreciated by your school’s community – sometimes that takes time. Everything to help your school’s progress is freely available on the site until you apply for the award visit.
In another 10 years, REQM should still be thriving. The REQM community continues to offer a great deal within the RE (or Religion and Worldviews) networks in England, Wales and beyond, and schools still want to celebrate their great RE.
In this tenth anniversary year, I feel privileged to have been part of REQM’s story and look forward to the next chapter.
Please send any questions to: linda@reqm.org
In one RS lesson we were discussing the philosophical topic of The Ship of Theseus. The Ship of Theseus is a thought experiment which proposes the debate of whether an object remains the same despite its elements being replaced.
Although this thought experiment is about a ship it can be applied to the humans because our bodies are constantly changing through time, our cells die and are replaced, we start to develop and mature physically and mentally which causes us to come up with a variety of different questions regarding our identity such as: since our components have been replaced and we have changed, could we still be considered the same person as before? If so, at what point do we become a different person than before? What are the properties that make up a human being? Is there something that makes us the same person through time? Could that something be the soul?
This lesson had an impact on me because it was an introduction to philosophy (love of wisdom) and allowed me to think more deeply and delve into numerous theories about the psyche that had never been discussed at school before. It truly opened my mind and sparked an interest in me. I enjoyed the never-ending questions and studying different debates that arose from just one or two queries. This lesson gave me the freedom to share my ideas without feeling I was right or wrong, because there is no such thing in this topic. You can express your opinions openly, without judgement and this helped boost my confidence.
This lesson helped me open my mind to other ideas and not immediately disagree with them, but to logically analyse them and be able to sum up the advantages and disadvantages of the argument, which also helped in the opposite way too, not to believe something instantly and overview the statement and dissect it which gave me a better analytical ability and an appreciation for other ways of thinking that were different to my own and challenged me to broaden my understanding and be able to argue for both sides. Philosophy is all around us, our government and our laws have been dictated by philosophy and what we consider to be right and wrong, and this lesson got me thinking about the systems we have in place and how they all came to be because of philosophy, because people asked those important questions about why things were the way they were and what they could do to change it. This lesson taught me the importance of asking important questions to not only have a better understanding of yourself and the nature of the world around, but to be able to use that knowledge to build a better world.
Since time immemorial, we as human beings have pondered our place in the universe. From ancient aboriginal cave paintings, to the post-modern world, one question remains constant:
Does God Exist?
This is a question that everyone has a view on – Muslims, Christians, Sikhs, Hindus, Buddhists, Humanists, agnostics and not forgetting atheists.
The debate continues to rage today. With every scientific breakthrough, the likes of Richard Dawkins grow in their confidence, believing that there is nothing more than particles, atoms and empty nothingness.
Meanwhile, discoveries such as the ‘God particle’ thrusts the question back into the limelight.
This brings me to my most inspiring lessons in RE in Year 7 last year. Without a doubt, these were when we were studying arguments about the existence of God. They were truly eye-opening!
We listened to a selection of RE Podcasts (https://www.therepodcast.co.uk/) in a unit called “Thinking Deeply” in which everyone in the classroom completed worksheets, were made to think, discuss in pairs and finally share opinions with the class for an all-inclusive debate and discussion. The podcast series was very exciting (everyone looked forward to it – periods 1 & 2 on a Wednesday morning!) and included views from every perspective that boggled our minds, and sparked new questions in our classroom.
It felt – and continues to feel – amazing to be surrounded by so many intelligent students and teachers that constantly provide a comfortable environment for us.
A fellow student said with enthusiasm, “I enjoyed everyone getting included in this discussion, and sharing their viewpoints, healthy debating skills and involving others’ opinions.”
Another commented, “I loved the debating and the fact that everyone in the classroom felt comfortable to speak, knowing everyone would listen and show respect.” I felt the classroom was a safe environment to share my views, and listen and respect others.
Some may consider ‘The Eternal Question’ futile, as none of us shall know for certain until his or her last breath. But instead of fighting, warring over who is right and wrong, who has the key to heaven or the depths below, or whether God exists at all, we should work together for the maximum good for all!
The RS lesson that had the greatest impact on me and inspired me the most was when we learned about Buddhism, and how Buddhists use forms of art to express their faiths, in particular, mandalas. In the lesson, we watched a video of a group of Tibetan monks constructing an extremely intricate sand mandala. It was fascinating to see the amount of detail and sophistication in their art, achieved whilst only using grains of sand.
I think this had a big impact on me because is used to love colouring in mandalas when I was younger, and to reflect on them now when I am older and recognise the religious and cultural significance that they have is truly fascinating. I learnt that the word ‘mandala’ means circle in Sanskrit, and the symbolism behind this is that there is an infinite circle of life, and that everything is connected (interconnectedness). In general, I found our lessons on Buddhism very thought-provoking as the teachings seemed very meaningful and spiritual, which appealed to me even as a non-religious person.
After we watched the video, we had a go at drawing our own mandala whilst relaxing music played in the background. My mandala wasn’t anything special, but the feeling of relaxation and tranquillity that I felt when drawing it was amazing. I genuinely have never felt anything like it since. We got reassured by our teacher that it didn’t matter if it looked ‘aesthetically pleasing’, it was about the experience of drawing it and the meaning that can have. It was through trying to actually draw a mandala myself that I realised how difficult it is to create a piece of art with this level of detail. This realisation made me respect and admire the mandalas and the artists behind them even more.
We also had a go at colouring mandalas in which was also extremely relaxing and calming. I believe the reason this lesson was so impactful was that we actually got to experience and understand the meaning that these mandalas can have firs- hand through creating them ourselves, rather than just making notes or doing dull textbook work. This is what made this lesson stand out to me, and when looking back on past RS lessons, this is the first one that comes to mind.
Before this lesson I didn’t truly have a grasp on why people decided to follow a religion, as I am agnostic. However, after this lesson I had a much better understanding of how much a religion can mean to someone and how they express this, whether it be a visual form of art, a piece of music, etc. I found it extremely inspiring to see the sheer amount of dedication and effort that was put into these mandalas. Overall, it was very fascinating to learn how much meaning there was behind these mandalas, they are not just ‘pretty drawings’, and that they have a profound meaning behind them.
I thought I wouldn’t like R&P. I thought I didn’t need to know about other religions because it didn’t affect me. I thought it would be boring and tedious, a waste of my time. Those were three times I was completely wrong.
Because I learnt that Religion and Philosophy, wasn’t just about religion and philosophy. Honestly, I think they need to change the name, as misconceptions commonly occur based purely off its name. If I had to name it, I would call it ‘Understanding human beings’, because that’s what it is. It takes the saying ‘putting yourself in someone else’s shoes’ quite literally. I have learnt about the culture of communities from all four corners of the globe. I have dived far into the past and discovered the possibilities of the future. I have seen some of the greatest minds make discoveries that are revolutionary such as Plato, Socrates, Durkheim, Jesus, Muhammad and Marx. And I did it all in 1 hour a week.
I am not others. It seems such an obvious statement. Of course, I am not other people. I have no idea what goes on in their head because I am not them. At least, that’s what I thought. R&P allows me to have some idea of how all different people think. I can try to understand the thoughts, feelings, and beliefs others have, in order to better communicate with them. I can step into another religion and know what is important to them, what they believe, and more. This is a very useful skill, a life skill, which personally I think will help me more than knowing when King Alfred died or how to formulate equations. R&P is one of the few subjects which is actually relevant.
In the end, religion and philosophy is about understanding the world. It’s about understanding the feelings and beliefs of others. It’s also about social justice, relationships, and morals. It really does contain everything. It’s given me life skills that I will need for the future. I am truly grateful.
At the beginning of the year in the first RS lesson, my class was asked what we knew about Islam. I was confident at first, I thought: I’ve heard about Islam, I must be able to write down a lot! Surprisingly not a thought came to my head. I discovered I knew a lot less about Islam than I anticipated, and I felt un-intelligent and embarrassed. Luckily the rest of the class shared their views and I realized how much I recognized and how much there was to learn. I learnt the beliefs of Islam, how Muslims worship one, all-knowing God, how the Mosque is their place of worship and how once in their life, a Muslim is expected to take a Pilgrimage to Meccah which is called Hajj. I had heard these facts when I was younger but had not been told them since. I believe this is why RS is so important, it educates us on beliefs all round the world and helps us recall what we already know. I thoroughly enjoyed learning about the history and meaning of Islam and left the lesson feeling satisfied and enlightened.
Recently, I went on holiday to Istanbul, the capital city of Turkey. Over 90 percent of its population is Islamic which meant there were Mosques at every corner. I visited the Hagia Sophia, an amazingly designed mosque built in 537 AD. I covered my hair and took off my shoes and entered through the Imperial Gate. I was speechless. This building was unlike any I’d seen before. It was huge and lined with hundreds of lights, its dome 180 feet. I could understand why people might feel awed and inspired in such a beautiful and vast building. I was able to recognize features of the mosque which I had learned about in RS, e.g., the minarets and the separate areas for men and women to pray. I also went to the Topkapi Palace where some of the holiest relics of Islam are displayed, I saw Mohammed’s swords, an impression of his footprint and some hairs from his beard. These are contained in the Pavilion of the Holy Mantel, which is a place of pilgrimage for Muslims. As I walked around it the muezzin recited the call to prayer. It was very atmospheric, and I was glad I had learned about it in my RS lesson, as I could understand what I was seeing and the significance it had for Muslims.
Overall, my RS lesson opened my eyes to the faith and culture of Islam, and this in turn enriched my trip abroad at half term. I now realize that what I learn in a classroom in West London can be relevant to the world at large. One thing I will never forget is walking around the Grand Bazaar, an enormous covered market with over 4000 stalls. As I was looking at the jewels and rugs, I heard the distant call to prayer and all the shopkeepers came and laid their prayer mats down and took a few minutes to kneel and say their prayers. It made me think of when we do the ‘pause’ at St James and the importance of a few minutes of mindfulness throughout the day.