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Could You, Would You, Should You Use Multiple Disciplines to Study Sacred Texts With Year 5 and 6?

Sarah Dennis | 18 May, 2026

To really understand how religious and personal beliefs work, pupils need to understand where beliefs come from, how they are lived, and the deeper thinking that sits behind them.

One place many beliefs originate is in stories with rich layers of meaning. My idea was to design a lesson sequence for pupils aged 10–11 that allowed them to study beliefs through theology, lived experience through the human and social sciences, and deeper meaning through philosophy.

I also wanted to link as many stories as possible to people from our local community, so pupils could see that these stories are not just historical texts but have real influence here and now. A big ask, but was it possible?

Designing a disciplinary approach for Year 5 and 6

To make this work, I created a resource with three clear sections, each linked to disciplinary questions. I turned this into a bookmark (Figure 1) so pupils could make notes as they went, reducing cognitive overload.

The bookmarks were lightly taped into books so pupils could write alongside them. Notes were later developed into one paragraph per discipline. Over the course of the unit, the bookmark evolved as both the pupils and I refined the questions, focusing on those that generated the most thoughtful, open‑ended responses.

Figure 1. Disciplinary bookmark                                                                  

One text, three disciplines, one lesson

Over nine weeks, we studied nine texts. Yes, one text per week, covering all three disciplines in one hour.

Every lesson followed the same pattern. Over time, pupils became increasingly confident with the disciplinary thinking, knowing what kind of questions they were being asked and why.

When subject knowledge becomes the challenge

My first step was to trial the approach using a different text. That was when I realised my biggest problem: I did not always have the subject knowledge to confidently answer the questions I had written on the bookmark.

Using support from NATRE, RE:Online, TrueTube and BBC Bitesize, I took time to build my own understanding. This was an essential step and a reminder that disciplinary teaching requires ongoing subject knowledge development for teachers as well as pupils.

What the lesson sequence looked like in practice

Each lesson followed a clear structure:

  • Lesson objectives and dates were printed on stickers to save time and stuck onto a new page.
  • Pupils annotated their bookmarks while reading the text for theology. I modelled this for the first three lessons using my own exercise book and a visualiser.
  • Writing scaffolds were available for early writers. (Figure 2)
  • Pupils watched short videos showing lived experiences, often from members of our local community or carefully chosen online clips. They annotated the human and social sciences section of the bookmark.
  • Pupils considered what puzzled them about the story.
  • Annotations were written up into short paragraphs, with images from the lived experiences added to support writing.
  • Pupils pre‑read the next week’s story.

The consistent structure helped pupils focus their thinking and build confidence week by week.

Figure 2. Writing Scaffolds

What surprised me about pupil learning

A common mistake in my teaching, across all primary year groups, is underestimating what pupils can achieve.

I spoke honestly with both classes about trying something new, and they were incredible. Pupils suggested changes to the bookmark questions, refining them lesson by lesson. The feedback was thoughtful, and engagement with each text was high.

The lessons worked because the bookmark gave pupils a clear place to offload knowledge, freeing up their thinking rather than overloading their working memory.

Removing the scaffolds

In the final lesson, I wanted to see what pupils could do with less support. I removed the bookmark and asked pupils to generate their own questions.

They worked in groups of three, using two QR codes linked to texts and a BBC Newsround clip. I had the writing scaffolds ready and the pupils knew they were available. Not one pupil asked for them.

What I learned

In summary, Year 5 and 6 pupils can study texts through multiple disciplines, and do so successfully. This approach works particularly well with texts linked to lived experience or moral influence.

You may need to adapt the bookmark for your cohort. You will almost certainly need to spend time building your own subject knowledge. But the depth of understanding and the skills pupils develop might just surprise you as much as they surprised me.

About

Sarah is a member of National Association of Teachers of RE (NATRE) Exec and RE leader at Chadsmead Primary School in Staffordshire. She has led a NATRE affiliated local group for over six years and networking lead for RE for her academy chain Community Academy Trust. Sarah completed the Culham St Gabriel's Leadership Scholarship Programme in 2025. She teaches RE across a one form entry Primary school in Lichfield in Staffordshire.

See all posts by Sarah Dennis

“Join Your Local SACRE,” They Said…

Lyndsey Leech | 13 May, 2026

‘Join your local SACRE.’

It’s one of those bits of advice that floats around staffrooms, RE conferences, and slightly awkward CPD conversations. Said with good intentions. Usually followed by a vague nod. Rarely followed by action. And I get why.

Because my first experience of SACRE?
It wasn’t exactly inspiring.

The folder

Early in my teaching career, SACRE meant one thing: a folder. A common misconception was this folder which was the RE Agreed syllabus was called SACRE. A big, clunky, slightly intimidating folder full of guidance about what I should be teaching. It landed on my desk with all the warmth of a compliance document and none of the clarity of actual support.

No one explained what SACRE really was. No one showed me how it could help. So I did what most teachers do; I asked around. And what came back?

Words like quorate, monitoring, voting. Which, if we’re honest, don’t exactly scream, ‘this will transform your teaching.’ So I filed SACRE mentally under: Statutory. Necessary. Not especially useful.

And from conversations I still have today, I wasn’t alone.

Fast forward

A few years later, I hit that stage in my career. You know the one. Where you start thinking beyond your own classroom. Where you want to do something for the subject. Where ‘just getting through the scheme of work’ isn’t quite enough anymore. Someone suggested SACRE again.This time, I said yes. With hesitation.

I walked into my first meeting expecting… well, more of the same. Minutes. Motions. Mild confusion. Instead? A room full of people who actually cared. Teachers. Faith representatives. Council members. Real conversations. Real purpose. Not just ticking boxes but asking: ‘How do we actually support RE teachers in this area?’

It was a completely different experience. And honestly? It changed my view of SACRE entirely.

Two SACREs, two realities

Here’s the thing: not all SACREs are the same. Some are just… existing.

  • Struggling for members
  • Focused on being ‘quorate’
  • Minimal engagement with schools
  • Sending out syllabuses and hoping for the best

Others? They’re alive.

  • Actively recruiting diverse members
  • Building relationships across communities
  • Talking to schools, not at them
  • Offering real support, not just documents

I’ve now seen both. And the difference is night and day.

What good looks like

Take Oldham. What’s happening there isn’t magic it’s intentional.

  • A clear vision: We are here to support teachers and students in RE.
  • Strong leadership: Not one person doing everything, but a team driving things forward.
  • Actual communication: WhatsApp groups. Social media. Turning up to each other’s events. Being visible.
  • Real listening: Not guessing what schools need but asking them. And then acting on it.

If schools aren’t meeting RE hours, they challenge it. If teachers need support, they provide training. If a new syllabus is launched, they don’t just email it and disappear. They follow through.

This is the key change.  SACRE stops being about just approving documents. It becomes about supporting people and from my experience that is when it works.

There’s a phrase we’ve started using: Be more Oldham. Not because it’s perfect but because it’s purposeful. Oldham SACRE;

  • Celebrate success (not just flag problems)
  • Share what’s happening publicly
  • Create opportunities for schools to learn from each other
  • Recognise great RE through awards and showcases

And crucially they make the work visible. Because if no one knows what SACRE does…why would anyone care?

Why this matters

Let’s not pretend RE is in an easy place right now.

  • Curriculum time gets squeezed.
  • Specialists are stretched.
  • Support can feel… patchy.

SACRE, when it works, can be a genuine lever for change. But only if the right people are involved. And here’s the uncomfortable truth:

SACRE needs teachers more than teachers realise they need SACRE.

Because without classroom voices:

  • Decisions lack context
  • Priorities miss the mark
  • Support becomes guesswork

Since joining, I’ve gained;

  • Direct connections with faith representatives
  • People I can email (or message) and get real answers
  • Support with trips, visitors, and resources
  • A wider network beyond my school

And maybe most importantly… A sense that RE isn’t something I’m doing in isolation.

So… Should You Join?

Honestly? Yes. But not passively. Don’t join just to sit in meetings and nod. Join to;

  • Ask questions
  • Challenge things
  • Build connections
  • Make it better

Because if your local SACRE feels like my first experience? It won’t improve on its own. ‘Join your local SACRE’ can sound like a chore. But it doesn’t have to be. Done well, it’s not a committee. It’s a community. And the difference that community can make to RE in your area is genuinely huge?

So, join your local SACRE. Just don’t leave it the way you found it.

About

Lyndsey Leech is Head of Religious Studies in a Secondary School in Oldham. She is Vice Chair of Oldham SACRE and in Year 1 of the Culham St Gabriel Leadership Scholarship. Lyndsey is a passionate advocate of educating the whole child by emphasising the academic side of the subject inside of the classroom and providing opportunities for students to use and extend their learning outside of the classroom.

See all posts by Lyndsey Leech

Never Judge a Book by Its Cover: Reflections on Druidry as a Lived Worldview

Belinda Twiggs | 30 April, 2026

An unexpected encounter

I first stumbled across a group of Druids, fully decked out in white robes, at Avebury Stone Circle in the spring of 1988.

My first thought was blunt:
What on earth do they think they are doing?

Curiosity got the better of me and I struck up a conversation with one of them. He looked for all the world like Dumbledore, dressed head to toe in white. As he talked, calmly eating a cheese sandwich that seemed tiny in his huge hands, his answers to my questions were thoughtful and profound.

When he finished eating, he reached behind a standing stone, pulled out a harp, and began to play. The tune was beautiful, lively and unmistakably Celtic. Others began to drum and dance.

At the end of the afternoon, he put on biking leathers, strapped the harp to the back of his Harley-Davidson, and roared off.

I learnt an important lesson that day: never judge a book by its cover.

Coming out as a Druid

It took me around fifteen years to feel comfortable wearing a robe in public, and nearly thirty years to ‘come out’ openly as a Druid. Fear of criticism, especially for following something seen as outside the mainstream or a little ‘wyrd’ (the spelling is deliberate-look it up), held me back.

Eventually, though, it felt important to be honest.

Occasionally, this leads to amusing moments. Children sometimes say to me in the dinner queue,
“I saw you on TV last night, Miss. Dad loves Joanna Lumley!”

They are referring to a brief appearance in Home Sweet Home, a documentary filmed at Merrivale Stones on Dartmoor during the 2021 COVID restrictions. The episode shows Joanna Lumley meeting Druids and observing a Samhain ritual. It is short, but it mattered to me as an example of lived practice being seen, however fleetingly, on national television.

Samhain: remembering those who came before us

Samhain is one of eight seasonal festivals celebrated by many (though not all) Pagans. It takes place on 31 October and has ancient roots that long predate Christianity.

This is the time of year when people historically gathered around the hearth, as the days shortened and darkness increased. Stories of spirits and the dead grew more powerful as the light faded. The idea that “the veil is thin” reflects a sense of closeness between the living and the dead.

At Samhain, we honour our well and wise ancestors. Death is something we all face, and taking time to think about loss, legacy and meaning feels both honest and necessary.

For me, this raises an ongoing question:

How can I live my life fully and well, so that my short time here is of value?

Beltane and the turning year

As the Wheel of the Year turns, we now approach Beltane (also known as Beltain or Bealtaine), marking the clear arrival of summer.

At dawn, many of us gather on Haytor on Dartmoor to watch the sun rise. It has become a large public event, with musicians, flaming torches and the Beltane Border Morris dancers. Hawthorn blossom- the second of the May blossoms- is worn in hats and woven into garlands as part of the celebration.

Songs are sung with enthusiasm, including Hal an Tow from Helston’s Furry Dance:

“We were up, long before the day-o,
To welcome in the Summer…”

Later, our Grove meets more quietly (a group where we meet together for rituals and festivals) . Having been up at around 3am to reach Haytor, we take a nap before coming together again. In ritual, we step through an archway, guarded by figures representing the Lord of the Wild Wood and the Lady Ceridwen, before leaping between two fires to symbolise cleansing and renewal.

Druidry as lived practice

For me, Druidry is an authentic and meaningful path that honours nature, the Earth, and humanity’s place within the wider universe.

Through ritual, storytelling and communal feasting (often picnics), we mark the passage of time and celebrate the life-giving role of the sun. These gatherings happen roughly every six weeks and are as much about community as belief.

At the Spring Equinox in 2026, Dartmoor Grove met at Merrivale to celebrate the tipping point towards longer days. I am no longer concerned about how I look in public as a Druid. My practice feels honest, rooted and real.

Why this matters for RE

Stories like mine remind us that worldviews are lived, evolving and deeply human.

When pupils explore religion and worldviews, they are not just learning about beliefs. They are learning about identity, belonging, meaning and how people make sense of their lives.

Never judging a book by its cover is a good place to start.

About

Belinda Twiggs is a Primary RE Lead and teacher, LTLRE Hub Lead, Chair of Devon SACRE, Deputy Education Officer for the Pagan Federation and longtime member of OBOD working with a Grove of Bards, Ovates and Druids in Devon.

See all posts by Belinda Twiggs

The Sentientism Worldview : “Evidence, reason, & compassion for all sentient beings”

Jamie Woodhouse | 30 April, 2026

Part of the excitement of modern Religious Education comes from exploring non-religious worldviews with children, an important element of the REC’s Religion and Worldviews approach. That exploration is timely as around half of UK people now say they have a non-religious worldview.

One increasingly popular modern worldview, that builds on ancient ideas, is Sentientism. You may have seen it mentioned in this RE Today resource or heard about it on The RE Podcast or the What Even Is RME? podcast.

What is the Sentientism worldview?

Like other worldviews, whether religious or not, Sentientism looks to help us with the deep questions like “what’s real?”, “who matters?” and “how can we make a better world?” Sentientism suggests we start answering those questions with a commitment to “evidence, reason, and compassion for all sentient beings”.

Sentience is the capacity to feel or to have experiences like pain or happiness or love or boredom. So sentient beings are, so far, human and nonhuman animals. But, maybe one day, we’ll create or meet artificial or alien sentient beings that should matter too.

Sentientism’s “compassion for all sentient beings” shares rich common ground with religious concepts like ahimsa, compassionate stewardship, ital and avoiding mafsada. At the same time, its “evidence and reason” shares the humble, open-minded, evidence-led naturalistic epistemology of Humanism.

Is Sentientism a new idea?

While Sentientism is a fairly new word, only coined in the 1970s, its core ideas are very old, maybe even pre-human. Naturalistic epistemology and sentience-focused ethics have deep roots in many regions and cultures and times. These themes can be found in African, Asian and ancient Greek thought, for example. Some thinkers even combined these ideas into something very much like an ancient form of Sentientism.

One example is the blind Arab philosopher poet Al-Ma’arri who lived over a thousand years ago. He used a naturalistic approach to challenge religious thinking and wrote about the ethics of veganism long before the word “vegan” was invented. He’s a fascinating historic character to bring into the classroom to complement modern sentientist thinkers like Greta Thunberg, Billie Eilish, Peter Singer and Joaquin Phoenix.

Sentientism seems to be of particular interest to young people as it resonates with their concerns about the environment, their care for nonhuman animals, the threats and opportunities of artificial intelligence (could AI be sentient?) and the risks of misinformation, disinformation, conspiracism, discrimination and exclusionary ethics. Sentientism also provides a secular framework for finding meaning and purpose that many young people find compelling.

An additional attraction of teaching the Sentientism worldview is that its commitment to “evidence and reason” can be a gateway into the wider worlds of philosophy, science and the humanities. Even younger children engage richly in questions like “how can we work out what’s true?” and “who should we care about?” All too often these deep questions are neglected because we’re busy focusing on lists of beliefs and practices and on narrowly intra-human ethics.

 How can Sentientism deepen philosophical thinking in RE?

Children of all ages also enjoy exploring the sometimes radical implications of this simple, pluralistic worldview. One of the most obvious implications of Sentientism is Veganism (see VinEs great resources here), now recognised in UK and EU Equalities Law as a cogent philosophical belief and a protected characteristic. But what about Sentientist Politics, Sentientist Justice and even a Universal Declaration of Sentient Rights? We can reimagine our entire world together.

Exploring the Sentientism worldview can help you bring real philosophical depth into your classroom in an engaging way that feels fresh and relevant to young people. In my own work with schools, I find children’s curiosity and compassion bubbles up with an irrepressible energy when we work on these profound questions.

If you’re interested in digging a little deeper, here’s a recording of a recent “Teaching Sentientism” webinar. I’m also registered with RE Hubs as a nationwide school speaker for Sentientism so I can help you run classes, workshops, deliver assemblies and shape curriculums. Please do get in touch if I can help in any way. And regardless, I’d love to hear you and your children’s thoughts on the Sentientism worldview.

You can find Jamie on BlueSky (and elsewhere) @JamieWoodhouse and @Sentientism. Full links here

Jamie Woodhouse (hello@sentientism.info)

Links: YouTube (suitable for older students and teachers) Podcast Sentientism.info Community (all welcome!) @Sentientism

About

Jamie is working to develop Sentientism (“Evidence, reason, and compassion for all sentient beings”) as a worldview and as a global movement. He hosts the Sentientism Podcast and YouTube, speaks at schools and universities, and has published articles and presented academic seminars on the Sentientism philosophy and its implications. He is building a range of global Sentientism Communities (open to all) that so far span over 100 countries.

See all posts by Jamie Woodhouse

Beyond Stereotypes: Teaching Sikhi Through Powerful Women’s Stories

jenny-kaur | 08 March, 2026

“That’s not my Sikh faith” Amy Ark [Sikh panellist] said during the recent National Association of Teachers of Religious Education (NATRE) Strictly RE conference. Amy was discussing her own experience at school, where Sikhi was only covered for one week and in this short time she found the curriculum had resonated little with her lived experience; Amy is not alone, there are many Sikhs who also feel the same. I find the common phrase “She’s not Sikh her hair is cut” circling in many discussions in groups in 11-14 RE.

I’m sure I am not alone. I’m sure we have all found ourselves in the lesson where we combat generalisation and stereotypes in the classroom. I have found it best to provide examples of modern and historical Sikhs who have a story to disrupt the ‘typical Sikh look’ for students. What does it mean to look or act like a Sikh currently?

In Professor Jasjit Singh’s excellent ‘Teaching Sikhi in RE: Engaging communities with Teaching Religion’ research we learned it was clear there is insufficient community and ‘Lived Experience’ integration. There is an explicit finding of weak engagement with Sikh communities in curriculum development and delivery. This perpetuates a textbook-only approach, ignoring the richness of contemporary British Sikhi. I had also read this from Dr Phra Nicholas Thanissaros “Teaching Buddhism in Britain’s schools: redefining the insider role” here we learn the “dissonance apparent between home and school presentation of Buddhism is compared to similar findings for the Hindu and Sikh communities in Britain.” One of his suggestions to bridge this gap is to enrich the conversation between “insider” (the community’s living faith) and “outsider” (the teacher’s academic presentation) perspectives. In a further report from Insight UK it is posited that the lack of accurate, quality representation is linked to an “inferiority complex” amongst South Asian children, failing the duty of RE to support identity development.

As a result of my own experience and these reports I have chosen to explore modern and historical examples of Sikhs, allowing students to see the modern ways women are shaping their fields from psychology to art. These women are all united with a shared conviction – not in a general archaic sense of Sikh identity. I would have enjoyed hearing of these voices whilst at school and teaching at a single sex girl’s school I have found providing the students with female voices resonates with them [and me]. I have also underneath each biography suggested how they can be used in different contexts from creative tasks or discussions on equality in practice with many connections to GCSE units’ such as relationships for roles of men and women and intergenerational living. I have listed them below and given a little detail about them but they are available in more detail with biographies and teaching suggestions on the RE:Online website as PDF’s to use in the classroom.

I hope you find them useful and interesting as I did!

  1. Dr Manpreet Dhuffar Pottiwal : Sikh Psychologist

Dr Manpreet Dhuffar Pottiwal is a Sikh psychologist and activist whose work focuses on intergenerational trauma within South Asian communities. Through her TEDx talk, she uses the metaphor of family trees to show how inherited burdens and strengths shape identity, encouraging healing through understanding roots, culture, and community.

  1. Mai Bhago: Female Sikh warrior

Mai Bhago was a fearless Sikh warrior who challenged forty men for abandoning their faith and led them back into battle against a vastly larger Mughal army. Though badly injured, she survived and later became Guru Gobind Singh Ji’s bodyguard, standing as a powerful example of equality and courage in Sikh history.

  1. Amrita Sher Gill: Hungarian Sikh Artist

Amrita Sher-Gil was a Hungarian Sikh artist whose paintings explored the emotional lives of women constrained by tradition. By blending Indian and European styles, she gave voice to women’s quiet struggles, resilience, and unspoken strength, especially in works like Three Girls.

  1. Neelam Kaur Gill: British Sikh model

Neelam Gill is a British Sikh model who turned experiences of bullying and racism into a mission for representation in fashion. As a trailblazer for major global brands, she speaks openly about discrimination and uses her visibility to challenge stereotypes of modern Sikh identity. 

  1. The Singh Twins: British Sikh miniature artists

Amrit Singh and Rabindra Kaur Singh, the Singh Twins, are British Sikh artists who have revived Indian miniature painting to explore modern social, political, and religious themes. Their highly detailed, vibrant work challenges Eurocentric ideas of fine art while proudly expressing Sikh history and worldview

  1. Mata Khivi: The only woman mentioned in the Guru Granth Sahib

Mata Khivi is the only woman named in the Guru Granth Sahib and is honoured for her compassion, equality, and service. She played a central role in establishing the langar system, ensuring food and care for all, and remains a lasting symbol of Sikh values in action

  1. Sophie DuLeep Singh: Suffragette

Princess Sophia Duleep Singh, daughter of the last Sikh Maharaja, was a key figure in the British suffragette movement. She used her royal status to fight for women’s rights, support Indian independence, and amplify South Asian voices in Britain.

About

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Saint Carlo Acutis: A Modern Story of Faith in the Digital Age

andy-lewis | 03 March, 2026

When students ask whether faith has anything to say to modern life, the Catholic saints can sometimes feel like the wrong place to start. Too often, they appear distant – they are shaped by another century, another culture, another set of assumptions.

Carlo Acutis changes that conversation.

A teenager who loved coding, gaming, and football, Saint Carlo shows what Catholic belief can look like when it is lived seriously in the contemporary world – not as nostalgia, but as conviction.

Carlo was born in London in 1991 to Italian parents before his family returned to Milan. His upbringing was not conventionally “religious” in the way we might expect of a future saint. His parents were not regular Mass-goers, and there was no intense devotional culture at home. Yet from an early age, Carlo displayed a quiet attentiveness to faith. He asked questions, noticed details, and chose practices that slowly, but deliberately, shaped his life.

After receiving his First Holy Communion at the age of seven, Carlo chose to attend Mass daily. He developed a deep love for the rosary, reading Scripture, and acts of charity – particularly towards the poor, migrants, and those sleeping rough around Milan. These were not dramatic gestures, but steady habits. His faith was rooted in Catholic tradition, disciplined rather than showy, ordinary rather than performative.

A child of his generation

At the same time, Carlo was unmistakably a child of his generation. He loved football, video games, and technology. Like many young people of the 1990s and early 2000s, he taught himself coding, web design, and programming, becoming skilled enough to help others build websites. This is what makes him a genuinely millennial saint. Carlo did not reject modern life in order to be holy; he inhabited it fully and learned how to live faithfully within it.

At the centre of everything was Carlo’s devotion to the Eucharist. He famously described it as his “motorway to heaven” – a phrase that is often quoted because it is both ordinary and profound. For Carlo, the Eucharist was not background scenery to his faith, but the place where Christ was encountered most fully. This conviction shaped how he used his time, his talents, and his energy.

Cataloguing miracles on the web

His best-known project was a digital exhibition cataloguing Eucharistic miracles from around the world. As a teenager, Carlo researched historical accounts, visited sites, gathered sources, and presented them online with clarity and care. His aim was not to sensationalise, but to show that belief in the Real Presence was not an abstract claim – it was something the Church had taken seriously, consistently, and globally.

One example Carlo researched was the Eucharistic miracle of Lanciano. In the eighth century, a priest struggling with doubt is said to have witnessed the consecrated host and wine transform into flesh and blood during Mass. In the 1970s, independent scientific analysis identified the flesh as human heart tissue and the blood as real human blood, preserved without additives. Carlo did not use such accounts to “prove” belief to sceptics, but to point back to what Catholics already claim happens every single time Mass is celebrated.

A life cut short

Carlo’s life was tragically short. In 2006, he was diagnosed with an aggressive form of leukaemia and died within days, aged just fifteen. Even during his illness, accounts describe a calm acceptance and a concern for others rather than himself. He was beatified in 2020 and is often described as a “patron saint of the internet” – a label students immediately connect to. He was formally declared a saint on 7 September 2025.

As one young Catholic from London in Rome reflected, “The fact that you can think of a Saint doing the same things as you – wearing jeans, playing video games – it feels so much closer than other saints have in the past.”

For RE teachers, Saint Carlo’s biography does important work. He helps bridge the gap students often feel between holiness and normality, faith and technology, tradition and modern life. He offers a contemporary reference point for Catholic belief without diluting its depth or demands.

Saint Carlo Acutis offers something rare: a life close enough to feel recognisable, yet deep enough to stretch our understanding. His story does not demand instant or forced belief in the Eucharist – but it does invite serious attention to what Catholics claim is at the heart of their faith.

His website remains online here: https://www.miracolieucaristici.org/en/liste/list.html

About

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Things fall apart; the centre cannot hold

Dr Richard Kueh | 31 January, 2025

Reflections on religious education, the Francis review and the national curriculum in England, with a little help from W.B. Yeats’ ‘Second Coming’ (1919).
Things fall apart; the centre cannot hold; Mere anarchy is loosed upon the world… The best lack all conviction, while the worst Are full of passionate intensity. Surely some revelation is at hand; Surely the Second Coming is at hand… And what rough beast, its hour come round at last, Slouches towards Bethlehem to be born? Yeats’ poetic thought-world is thrilling. His poetry imagines chapters of history turning: one epoch making way for another. Might we be on the verge of an educational chapter in England wherein religious education (RE) occupies a strengthened position in the school curriculum? If so, might the fortunes of the subject be much improved?

Surely some revelation is at hand.

Before we think about the next educational epoch or chapter, let’s look back. Let’s contrast our current educational epoch – one in which the Francis Curriculum and Assessment review is being conducted – with one that came before: the era of the legislation which underpins RE’s current status. It’s clear that the kind of educational assumptions sitting behind the 1988 legislation, and reflected within it, do not reflect the realities of schools today:
  • school structures have evolved: not all state-funded schools are maintained by local authorities (40:1(1)a,b,c);
  • assessment has moved on: practices are not shaped by end of key stage attainment targets (40:2(2)a);
  • historical duties are not enacted: it is simply not that case that “all pupils in attendance at a maintained school… on each school day take part in an act of collective worship.” (40:6(1))
In this legislation, RE sits as part of the “basic curriculum”. The basic curriculum for state-funded schools was imagined to include the national curriculum and RE. Yet, today, leaders and governors appear to have collective memory loss of this fact. But even the language of the “basic curriculum” has largely been lost in the annals of time. The kind of educational epoch which placed RE within a “basic curriculum” is quite different from the current one. Indeed, today, if any “curriculum” is perceived to be “basic” at all, it’s the national curriculum. What once obtained, no longer suffices. Clearly, the status of RE has not benefitted from this historical distinction, however worthy or defensible the reasons for it were at the time. It would be very hard indeed to argue that the subject is thriving, with pupils across the country equitably enjoying high-quality religious education in schools. In my final RE subject report at Ofsted, I reflected on a sad state of affairs for RE in many schools within the research sample. I (and my colleague Hazel Henson, HMI) found:
  • RE that didn’t help pupils prepare for living in a complex world
  • RE that gave pupils at best a superficial grasp of religious and non-religious traditions
  • RE that didn’t help pupils interrogate claims and statements about religion and non-religion
  • Worryingly unreliable assessment practices in RE
  • An absence of professional development in RE for teachers, mirrored by pupils being left with profound misconceptions
It would be hard to argue that the status of RE outside the national curriculum has served pupils in England’s schools well.

The best lack all conviction, while the worst are full of passionate intensity

Yeats uses the line “the best lack all conviction” from Shakespeare’s Hamlet to refer to the aristocracy. But these words also helpfully illuminate the current dilemma of RE: it is those with the greatest potential who may struggle with doubt and uncertainty about change the most. When it comes to RE being included within the national curriculum, rather than sitting awkwardly adjacent to it, there is much enthusiasm from RE stakeholders (by which I mean RE leaders, teachers, practitioners, advisers and professionals). There are also some who have expressed displeasure with the idea. Why might they object? Some religious communities who run state-funded VA schools (and ex-VA academies) can determine ‘denominational RE’. This kind of RE is outside the remit of Ofsted to inspect. Others like existing arrangements that RE content in maintained schools can be decided at local authority level. Though they positively advance and prioritise RE, these individuals and institutions prefer the current arrangements. Question: is it worth giving up control? Yet I can see policy positions that can offer resolution. Mitigations could still be built into any post-Francis-review national curriculum. The current national curriculum for history, for instance, already includes flexibilities on studying local history. In the case of schools with a religious character, it is more likely the case that these schools offer more RE curriculum time than their non-religious character counterparts. There should be nothing to prevent them from teaching beyond a minimum entitlement (a position that reflects the current Secretary of State’s approach to teacher pay, which might have a ‘floor’, but no ‘ceiling’).

Slouching towards Bethlehem, ready to be born

On the 8th January 2025, the second reading of the Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Bill in the House of Commons included a discussion of the Francis review. In it, the former Secretary of State Damian Hinds discussed his perception of the dangers of an over-specified, overly-prescribed National Curriculum: “…in sensitive subjects like history, like English literature, like RE, we’ve always in this country, since the start of the National Curriculum, taken an approach of not specifying what kids will learn… it’s not a list of things you will learn in schools… it’s a broad framework that helps guard against the… over-politicisation of education.” Whether or not you agree with Hinds, his wording suggests that RE is already part of the National Curriculum! Misconceptions are rife. RE – and those responsible for leading and teaching it – deserve some clarity at the very least. RE’s journey to the present hasn’t been the smoothest of paths. The inclusion of RE in the next chapter of the National Curriculum is evidently one way to obtain clarity and more-secure footing. Slouching towards Bethlehem is certainly apt, if it is indeed to happen at all.

About

Richard is Head of Primary Curriculum & Teacher Development, Inspiration Trust. Writing in a personal capacity

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Why Religious Education (RE) should be a part of the National Curriculum

Charlotte Newman | 30 January, 2025

RE plays a vital role in helping students make sense of the multicultural society we live in. Yet, its provision across schools remains a postcode lottery, often undervalued and an afterthought, as Ofsted identified in its 2023 annual report [1]. While I was initially sceptical of calls to include RE in the National Curriculum, I am now convinced that it is the only way to ensure equitable, high quality RE for all.

As a Trust Lead for RE, I see firsthand the disparities between schools, even within a MAT that values the subject. A lack of specialist teachers is a persistent challenge, with only 51% of secondary lessons taught by specialists due to insufficient government funding for teacher training. Although teacher bursaries have recently been reinstated, years without them has left a significant gap. Teachers with other specialisms lack the confidence to deliver RE effectively, leading to superficial teaching and a deficit of religious literacy [2]. This carries societal risks.

We have seen an obvious rise in divisive narratives and political extremist ideology, amplified by propaganda on platforms like Tik Tok, which is having a profound effect on our young people, perpetuating stereotypes and exacerbating ignorance. High quality RE equips children with critical thinking and ethical awareness that enables them to navigate an increasingly diverse society. As Chine McDonald aptly states, ‘[studying] theology and religious studies [is the superpower needed] to open our eyes up to the variety of different beliefs and worldviews that exist in our world’. [3]

Another key reason for my advocation is the absence of an agreed body of learning for RE. Local Agreed Syllabi (LAS), created by over a hundred Standing Advisory Councils on Religious Education (SACREs) working in isolation, vary significantly in depth and quality. Many are underfunded and are unable to fulfil their statutory duties. Some LAS are outdated and religious representation on SACREs can sometimes lead to vested interests undermining a balanced view. Ofsted’s ‘Deep and Meaningful?’ report highlighted this inconsistency and the need for clearer guidance [4].

With a National Curriculum in place, schools can focus on supporting teachers with specialist training to implement and adapt it to reflect their local context, using centralised resources. SACREs, freed from the burden of creating LAS, could provide schools with guidance on local case studies and resources to complement the national framework [5], preserving their valuable community specific insight.

The National Content Standard for RE, developed by the Religious Education Council [6], is a strong starting point, eliminating many of the issues that face the subject by ensuring every child is entitled to robust, academically rigorous RE, while holding schools accountable to a clear benchmark.

However, embedding RE into the National Curriculum is not without challenges. A key concern for me is who will determine its content. Historically, governments have provided limited support for RE and there is a risk that political agendas could skew its focus. To avoid this, while input from faith communities, academics and policy makers is important, the voice of teachers at the coalface must be central. Practitioners are uniquely positioned to translate curriculum frameworks into meaningful lessons. They understand better than anyone the realities of the classroom – what engages students, addresses misconceptions and meets diverse needs. Teachers must at the heart of decision making to ensure the curriculum is effective, practical and objective.

To conclude, the structural issues facing RE leave little alternative but to include it in the National Curriculum. This would raise standards and ensure they every child has access to the RE they deserve. By addressing the challenges head on and empowering teachers, we can unlock RE’s transformative potential: inspiring young people to engage meaningfully with the complex, pluralistic world around them.

[1] The annual report of His Majesty’s Chief Inspector of Education, Children’s Services and Skills 2023/24 – GOV.UK

[2] Why RE matters – Theos Think Tank – Understanding faith. Enriching society.

[3] Chine McDonald: Superpower to see other viewpoints

[4] Deep and meaningful? The religious education subject report – GOV.UK

[5] A National RE Curriculum with a Local Touch – RE with Mrs McGee

[6] National content standard for Religious education in England

About

Charlotte is a Trust Lead for Religious Studies for Archway Learning Trust. She is on the Steering Group for the National Association for Teachers of RE (NATRE) and the Oak Academy Expert Group for RE. She is also a member of Cambridgeshire SACRE and has until recently led an RE local group, only stopping due to a geographical job move. She has delivered much CPD on RE nationally.

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Should RE be included in the National Curriculum? It’s the Standard, not the Stuff!

Emeritus Professor Trevor Cooling | 29 January, 2025

Does RE need a government national plan of support? Absolutely. Should RE be compulsory for all schools? No question. Should that requirement be enforced more effectively? Of course. Should RE be included in the National Curriculum (NC)? Hmmm – I’m not so sure about that.

There’s no doubt that the situation around the provision of RE is not good. But let’s not forget what we have achieved in RE in the UK. This was brought home to me last summer when I worked in Australia for three months. RE in government schools is weak, often non-existent. Let me introduce you to someone that I met.

Herbert is a social entrepreneur from Melbourne. There is no RE in government schools of his State of Victoria. He’s the CEO of Faith Values, a start-up, charitable company seeking to bring RE back into the curriculums of both Victorian schools and ultimately into the other States and Territories. Faith Values is seeking to model our REC by drawing together faith communities and Education professionals. Herbert is working in partnership with the State Curriculum Authority. It has chosen to integrate a Religion and Worldviews approach into their curriculum because they recognize the quality educational experience it offers pupils.

How is this case study relevant to the NC debate? I take you back to the genius recommendation of the Commission on RE, namely the proposal of a National Statement of Entitlement (NSE) not a call for RE to be a NC subject. This is important because the focus of the NSE is to define a vision and a standard, not curriculum content. This has two very important consequences.

First, it focuses attention on what teaching RE is seeking to achieve, not just on enforcing its presence in the curriculum. This stimulates discussion about the educational benefits of RE rather than just securing a slot in the timetable. A mindset of innovation rather than conformity is promoted. The value of the NSE approach is indicated by the Australians turning to the UK when they want to introduce quality RE into their schools.

Second, it avoids stimulating a political bun fight between warring parties who want to secure control of the NC. Of course, the RE community won’t sink to such squabbles (note irony!), but there would be nothing to stop a Schools Minister deciding that they knew best (there is past form).

The REC has published a National Content Standard for RE using the NSE, which models the NC documents of other subjects. However, it’s not a curriculum, but a standard for benchmarking different curriculums. This means that professional discussion about different approaches in different contexts can flourish without someone imposing a straightjacket curriculum on every school.

Is being part of the NC a good idea for RE? Possibly as it should compel schools to timetable the subject. The danger is that the huge benefits of the NSE with its emphasis on vision, contextual innovation and standards gets lost in conformity to an imposed NC. That would be a significant loss.

About

Trevor Cooling is Emeritus Professor at Canterbury Christ Church University. He was Chair of the REC from 2015 to 2021.

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Three possible outcomes for RE…a choice to be made

The Rt Hon Charles Clarke | 28 January, 2025

Religious Education was the first subject to be required by law to be taught in the school curriculum. RA Butler’s 1944 Education Act represented a compromise between the Churches and the State both of which had for centuries provided school education for communities throughout the country.

The current, nationally mandated, National Curriculum was established 44 years later. The 1988 Education Act requires all public schools to teach all children the main subjects. RE was excluded from this national curriculum quite deliberately – apparently because of concerns about extending parents’ right to withdraw pupils from the RE curriculum to the whole national curriculum. Whether this fear was well founded or not, the exclusion of RE from the national curriculum had serious consequences.

RE found itself in the anomalous position of being required by law to be taught in all schools but not as part of the national curriculum. It was a half-way house which, particularly in community schools, led many teachers, parents and pupils to downgrade the study and understanding of religion and other beliefs. Efforts became increasingly focused upon strong academic performances in the national curriculum subjects, so not including RE.

Despite the interest of many pupils in the study of religion and the related subjects of beliefs, morals, ethics and philosophy it became increasingly difficult to timetable RE in the school week (except in faith schools); the general quality of RE teaching and assessment has fallen, and recruitment of RE teachers became increasingly difficult. In very many schools the basic legal requirement to teach RE is not being fulfilled.

The time has come to re-establish the importance of RE in the school curriculum.

The opportunity arises with the establishment of the curriculum and assessment review. This will report on an interim basis early this year and then finally in the autumn. This will be the most thoroughgoing review of the school curriculum for decades. Issues which are not addressed in this review are unlikely to be tackled seriously in coming decades. It is an important point of decision.

This means that all those concerned to establish a balanced place for religion in our national life and in our schools face a choice between 3 possible outcomes.

First some will argue that religion has no place whatsoever in our schools. They will cite countries like France and the United States which, on the basis of their histories, prevent publicly funded schools from teaching about religion. I believe this view to be profoundly wrong, whatever your individual religious beliefs. The plain fact is that religion is an inescapably important aspect of our modern world. Even those who hoped that social and scientific progress would lead to the decline of any form of religious belief concede the continuing significance of religion. The most cursory examination of the world today demonstrates the importance of religion and belief in the affairs of the world. Moreover, high quality religious education promotes community cohesion.

Second is the course of inaction, making no change to the current arrangements. This will commend itself to those who hope to steer clear of thinking about the problems of the status quo and to avoid stirring up hornets’ nests. However, procrastination will not make the issues disappear. It would be dangerous to allow RE to continue in its current anomalous position – outside the mainstream school curriculum, ignored by many and declining – as described by Ofsted – in many respects.

Neglect simply allows unbalanced, even propagandistic, pictures of religious beliefs to be fostered in ways which can stimulate dangerous conflict. High quality religious education in schools is the best weapon to tackle that. The reformed curriculum should promote this.

The third option, which should now be seized, is to put RE into our national curriculum and give it the status it deserves as an essential part of a child’s education about the world in which we live.

This is not straightforward. There are important issues about the name of the subject itself (I favour ‘Religion and Worldviews’), about who should determine the content of the RE curriculum, and about the new role, if any, of the local Standing Advisory Councils on Religious Education (SACREs) However these are subsidiary questions.

The fundamental choice, which I hope that the curriculum and assessment review body will recommend, is to include RE in our new national curriculum to equip children as they address the challenges of our modern world.

About

The Rt Hon Charles Clarke was the Secretary of State for Education, 2002-2004

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