Global terms: Leadership & Policy

New Beginnings and Time Passing

Dr Kate Christopher | 21 September, 2021

This September I am more aware than usual both of new beginnings and time passing. Although I have been in my school for almost two years, it has been mostly in lockdown. My experience of the school has not been in normal times, to say the least. When colleagues talk about a room, a person, a form to fill in, a process, an event, I am lost, it is like I started yesterday. I have existed in a bubble and now the bubble is burst.

Being back in the classroom, no longer confined to my metre box at the front, feels full of possibilities- students can work in groups and we can be more active in our learning, I can wander up to the back row or talk to a student quietly at their desk, rather than from the front of the room. Students can let off steam outside at break and lunch, no longer confined to their classrooms and bubbles. Being outside with all of year 7 and 8 as they tear around the playground feels surprisingly joyful, not how I would have described break duty before the pandemic.

I am also aware of changes closer to home. My daughter has started in Year 7. I have welcomed thousands of Year 7s in my almost 20 years in the classroom. Now I am finding out what goes on at home- making sense of the new systems, what books and kit are needed for each day, the pressures of homework. It is tiring and can be fraught if we are second-guessing a teacher’s instructions. But it is also exciting- a more independent young person is emerging, ready to take on these new challenges.

I have had the pleasure of working with Kathryn and the Culham St Gabriel’s team for some years. I am excited and privileged to take over stewardship of RE:ONLINE, building on the excellent work of my friend David Rees, who is much missed. RE:ONLINE brings together practical, classroom-focused guidance and resources, current research and information to keep you up to date. We will continue to offer high quality, practical and supportive material, whether for use in your classrooms or to adapt for another period of home learning. As always we welcome blogs from teachers or those working in and around religion and worldviews education. Email ideas you would like to share, however half-formed. We will develop them together.

We are developing an exciting online CPD platform for teachers- watch this space! The ‘In Conversation’ events which ran throughout two lockdowns will continue for the foreseeable future. These have been extremely beneficial in both communicating current research and thinking and allowing people to connect with others. It has been wonderful to see new faces at every session, perhaps people who would not usually join a face-to-face group for a variety of reasons. We look forward to welcoming new people to every event. These events and others like it have been an unexpected benefit of the pandemic.

As we look forward to a new term, some things feel really new- the mingling, mixing and moving feels at once rather scary and liberating. We are also looking back at almost two years of completely different working. We have learnt how to support each other in new ways, we have learnt to use Zoom (no mean feat), we have learnt how to carry on and how to change. Whatever is around the corner, we are looking forward to working with you. Have a great term!

 

About

Kate teaches part-time in a secondary school in inner London, is an RE Advisor and is Culham St Gabriel's Lead Consultant for Professional Development. Email: kate@cstg.org.uk

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Weaving a knowledge tapestry

Dr Kathryn Wright | 25 May, 2021

The recent Ofsted Research Review has sparked much debate and discussion particularly on social media. The review sets out what it understands by a quality education in RE. In terms of the curriculum this is defined in terms of three types of knowledge:
  • Substantive
  • Ways of knowing
  • Personal
One of the questions which struck me as I read the review, was how we theorise the relationship between these three types of knowledge. This is illuded to in the report (see Interplay of knowledge in the RE curriculum), but I felt I needed to think about it creatively. I like to think in pictures. So, what I offer here is an analogy. It is not perfect, but I hope it will help us to understand a little more about the interdependence of different types of knowledge. Let us weave a knowledge tapestry…. Image of a hand waving loom with a blue and white fabric being created The curriculum– this is like a developing tapestry. In theory it may have an ‘end point’ (i.e., end of formal education) but in my opinion it continues through our lifetime as we develop the three different types of knowledge. Therefore, it might be described as an unfinished tapestry. This emphasises the flexible nature of curricula. Yet this fluidity still enables the tapestry or knowledge to build over time into a beautiful masterpiece…. Substantive Knowledge – this is the warp. These are the threads on the loom over and under which other threads are passed to make the tapestry. Without this there would be no tapestry! The warp is laid out at the beginning with a clear sense of what you are going to produce. There is some intent here. Choices must be made about how many threads, how wide the tapestry will be and so on. This is like the choices that must be made in relation to the substantive content. Ofsted talks about illustrative content that leads to an end goal. Ways of Knowing or Disciplinary Knowledge – these are threads of the weft. They are woven in and out of the substantive content. This is important. Unless they are woven into the content, they will not contribute to the overall tapestry. This means that as pupils’ journey through the substantive content they learn about and use a range of tools and methods such as interpretation, observation, analysing data and so on. Personal Knowledge– these are also threads of the weft. They are also woven in and out of the substantive content. Our own positionality, our own worldview is woven into what it is we learn about. This means being self-aware, recognising and reflecting on how we relate to the ‘warp’ or content. This is a process of reflexivity. So, now is the time to think about the tapestry you are creating, what choices will you make to build towards and create a masterpiece….   References: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/research-review-series-religious-education

About

Dr Kathryn Wright is CEO of Culham St Gabriel's Trust

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How I… use thematic units to develop core skills and engage learners

Stuart McKinlay | 30 June, 2020

Engaging pupils can be a challenge in Religious and Moral Education (RME). Pupils can arrive with preconceptions of our subject based on a range of external influences.

I would like to give an overview of how I use thematic units to develop skills and engage learners.

In the last academic year, we worked on redeveloping elements of the Broad General Education (S1-3) courses for RME. The main area of my focus was S1 (equivalent to KS3).

Embedding skills for learning, life and work became central to the development of the new and revised units (in line with school improvement priorities). After our introduction to RME through Ultimate Questions, pupils explored a research skills mini-unit based on in-class and at-home activities that focussed on teaching the skills of research, using sources, analysis, and evaluation.

To follow this, it was decided to try a thematic approach for the S1 classes and seek to develop these skills further and introduce Beliefs and Values & Issues across different religious and non-religious viewpoints.

USING…Thematic Units.

Normally, we do not begin to use thematic units until S3 (KS4) and these focus on moral issues, however this new work sought to try a thematic unit from the start of the Secondary RME experience and use it to explore both issues of belief and issues of morality. The unit would be: Who Am I? The Human Condition – the broad scope of the unit was to explore beliefs about The Soul, the Nature of Human Beings, and Responses to Suffering.

TO DEVELOP…Skills.

I was keen to use this as an opportunity to further develop on the previous intensive research skills unit, in order to consolidate the pupils’ confidence in these skills. As we explored the content of the unit we made use of a variety of Making Thinking Visible thinking routines (already being used across the school), Co-operative Learning strategies (in order to provide structure and social skills development to our group and paired work), and Active Learning activities (in order to engage learners), with all these supporting the development of higher order thinking skills.

AS A RESULT…Engaging Learners.

In order to make learning relevant to pupils, I ensured the unit was broken down into small chunks, clearly linking lessons, and identifying contemporary moral issues that were relevant to each lesson.

As we explored the nature of human beings, we introduced debate around the environment and climate change; through teachings about responses to suffering, we explored racism and then poverty and injustice.

Pupils, through short focussed lessons, were engaging with sources that included Plato, Holy Scriptures from Buddhism, Islam, Christianity, and photo journalism. Throughout this unit they explored issues of belief, values and issues, consequences of beliefs, and began to express their own opinion with supporting reasons on the relationship between values and actions.

The result of this thematic approach to learning in S1 was a cohort of pupils who were more engaged in their learning than they were in subsequent single religion units or single-issue units. The pupils were able to demonstrate their progress toward the four capacities in Scottish education (for pupils to become Responsible Citizens, Successful Learners, Effective Contributors, and Confident Individuals). The quality of written answers were higher and more fully developed than in the previous year at this stage due to pupil interest and their ability to connect beliefs to issues. Feedback from pupils in their end of year evaluation has shown how they have appreciated dipping in and out of different religions and relating the beliefs to the world around them.

About

Stuart is a Teacher of RMPS at Belmont Academy, Ayr. Currently developing the website www.exploringrmps.com and the accompanying Exploring RMPS YouTube Channel in order to support learning and promote Religious, Moral, and Philosophical Studies in Scotland. [Due to be fully up and running from the summer of 2020]. While we endeavour to direct you to helpful, trustworthy resources, RE:ONLINE has no control over the content of external resources.

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How I… support the provision of Religious Education across a Teaching School Alliance

Adam Holdsworth | 23 June, 2020

What is a ‘Specialist Leader of Education (SLE)?’ This is a question I have been asked dozens of times by both teaching and non-teaching friends and family. The role of an SLE is often not clearly defined and can be easily misunderstood, so in this blog I am hoping to answer that question, and also explore how SLEs can support the provision of RE across a Teaching School Alliance.

The DfE has defined SLEs as “experienced middle or senior leaders interested in supporting middle and senior leaders in other schools”. The impression I get is that even when schools employed ‘Advanced Skills Teachers’, there were varied examples of how these teachers were used, often with mixed degrees of success. The vision that I want to communicate in this blog post is that there is no ‘one-size-fits-all’ approach to being an SLE, and hopefully I can give some ideas as to how this might look. I think that the role can be defined by three Cs: collaboration, communication and context.

Let’s start with the first of our Cs: collaboration. When I was asked to put together this “How I…” blog, my initial reaction was to ask to change the title to “How we…”. I think that the days when an SLE will swoop in to provide the expertise to save the day for a failing teacher or department are gone. The absolute key to this role is empowering others to make positive change. Expertise does not just lie with an SLE, but with every single teacher of RE across every Alliance school. My role is to tap into this expertise and allow schools to work in a more joined-up way to share key ideas coherently.

In this situation an SLE is primarily a leader, someone who may have expertise but also the qualities to inspire change by developing the abilities of others. Coaching and mentoring can play a very important role in this school-to-schools support that SLEs can offer.

The second of our Cs is communication: this is vitally important in many different ways. Without a structure of communication, it is impossible for SLEs to offer any kind of lasting, meaningful collaboration between different schools across their TSA. One way of creating effective communication is the use of regular teach-meet style events. As a group of RE teachers we usually meet within our Alliance hub once a term. The purpose of this can be to share resources or subject and pedagogical knowledge. As an SLE it is my role to facilitate this session: this sometimes involves me delivering ideas myself, but often also involves me leaning on the shared expertise of others. To ensure this contact is ongoing, and not just once a term, we use Google classroom as a dialogue stream and a platform to continued sharing.

Context, the last of our Cs, is arguably the most important aspect of an SLE’s role. At the Chiltern Teaching School Alliance in Bedfordshire where I work, we serve a wide variety of schools. Our Luton schools have a large majority of Muslim pupils, whereas our Central Bedfordshire schools have a higher proportion of non-religious and Christian pupils. This is important because teaching RE in these different contexts carries its own sensitivities and challenges. In order to understand these contexts, the best thing an SLE can do is speak to the teachers from that school – in this situation they are the experts because they work within these particular settings on a daily basis. SLEs can also reach out to local community and religious groups to bring these contexts into greater focus thus enabling better support.

Being an SLE is a job that I truly enjoy. The reward is enabling the provision of high-quality RE, which undoubtedly benefits all. I hope that some of the ideas in this article are useful. If you would like to ask any questions, feel free to contact me on twitter (@AdamHoldsworth1) or email me (aholdsworth@denbighhigh.co.uk).

About

Adam is the current head of Religious Education and Personal Development at The Westleigh School and has supported a variety of schools in his role as an SLE

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The Culham St Gabriel’s Bake-Off

Dr Kathryn Wright | 19 June, 2020

Or

‘How to build team virtually during the Covid-19 pandemic’

I’m passionate about team!! Team is one of the essential ways in which we live out the values of our Trust. So, I wanted to explore how we could build team virtually? As an office team we have had virtual ‘non-work’ coffee mornings as well as business catch ups, we are also using Whats App and Team chat a bit more, but I wanted something a bit different. This was when the Virtual Bake-Off idea was born…. How would our office team and consultants represent the Trust through baking? The results blew me away!!!
The Soda Bread: Kevin connected his ingredients with each member of the team. Here he explains…. The Organic wholewheat flour, full of goodness, which is the basis of everything – this is Deborah. The extra-virgin olive oil, reputed in Castillo de Locubin to fix any kind of problem – this is Tracey. The milled omega seeds giving golden sunshine to the texture – this is Kate. The walnuts contributing dry, deep integrity – this is Dave. A shot of espresso for a burst of energy this is our social media consultant 12-year-old malt whisky, seasoned, matured, with strong regional associations – this is John, our Chair of Trustees Bicarbonate of soda – this is me (Kevin!) – just because I couldn’t face comparing anyone else to bicarbonate of soda! The skilled presentation of the whole product on beautiful plates – this is Kathryn, orchestrating everything and acting as CSTG’s public face.
The Fruit Cake: Tracey’s fruitcake was based on the Trust values. This is what she said about it. Collaboration – Fruit, works better together. Whole is greater than the sum of its parts Openness – No hidden ingredients Stewardship – Low cost simple ingredients transformed into a beautiful cake Integrity – Traditional recipe, long slow cooking Empowerment – cranberries added, which are said to be a super food Service – What is a cake if not for sharing with others?
The Pavlova: Deborah’s pavlova was full of fresh cream and fruit, as the Trust is currently overflowing with fresh and fruitful ideas. The trust brings organisations together in partnership. We’re greater and can do more together than as individual organisations. Likewise, the individual components forming the pavlova are greater together. Each of the components’ initial letters together can spell CSTG (Cream, Strawberries, Tangerines, Grapes) and Religion and Worldviews Education (Raspberries, Whites of Egg). Deborah didn’t want to waste eggs and wanted to ensure the best outcome, so she outsourced for the best skills and expertise – buying the meringue is from Waitrose and getting her family to help put it together!
The Florentines: I made some Florentines with Kellogg Crunchy Nut cornflakes as our office in Oxford is in Kellogg College. They contain Chocolate, Sultanas, Toblerone and Glace Cherries spelling out CSTG. I used an unusual, colourful and vibrant mix of ingredients – like our amazing team. They were bound together by condensed milk. This product has longevity and is an important ingredient in many different desserts, just like CSTG. Lastly, and more practically I planned in advance to use no flour and eggs as it was possible these may be unavailable!
The Train: Kate made a train as Culham St Gabriel’s is going places. There is space for all sorts of people. We are on a journey together. The wheels are love hearts to show our positive message! The Fat-Free Cake: Dave decided to create a Fat-Free cake. He says, ‘At the moment this is a Slimming World house – No cake making due to being supportive… If I buy a cake and present it, how does someone learn or personalise it? At CSTG we like to facilitate ways in which people can take their own cake journey – we signpost recipes, encourage sharing, research flavour combinations, explore cultural cake advice and engage in high level cake research which hopefully benefits our core cake audience. However, I did buy a cake or some rocky road bites – I also found a recipe and would encourage people to push the boundaries and personalise it – at RE:ONLINE we would ask bakers to let us know how they got on – could you blog about it? Rocky road – symbolically, it’s a rocky time and we are with you on your own rocky road- encourage people to take a recipe and make it their own – be inspired by and look to inspire others. Jaffa cakes – to show inclusion and to not shy away from controversy – Is it a cake? Is it a biscuit? Let us look at both sides and make a justified decision’. So instead of eating cake, Dave has produced a fantastic cake knowledge organiser with a religion and worldviews twist which you can download here. Of course, this is a bit of fun for you to enjoy over a coffee break, not to be taught in the classroom! The bitesize snack: Our social media consultant also teaches full time, so she brought a bitesize snack which provided energy and quick nutrition like our social media and RE:ONLINE! What a great team! No more words… With huge thanks to: Deborah Elwine, our Office and Operations Manager Tracey Francis, our Data and Online Manager Kevin O’Grady, our Lead Consultant for Research Kate Christopher, our Lead Consultant for Teach:RE Dave Rees, our Lead Consultant for RE:ONLINE Our social media consultant

About

Dr Kathryn Wright is CEO of Culham St Gabriel's Trust

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How I… use formative assessment to inform progress and planning in Primary RE

Laura Harris | 09 June, 2020

“FEEDBACK” A word used near continuously in my school setting for the last couple of years. We have attended feedback conferences, held staff meetings, changed processes and discussed with parents. But, almost all of the conversations we have are around feedback for learning and progress in English and Maths.

“ASSESSMENT” A word that invariably comes up in every single staff meeting or local network session for RE I have taken part in. Despite often feeling quite daunted or negative about assessment processes in RE, there is no doubt teachers are consumed by the need for guidance and clarity on the issue of how we assess RE learning effectively in our classrooms.

So quite recently I have tried to join the dots and try out some of the great ideas on effective feedback for learning, to support a more useful system for assessment in RE. Despite the fact that there is definitely a place for summative judgements and recording of progress is still required for most of us in primary RE, unsurprisingly many teachers would agree the most effective tool in assessment for learning in RE is formative assessment. Just as we do confidently in English and Maths, we must identify what the key objective for learning is in an RE session and identify how we will know what the children have achieved and where to take them next.

The starting point must be a clear long/medium term aim. This may well be a strong question for enquiry, forming the learning journey for a given unit of work. Then, clear steps must be in place for how pupils will travel along this pathway. For some, this might include a knowledge organiser or other planning document to identify factual knowledge, questions for discussion and resources/content to build up to answering the question. Maintaining this focus throughout the unit of work is key, in order not to attempt to drown the children in unnecessary content along the way.

Then in each session, a key skill, piece of knowledge or question can be focused upon. A decision can be made on how we will know how pupils have done today. This might be reflection on a piece of writing (not necessarily marking of it though…a discussion for another day); notes on group or class discussions; quizzes or exit tickets; thought bubbles or creative work – the possibilities are endless. The teacher can take the work, books, tickets etc and quickly judge what each pupil has achieved today. Work can be grouped, names highlighted on a list, or quick notes made on a planner. Now we decide what is needed next – content of the next lesson, continuation of the piece of work, or questions tailored to each of the groups. Planning next steps is responsive to the feedback given by the pupils today, and we offer feedback to them through the expectation and planning of the next session.

Most of these ideas seem so obvious, because as teachers we are skilled already in assessing learning continuously and deciding what to do next. But, my experience of conversations with subject leaders and classroom teachers of primary RE is that we rarely consider transferring these skills into RE. I hope in reading these suggestions, more who haven’t yet considered these approaches might try and simplify their content and apply what they are already so good at, instead of worrying unnecessarily about time consuming and often unhelpful summative systems of assessment for RE.

About

Laura is the NATRE South West Regional Ambassador.

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How I… set up a Youth SACRE in Milton Keynes

Shammi Rahman | 15 November, 2019

I have taught RE since 2003, as an SLE for RE and RE consultant for SACRE. As such I support colleagues across Milton Keynes in projects that involve increasing student engagement in the humanities subjects and interfaith dialogue. I have been teaching Sociology, Religious Studies and Health and Social Care for the past 5 years. Currently outside my teaching timetable, I work one day a week with secondary schools across the town to improve community cohesion.

When RE was not included in the EBacc I became frustrated by the declining status of RE and non-rigorous approaches to teaching RE. So, in 2015 I contemplated giving up teaching altogether but then applied to teach Sociology and Health and Social Care in another local school. I threw myself from a lovely part-time job into a challenging full-time role teaching two new A level subjects and other Humanities subjects at KS3. Yes, you must think I was mad. I felt like an NQT again, reading in the early hours of the morning to build on my subject knowledge before my two small children would wake up. Little did I know what this journey would start…

As part of this new adventure, I was also given permission to take the lead in RE and it was made clear that the school wanted to raise the profile of the subject. The Humanities team placed a high value on RE and believed that RE underpins the concepts and emotions that help young people understand and appreciate belief and practice and understanding of our own culture and society. This appreciation of RE as an intellectual discipline enabled me to gain the full support I needed to make changes to RE across the school. I decided to set up an interfaith group in the school and use the ideas of our students to redesign the RE into a curriculum that met their needs. Every week I would meet with a range of students who represented atheist, agnostic and theistic beliefs.

Before the Commission of RE report (2018) was released, we started taking a multidisciplinary approach to RE and decided to teach the subject, so it reflects the diversity of the beliefs of our students. As a result, we now have over 50 students studying A Level Religious Studies and 6 GCSE option groups. Without receiving the incredible level of support and trust from all my colleagues, the foundations for setting up Youth SACRE MK and a growing interest in RE would never have been possible.

One of our school improvement officers had heard about the growing success of RE in our school and invited me to attend a SACRE meeting. I shared my concerns about the general decline of RE both nationally and locally. I then started working with the Milton Keynes SACRE to form a ‘Youth SACRE’. I approached senior leaders in my school and received both advice and practical support concerning advertising and booking events. A lot of support given by the head of the teaching school meant that all the systems were in place to email all schools in the town. I personally wrote to individual RE leads and local feeder schools and advertised events through Educate, SACRE contacts, and through word of mouth. We hold 5/6 meetings a year for Year 5 to Year 13 students. All meetings are held between 1-3pm so that it is less disruptive for schools and easier for primary schools to attend. Each school brings up to 6 pupils and sometimes more if we have the capacity.

The aim of Youth SACRE was originally to bring pupils together and share ideas and resources in a bid to update local RE to meet the needs of the diverse community of children. Our first Youth SACRE meeting was attended by over 14 schools. Out of this, the Youth SACRE has provided many opportunities for students and teachers all over Milton Keynes to build a bridge of cooperation between young people of all faith and non-faith backgrounds. Members of the Youth SACRE presented their thoughts on RE at one of the primary head teachers meetings and have worked together to improve and update the locally agreed syllabus. RE in our local feeder schools has improved. Our young people have been asked to present at the annual Holocaust Memorial and other Interfaith events. The group continues to support a new vision for RE that promotes freedom of thought, increased tolerance and respect of others. The pupils reflect the community of interfaith cooperation and older pupils get to demonstrate true leadership in helping the younger pupils.

The Youth SACRE meetings are also designed to inspire RE teachers (and non-specialists) with ideas and literature to support their own planning in RE. It is not easy balancing a full-time teaching role and promoting RE through Youth SACRE, it requires a lot of sacrifice of ‘free’ time. Sometimes the dates for the meetings have not worked out so now we know which times of the year to avoid and all the dates are set for the year in advance. It is not always easy to pitch the activities to ensure we are engaging both primary and secondary pupils and we have had to refine our activities to meet the needs of the schools who attend. It has been particularly difficult to get all the secondary schools on board and another challenge is reaching out to primaries who are not teaching RE at all.

In classrooms when RE is taught well by subject specialists or most importantly, by non-specialists who care about RE, students love the subject. I would encourage all RE specialist teachers to collaborate and work together to set up a Youth SACRE in your local area. Our non-specialist colleagues need guidance and inspiration and they are willing to receive support if it is made easier for them. Young people love discussing faith and they love meeting other students in their local town. Teachers gain inspiration from these meetings and our young people empower us to do more in supporting RE to meet the needs of 21st century Britain.

 

About

Shammi is currently Race Equality Adviser for HFL Education in Hertfordshire and member of the Childrens Commissioners Advisory Board. She was previously Head of the Humanities Faculty and taught RS for 19 years in secondary schools. As a member of the NATRE Executive team and OCR Subject Consultative Board for OCR Religious Studies, Shammi has supported high quality teaching and learning in RE and delivered CPD in the teaching of Islam at A Level.

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How I…use social media to support teachers

Sarah Payne | 05 November, 2019

I love my job, but boy can it can be a lonely place as a teacher of Religious Studies. Often in a one-person department, the smallest budget in the school, parents who are anti-RE, lack of understanding from the SLT, and the constant “Why are we learning this? I’m not religious!” comments from many students.

When I heard that NATRE were looking for Regional Ambassadors, I immediately thought of my colleagues who may feel exhausted or despondent for the reasons I’ve just mentioned, and felt that I wanted to support them if I could. I wanted to be a part of helping those teachers find like-minded RE teachers and be part of a local network of support, resource- sharing and friendship. I was absolutely thrilled when I got the job.

I began my journey as a Regional Ambassador in February ’19 and I’ve enjoyed my role so far. I’ve been to some amazing local groups, where teachers have given up their time because they know there is power and safety in numbers. These RE teachers and advisers have a passion for RE teaching and learning and have a desire to share their experience and wisdom with others. I’ve loved seeing the joy on a teacher’s face as they’ve heard from others that their own experience is not isolated, or when they’ve learned something new that they’ll be able to impart in their own schools. I’ve met with leaders and potential leaders who are willing to take a risk and lead a group because they know there is a need in their local area.

I’ve also attended SACRE meetings to talk about RE, and also a wonderful Youth SACRE. It’s amazing to know that young people have a desire to learn about other faiths and worldviews, despite what the media and SLTs might tell you is the value of RE.

One of the ways I’ve been able to reach RE teachers is through Social Media. I’ve set up a group for my region, South Central, on Facebook. It’s called ‘RE Teachers in South Central‘ if you’d like to join! I post encouraging documents, websites for CPD and resource links to help my colleagues in the region. Other teachers and RE professionals can also post ideas and resources, or share their experiences. I use it as a platform to point people to local RE groups as the main reason for my role is to encourage teachers to be part of a network. It is important to me that no one is mocked or left out because of their subject knowledge or experience, no matter their question or concern. I also use Twitter to signpost people to the local groups in their area, relevant research and to share resources and links to help them on their teaching journey. You can follow me on @SPayneRE.

There are lots of ways that Social Media can help teachers, from being able to share their problems and issues, to sharing resources, tips and experiences which can support others’ lessons. Collaboration is so vital in our subject. You can find that you are not alone or isolated at all.

To see who your Regional Ambassador is visit https://www.natre.org.uk/about-natre/re-in-your-region/re-ambassadors/

 

About

Sarah is the NATRE South Central Regional Ambassador.

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How I… became a regional ambassador for RE – Laura Harris

Laura Harris | 25 October, 2019

Leaving University and applying for PGCE provided me with a conundrum. Finish my RE and Theology degree and begin Primary training, where my instincts told me I would best fit, or hold tight to RE – the subject that I loved and train as a secondary teacher? Much to the disappointment of some of my secondary school and University tutors I opted for the former, promptly volunteered myself as RE subject leader within my small North Somerset primary school, and set about enjoying the challenge of enthusing my colleagues, updating school practices, and engaging my pupils in Key Stage 2. After a few years though, I found myself really missing any major engagement with RE, and frustrated by the issues clearly facing the subject in my area and in general, I decided to investigate how I might get involved with the subject a little more at a local level. I volunteered myself for my local SACRE where a position was luckily available for me. It was invigorating to spend time amongst others for whom RE was so important and I began to enquire how else I may be able to support the subject.

Along came Learn Teach Lead RE! After several years of success in Area 1 – Devon and Cornwall, the LTLRE team were to develop ‘Area 2’ in my region and were seeking enthusiastic teachers and potential leaders of RE to work in this area. I was excited and optimistic on successfully receiving the role of ‘hub leader’ for North Somerset and set about developing local group meetings three times a year. This sadly coincided with a huge reduction in funding in my local authority and I have found myself filling a gap for local teachers of RE who now only have LTLRE to offer them any forum for networking in our subject. My group affiliated to NATRE and I was hugely grateful for inspiration from the termly newsletter I received from the local groups team, as well as ideas and information from my termly issues of RE Today received through my school membership. Through this I heard of the new Ambassadors programme in 2018 and was thrilled to be appointed as Regional Ambassador for the South West region in January last year.

I found myself sat on a train to Birmingham on a snowy day in February, and once again spent a day hugely inspired by being in the company of a passionate and motivated team who had been appointed by NATRE to represent ten regions across the country. We are united in our hope of improving teacher access to local support in RE and are all working hard to try and join some dots locally and nationally to provide greater consistency in the CPD opportunities both Primary and Secondary teachers are able to access in RE. Amongst many project aims is the key goal of making Religion and Worldviews teacher groups accessible to all teachers of the subject across the country, and at a reasonable distance from where they work. So far through my role I have embraced the somewhat scary world of RE social media (see my Facebook group ‘RE in the Southwest’ or follow me on Twitter @mrsharrisRE), sought and supported new local group leaders of RE just like myself, attended numerous meetings and events where I am now able to hear about important developments in our subject and pass vital information on to teachers across the region.

I would urge anyone with a passion for RE to take the plunge; see what opportunities might be out there for you, approach your local SACRE or LTLRE hub, contact us at NATRE local groups, or visit your nearest hub or group and offer your support and enthusiasm. You never know where you may end up!

To see who your Regional Ambassador is visit https://www.natre.org.uk/about-natre/re-in-your-region/re-ambassadors/

About

Laura is the NATRE South West Regional Ambassador.

See all posts by Laura Harris

How I….keep my local RE Network up and running

Frances Neil | 19 September, 2019

As a Primary teacher and then Headteacher I have taught pretty much everything over the years. However I love RE because of the variety of areas within the subject. I have always been fascinated by students’ responses to what they learn in RE, especially if they have a ‘lightbulb moment’.

I retired from Headship and took up a post as a local RE adviser. I did this so I could continue to be involved in policy and debate about RE, as well as the development of teaching and learning. As a local adviser I try to share and support the areas of the subject that I believe are essential for education in the 21st Century. I try to kindle the excitement I feel about the subject when working with the council, local faith bodies and other stakeholders.

I have run a Primary and Secondary network for years now. The network is small but we have members from a variety of settings. This is particularly important to me; to be able to support all phases and types of school. RE matters in all of them. Some members attend regularly, others can only make it once a year. All are keen to attend and keep in touch. When members can’t attend it is always due to their busy lives, the demands of childcare, work and family.

My overall aim for the network is simple; to support teachers so they can do their best for their students. Teachers need to be kept abreast of current and future changes. I hope to empower teachers to work positively with their senior team and colleagues so they can be the best subject leader they can (without dying in the attempt).

I keep the network going by publishing dates and agendas early, and sticking to them. I need to be well-planned and forward thinking as well as responsive to needs and requests when setting agendas. I also keep in touch between meetings, especially if help is sought. Teachers don’t always need help on the date of the scheduled meeting, an adviser doesn’t stop being an adviser between network sessions. As an adviser I see it as my job to ensure important policy, national and local directives are explored and time is given to teachers to discuss and make sense of them. I like to share examples of good practice, teaching resources or CPD. Teachers are inspired by all sorts of new ideas, and it is my job to bring a wide selection for consideration.

At sessions I am welcoming and friendly, and when possible enable teachers to lead meetings themselves so the network belongs to them. I always involve teachers in local policy development such as our revised Locally Agreed Syllabus. I respect their views, welcome their input and take their concerns seriously. Issues I have had recently are teachers’ worries about preparing for Ofsted, especially in situations where the senior team are not fully supportive of RE’s place in the curriculum or it’s status in law, as in some local academies. My teachers are dedicated and passionate but they are also overworked. They struggle to keeping RE fresh and new, lively and interesting in their schools, as they don’t always have the time to plan new material. I have also had to support teachers who are dealing with withdrawals from RE. in all instances I need to be prepared and briefed, in order to give the best advice.

Ongoing issues for teachers are when staff meetings, parents’ evenings or Inset days are diarised by headteachers to take priority over attendance at Network Meetings. We have a local system which should avoid this, but so often RE is not seen as important enough to protect. I am sure many other advisers around the country find that it is not teachers who are the problem, it is the lack of support, status and interest paid to teachers of RE that is so often the problem.

Despite the battles we sometimes have to fight, local networks are truly excellent value. They allow teachers to help other teachers, sharing ideas, successes and news about special events. My teachers as a group offer each other so much. They support each other to achieve excellence in subject leadership, especially those new to the role, as well as sharing news about good venues for visits, good local speakers and resources they have used and found helpful. However the moral support and friendship is what really makes the network special, and why teachers come back.

I hope that RE will be embraced as the fantastically rich, varied and engaging subject it undoubtedly is. I see RE as the route to understanding what it is to be essentially human, socially connected, aware, positive and responsive to the local and national community. I see deep value in RE’s capacity to foster, between different groups, understanding, respect, empathy, mutual trust and liking so people can live together in harmony and with mutual support.

About

Frances is an RE adviser in Southend-on-Sea.

See all posts by Frances Neil