Baha'i
Buddhist worldview traditions
Christian worldview traditions
Contextualising the diversity of worldviews
Hindu worldview traditions
Humanist worldview traditions
Jain
Jehovah's Witnesses
Jewish worldview traditions
Muslim worldview traditions
Pagan
Rastafari
Sikhi worldview traditions
Soka Gakkai
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints
Zoroastrian
Research

What does the shift to worldview mean for teachers?

Professor Trevor Cooling

Research Summary

The notion of worldview is prominent in recent discussions of RE, following the publication of the CORE report. This research reflects on this development. It gives a nuanced understanding of the notion of worldview. It explores the pedagogical implications of the shift to worldview, drawing on the work of Robert Jackson, Michael Grimmitt and Anthony Thiselton.

Researchers

Professor Trevor Cooling

Research Institution

Canterbury Christ Church University

What is this about?

  • Current discussions of RE, specifically, the shift to a focus on worldview, following the publication of the CORE report.
  • The meaning of the concept of worldview.
  • What a move to worldview means for teachers of RE / R&W, in practice.

What was done?

The researcher considered the impact of the concept of worldview on his own work, in an autobiographical manner. He then analysed the treatment of worldview in the CORE report and subsequent discussions, including points made by critics of CORE or of the worldview concept. He then identified the pedagogical implications of CORE, arguing that R&W teaching will need to take a hermeneutical approach (explained further below) if the proposed changes are to take effect.

Main findings and outputs

  • R&W is not simply a matter of adding extra content to RE – when religions are viewed as fluid, complex, diverse worldviews, the subject changes.
  • A key focus is on the lived experience of people and communities identifying with a particular institutional worldview: CORE, here, draws heavily on Robert Jackson’s interpretive approach to RE.
  • A second key focus is on personal worldview – a concern to pick up positive elements of Michael Grimmitt’s ‘learning from religion’; pupils should understand the varied influences on them as they form their own worldviews.
  • Anthony Thiselton’s ‘responsible hermeneutics’ provides the disciplinary knowledge needed in R&W. It gives teachers three responsibilities:
  1. Promote rigorous knowledge of what is being taught.
  2. Ensure rigorous reflection on the contemporary context and how it may influence both teacher’s and pupils’ perspectives.
  3. Ensure rigorous reflection on the potential interaction between 1 and 2, so that teacher and pupils benefit in their own self-understanding.

Relevance to RE

The research is of high relevance to teachers who are concerned to understand the meaning of the CORE report and the shift to worldviews as far as their own professional practice is concerned. As the researcher concludes, it is not yet a workable curriculum or resources. This needs to come next, but the researcher has outlined a basis for it.

Generalisability and potential limitations

This research does not present a set of generalisable data from a survey or other instrument. Rather, it is a detailed, balanced discussion of the worldview concept, based on reading, analysis and reflection. It offers teachers and other professionals an account of what the CORE report and the move from RE to R&W mean in practice, though (as yet) without details of curriculum or resources.

Find out more

The original article is Trevor Cooling (2020) Worldview in religious education: autobiographical reflections on The Commission on Religious Education in England final report, British Journal of Religious Education, DOI: 10.1080/01416200.2020.1764497

The article is available open-access at 10.1080/01416200.2020.1764497

Back to top