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Research Summary

Religious Education in British schools seeks to help students learn critically about, and from, a wide range of religious phenomena. Yet, how do we ensure that these religious traditions, in all their rich diversity, are authentically represented within the Religious Education classroom? Many will do so without ever interacting with these faith communities personally. Building on the work of Robert Jackson, this research thus explores the extent to which ethnographic material can be used to invite diverse religious perspectives into the classroom, to ensure that generalised understandings of religious communities are debunked and not perpetuated.

Researchers

Zoë Grainger

Research Institution

University of Cambridge

What is this about?

• How do Y12 students develop understanding of the diversity within Christianity?
• To what extent can an ethnographic approach help them to do this?

What was done?

There was a review of relevant literature, followed by action research on two questions: What prior knowledge did the class have of Christianity’s internal diversity? What insights did students gain through engaging with the ethnographic material? Jackson’s interpretive approach was adapted in a Y12 scheme of work, using various materials and methods to bring diverse Christian insider voices into the classroom. The students completed questionnaires, the teacher-researcher and her mentor made observation notes, the students’ classwork was analysed and visitors from the different Christian communities were interviewed.

Main findings and outputs

1. Ethnographic content does clarify and consolidate subject knowledge.
2. It also aids deconstruction of stereotypes.
3. Further, it also enables critical engagement with subject matter.
4. Attention is also needed to how students’ understanding of religion is shaped by social media.
5. The interpretive approach is best used alongside complementary pedagogical models, e.g. hermeneutical examination of sacred texts.

Relevance to RE

The research has various forms of relevance to RE. The original article gives a useful introduction to the interpretive approach, including practical applications and criticisms, and takes the approach into KS5 for the first documented time. It shows the value to KS5 students of interactions with religious insiders. The main findings suggest potentially useful classroom teaching strategies.

Generalisability and potential limitations

As an action research study, the research does not aim for generalisibility, but the findings certainly suggest promising avenues for other teachers to explore in their own classrooms; and the background and context of the study are very well accounted.

Find out more

The original article is: Zoë Grainger. 2023. Seeing the kaleidoscope: Investigating whether Year 12 understandings of Christianity’s internal diversity can be enhanced through an ethnographic approach. Journal of Trainee Teacher Education Research.

It can be freely downloaded from https://doi.org/10.17863/CAM.96937

Research Summary

The pandemic has shown how important religious ritual is for communities; for the social, psychological and cultural health of individuals. Some loss has not yet been adequately mourned, and addressing this will need to be a priority. The phenomenon of online worship has been significant, and thought will need to be given to serving the extended or invisible community that religious rituals actually engage. ‘In many ways, the digitisation of religious life has shifted patterns of religious authority and power.’ (page 114) Still, not all religious rituals can be moved online. These are some of the research’s closing reflections: its four main findings are given below, under Main findings and outputs.

Researchers

Dr Joshua Edelman, Prof Alana Vincent, Dr Eleanor O’Keeffe, Dr Paulina Kolata, Dr Mark A. Minott, Dr Katja Steurzenhofecker, Dr Jennie Bailey, Dr Charles Roding Pemberton, Dr David Lowe

Research Institution

Manchester Metropolitan University, University of Chester

What is this about?

The report’s Executive Summary provides a clear introduction to the aims and context of the research undertaken. The focus was on how religious practice in Britain adapted to the lockdown situation. From page 7:
‘The project ran from August 2020 to September 2021, with the aim of documenting and analysing changes to British communal religious life during the Covid-19 pandemic and associated lockdowns, and of providing best practice recommendations for religious communities adapting their practice to address similar crisis situations in the future. Particular effort has been made to include data that reflects, to the extent possible, the geographic and religious diversity of Britain, by focussing on questions of religious practice rather than on theological questions or issues of belief which are specific to faith traditions.’

What was done?

There were three research methods.

1. A large-scale survey of religious leaders and congregants about their experiences of rituals both before and during the pandemic.
2. Fifteen case studies—based on interviews, digital ethnography, social and broadcast media analysis, and other methods.
3. Action research carried out by clergy and other professionals with practical experience of conducting ritual during the pandemic, who
   respond to and comment on the data, and reflect personally on their experiences.

Main findings and outputs

1. During the pandemic, the experience of ritual worsened. They were perceived as less meaningful, less communal, less spiritual, and less effective.
2. Human connection means more to people than other factors. They prefer forms of online worship that are interactive over those that deliver a ‘better’ audio and visual quality.
3. While online practice could make some rituals feel distant, the ability of worshippers to join communities far from their homes has nevertheless been a positive development likely to continue. However, the overall dissatisfaction with online worship suggests a limit. Some form of online-offline hybrid seems likely to be the way forward.
4. Participants in larger communities found their experience of rituals during the pandemic to be less positive than was the case for smaller communities. This suggests that smaller communities were better able to maintain a sense of togetherness and mutual support through their rituals during this crisis, and that their convivial, small nature was a source of resilience rather than a weakness.

Relevance to RE

Neither the researchers nor the report have school RE or R&W as a specific focus, but the data are of potential use to teachers in developing courses or lessons about contemporary British lived religion. For example, pupils could be asked to ‘predict’ how communal life in particular traditions could be affected by lockdown; their predictions could then be compared and contrasted with real-life data and accounts; the pupils could reflect on their own prior assumptions and what they have learned about their own positions as well as lived religion, and further questions could then be explored about the meaning and significance of religion in different communities, and how it adapts to different conditions.

Generalisability and potential limitations

The survey is broad, and whilst the case studies might not cover every religious or worldview community represented in the UK, they offer valid accounts of a range of communities.

Find out more

The full report, together with further information about the BRIC-19 research project, can be accessed freely at https://bric19.mmu.ac.uk

Research Summary

This project presents 5 case studies exploring how RE is being re-imagined in schools. It is a showcase of classroom practice which goes some way towards meeting the learning proposed in the new National Entitlement for Religion & Worldviews.
The project builds on the recommendations of the Faiths Unit’s 2015 report RE for Real – The Future of Teaching and Learning about Religion & Belief by providing examples of an emerging shift in RE towards understanding religion and worldviews as dynamic, lived, and interpretable phenomena and concepts.

Researchers

Dr Martha Shaw & Prof Adam Dinham

Research Institution

London South Bank University & Goldsmiths, University of London

What is this about?

This project is based on the premise that there is much brilliant, innovative RE going on all around the country but that it is patchy and could be extended. This project highlights some key examples of innovative practice, which speaks to the new direction proposed for Religion & Worldviews. It is intended to complement debates about change in policy and practice, with evidence of existing new practices from which others can learn.

What was done?

The project has worked with 5 schools to explore examples in practice of aspects of the new National Entitlement. We invited submissions of interest to participate then undertook a series of visits to the schools, in close collaboration with teachers:

Visit 1: Summer Term 2019 (May-June), to discuss the national plan and how the school is already or might respond to it. We worked together during and following this visit to consolidate the potential connections to at least one element of the national entitlement, then to devise a piece of concrete classroom practice in advance of our return visit.

Visit 2: Autumn Term 2019 and Spring term 2020 (September-February), to observe and reflect on the example of teaching and learning which has been identified and developed. The example was developed into a ‘case study’ including a short video and PDF providing a narrative.

Main findings and outputs

The five case studies explore ways of teaching and learning about religion and worldviews as fluid, lived and interpretable phenomena. The focus of each case study is different and relate to:
– Dealing with Controversy
– Multiple interpretations of lived religion
– Whole school lived religion as meaning making
– Encountering worldviews as lived and fluid
– RE Trail as discovery for children and their parents
The case studies can be found here.

Relevance to RE

The case studies are offered as resource for teachers to explore new ways of approaching the study of religion and worldviews in the classroom. Teachers might use these as inspiration to try something new. Teacher educators might also use these as examples of ways to embrace the teaching of religion and worldviews as dynamic, lived and interpretable phenomena and concepts. These examples showcase ways of promoting religion & worldview literacy in the classroom.

Generalisability and potential limitations

These examples are not representative of all the creative and innovative practice that goes on. Neither do they embody the totality of the vision outlined by CORE. Rather, they are intended as examples of some of the exciting ways in which teachers are interpreting innovation in the Religion & Worldviews classroom.

Find out more

Shaw, M (2019) Towards a Religiously Literate curriculum – Religion and Worldview Literacy as an Educational Model, Journal of Beliefs & Values, Journal of Beliefs & Values. Online: Sept. 2019.

https://www.gold.ac.uk/faithsunit/current-projects/reforreal/case-studies/

Research Summary

This project, a collaboration between Professor Bob Bowie and Ms Katie Clemmey of the National Institute for Christian Education Research (NICER) and the Centre for Research Evaluation in Muslim Education with Dr. Farid Panjwani at University College London (now renamed the Centre for the Study of Education in Muslim Contexts (CEMC) ), sought to support teachers in seven contrasting secondary schools, teach RE more hermeneutically. It was informed by research that the use of texts in RE classrooms is and has been an ongoing problem for many years that continues with the revised GCSE. It was inspired by the thought that a more hermeneutical approach in the subject might help both the transition to Religion and Worldviews education and also the development of a stronger disciplinary knowledge base. It was grant funded by Culham St Gabriel’s Trust and supported by Bible Society. It was a qualitative study of 7 schools with 10 teachers working to apply hermeneutical techniques to their curricula.

Researchers

Dr Robert Bowie, Farid Panjwani & Katie Clemmey

Research Institution

Canterbury Christ Church University

What is this about?

Should schools help students become good interpreters of religion, worldviews, and sacred texts? Should they help students explore what it means to be a sacred text scholar? This report is for all those interested in teaching sacred texts, in particular, the Bible and texts sacred to Muslims including the Qur’an. This project was part of REsearch 7, a Culham St Gabriel’s initiative. Academic papers about the project will be forthcoming in research journals and monographs. It took place between October 2018 and July 2019.

What was done?

We recruited ten participant teachers from seven secondary schools with diverse pupil population profiles and socio-economic and cultural contexts. Initial telephone interviews were followed by drawing up some plans of the teachers’ ideas about what they might want to test in their classrooms. The teachers were given some CPD about hermeneutics and its application. A CPD day involved an introduction to hermeneutics, sacred text scholarship, and expert guidance on classroom hermeneutics. There was also time for planning discussions. The CPD also involved six online ‘bookclub’ sessions on a group video conferencing system following a set of readings. The participants then planned and taught lessons taking ideas from the CPD and readings and adapting their curricula At the end of the summer term there were in-depth individual interviews of all the participants, carried out by the principle investigators.

Main findings and outputs

1. The teachers described a sense of agency that hermeneutical tools gave students in activities around the interpretation of sacred text, e.g. asking about what texts meant to the original writers, or how different interpretations of them may be made today.
2. The teachers reported that pupils were positive about engaging with longer extracts of sacred text including students who they had thought would struggle or lack motivation in such activities.
3. Hermeneutical approaches in these cases led to a deeper quality of conversation in lessons about texts.
4. Hermeneutics was seen as a valuable dimension in curriculum design allowing for progression through multi religious study.
5. Almost all of the teachers developed competent hermeneutical lessons, some with excellent examples of student work.
6. From their key stage 3 changes, several teachers thought that hermeneutics would lead to better GCSE responses, particularly in explaining differences within religions. They also felt that a better space for hermeneutics could be included in exams.

Relevance to RE

There is a greater possibility for change and for reform of religious education if the idea of inhabiting the place of a sacred text scholar becomes part of Religion and Worldviews in schools. It offers one pathway to unlocking a disciplinary study of how people find significance and read meaning through worldviews. Students can progress between the study of different worldviews through the scholarly study of sacred texts.

Generalisability and potential limitations

It was a qualitative study focussed on teachers, and did not seek to measure the actual change in students. The participants were self-selecting so probably had an interest in sacred texts. Findings cannot be generalised from this study and further study is needed, though the teacher responses are promising.

Find out more

Teachers and Text: The Findings Report

https://www.canterbury.ac.uk/nicer/hermeneutics/

Research Summary

What are the links between violence and environmental problems? This research explores these, and explores how recent work in Christian ethics is relevant to them. What should be a Christian response?

Researcher

Luke Beck Kreider

Research Institution

University of Virginia

What is this about?

• Problems of conflict, war and violence.
• Environmental problems.
• The connections between these two kinds of problems, and how Christian ethics might address them.

What was done?

This is a scholarly essay bringing together findings from the different fields of conflict studies, ecology and Christian ethics.

Main findings and outputs

• Human-caused environmental changes increase the conditions for violent conflict.
• At the same time, modern weaponry and military-industrial production exert both immediate and long-term impacts on non-human species and ecological systems.
• The links are crucial to sustainability in the twenty-first century, so Christian ethics must engage with them.
• There are four types of link:
  1. Conflict over scarce natural resources, with associated migration and destabilisation.
  2. Environmental impacts of war.
  3. Land conflict.
  4. Structural violence (unequal life chances) caused by climate change.
• Different theologians are cited in order to highlight different possible Christian ethical responses, e.g.:
  1. Reform the Christian imagination: see and accept responsibilities for violent political ecologies.
  2. Restore God’s presence to creation in order to reverse the catastrophic rupture of nature from our culture.
  3. Learn to see God’s presence in the movement of Christian tradition through time, to now meet the distinct moral demands of an environmental age.
  4. Develop the meaning of Christian love to encompass the non-human world and to confront violence hidden in the convergences of economic structures and ecological relations.

Relevance to RE

The research is most relevant to A level teaching (e.g. OCR A level Religious Studies Business Ethics units: arms industries, energy and fuel industries). How do the Christian ethical perspectives outlined in the research apply to these industries? Should Christians work in them or invest in them? Teachers interested in this research report and its possible basis for teaching are strongly encouraged to download and read the original article, perhaps preparing an A4 summary of key points to which their students can refer.

Generalisability and potential limitations

Rather than generalisable research data, this is a stimulating report of recent Christian theological responses to a specific set of issues.

Find out more

The original article is Luke Beck Kreider, Christian Ethics and Ecologies of Violence, Religions 2019: 10 (9), 509.

The article is available open-access at https://doi.org/10.3390/rel10090509

Research Summary

Since Trump’s ascendancy in American politics and his subsequent election, a number of articles have surfaced in the media trying to explain evangelical voters’ support of Trump. This research identifies common descriptions of evangelicals by analysing 110 online articles published in a two-and-a-half-year period surrounding Trump’s presidential campaign and election. The results indicate that the answer to the question why evangelicals support Trump resides not so much in their theology, but in their aspirations for America and assumptions of what America should be like. They see Trump’s success as God’s gift, but because he has attributes opposite to those promoted by Christianity, they risk becoming a laughing stock.

Researchers

Eun-Young Julia Kim

Research Institution

Andrews University

What is this about?

This is about Trump’s election victory and subsequent presidency, and why Evangelical Christians in the USA tend to support him (though care is needed with the term Evangelical, as some do not – the tendency is strong in white, Republican groups). How are these people identified and described in the media? Why do they support Trump? What are the problems with squaring support for Trump with traditional Christian values?

What was done?

110 online articles published between January 2016 and June 2018 were analysed. These were coded, to isolate various categories and themes: characteristics of evangelicals, pursuit of political power and protection from perceived threats, belief in America as a Christian nation, political expediency and insensitivity to immorality and harm to others, voices from the other side (i.e. evangelicals dissenting from support for Trump).

Main findings and outputs

• It is hard to identify evangelicals purely by theology – a third are black, and tend to be aligned with the Democrats – Evangelical Christianity is not monolithic, and different political and ethnic factors need to be acknowledged; those supporting Trump are described as white, conservative and right-wing, or far right-wing.
• Several specific individuals are frequently named as part of media identification of this group, e.g. Jerry Falwell Jnr. These individuals serve on Trump’s evangelical advisory board. They may be mentioned for their controversial remarks, e.g. Jerry Falwell Jnr.: ““If more good people had concealed-carry permits, then we could end those Muslims before they walked in”.
• The most frequently occurring theme was evangelicals’ sense of marginalisation because of the liberal policies of Obama and Clinton, and their support for a ‘strongman’ to protect them and legislate for their principles. The threats include immigration, abortion and same-sex marriage.
• They do not see Trump as a moral examplar; they support him because they believe that he will legislate for a white, conservative, Christian nation.
• They believe that Trump is divinely appointed. Franklin Graham: “He [Trump] did everything wrong, politically. He offended gays. He offended women. He offended the military. He offended black people. He offended the Hispanic people. He offended everybody! And he became president of the United States. Only God could do that.”
• The stance taken by these groups, counter to the Gospel, harms their credibility.

Relevance to RE

The research should be of interest to RE teachers as it illustrates, vividly, religion’s continuing influence in the contemporary world. It also illustrates the need for religion to be viewed in the context of lived experience and commitment, connected to other aspects of life and society such as politics and values. It poses questions that need sensitive, skilled handling at upper secondary level. Why do some Christians support Trump whilst others oppose him? What does this reveal about the nature of Christianity? What are the likely social consequences of these different religious perspectives?

Generalisability and potential limitations

The researcher acknowledges that the findings arise from a limited data-set, but even so, they have evidently been identified with care, sensitivity and attention to detail. The article had been through anonymous peer review and editorial processes before publication.

Find out more

Eun-Young Julia Kim, ‘Born Again with Trump The Portrayal of Evangelicals in the Media,’ Journal of Religion and Society 21 (2019)

The article is available open-access at https://dspace2.creighton.edu/xmlui/bitstream/handle/10504/122278/2019-33.pdf

Research Summary

Disagreements about how Christianity should be taught in state-funded school RE have a long history. In this article are considered debates that have arisen about theologically-based pedagogy. The focus is Understanding Christianity, a resource inspired by recent developments in hermeneutics. When studying the Bible, should pupils should be viewed as insiders or outsiders? The argument is that hermeneutics offers a robust model for an academically rigorous approach that enables pupils to be both insiders and outsiders. There is explanation of how Understanding Christianity has attempted to embody this aspiration.

Researchers

Stephen Pett & Professor Trevor Cooling

Research Institution

RE Today Services / Canterbury Christ Church University

What is this about?

• How should Christianity be approached in state-funded school RE? Especially, how should the Bible be approached?
• Are theological approaches to Christianity appropriate in state-funded school RE?
• Hermeneutical approaches to Christianity are argued to be appropriate: academically rigorous, requiring pupils to examine the nature of the text but also attending to their own backgrounds and responses.
• It is shown how the Understanding Christianity resource puts this approach into practice.

What was done?

The article is a scholarly essay on theological approaches to RE, examining the different arguments for and against and presenting the strengths of a hermeneutical theological approach, as exemplified in the Understanding Christianity resource.

Main findings and outputs

• There is suspicion that using theology as a pedagogy of RE is hijacking RE for faith formation.
• However, Understanding Christianity and its hermeneutical approach answers this concern.
• Julia Ipgrave’s work is cited, whereby it is possible for students as academic outsiders to learn from the Bible as insiders with personal integrity, without being treated as Christian insiders.
• Pupils should ask what their ‘pre-understanding’ of texts is; from what point of view do they interpret?
• They should try to discern its originally intended meaning, through study of the various background factors, then ask about its significance (if any) for themselves.
• In these ways, there can be responsible interpretation and awareness of diversity.
• The selection of material for and pedagogy of Understanding Christianity reflect these priorities.

Relevance to RE

The article presents and defends the merits of an increasingly known though contested approach to Christianity in RE. It offers thought-provoking points for teachers to consider when preparing lessons (e.g. on page 265 where we are asked to consider the effect of offering pupils various titles for the same parable: Prodigal Son, Wasteful Son, Lost Son, Foolish Father, Careless Country, Forgiving Father or Two Lost Sons). Many RE teachers will be familiar with the Understanding Christianity materials and readers are encouraged to read the original BJRE article.

Generalisability and potential limitations

Because this is a scholarly essay, the question of generalisability does not really apply. Rather, readers are encouraged to try out and evaluate the approach in their own classrooms.

Find out more

Stephen Pett & Trevor Cooling (2018) Understanding Christianity: exploring a hermeneutical pedagogy for teaching Christianity, British Journal of Religious Education, 40:3, 257-267.

https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/01416200.2018.1493268?journalCode=cbre20

Research Title

Pupils’ perceptions of the religious links to terrorism

Research Summary

With the increased requirement to incorporate counter-terrorism measures into the British education system, teachers are now expected to discuss terrorism within the classroom setting. However, this is a challenging endeavour. This article explores research findings from a project conducted over several years into pupils’ perceptions of terrorism and its links to religion in general, as well as the specific links made with Islam, Sikhism and Christianity. Overall, the pupils thought that religion in general, as well as Islam in particular, was something that motivated terrorism. However, many pupils also expressed concerns about associating entire religious communities with terrorism, perceiving it as a stereotype, and expressed interest in discovering more about how and why religion was used to justify such violent attacks.

Researcher

Angela Quartermaine

Research Institution

Woolf Institute, University of Cambridge

What is this about?

• What are pupils’ perceptions on links between religion and terrorism?
• What are their concerns around this issue?
• What would they like to know and understand more about?

What was done?

Case studies took place in six Warwickshire secondary schools, with pupils aged 13-15. Multiple methods were used including document analysis, interviews with teachers and pupils, focus groups and surveys.

Main findings and outputs

• Religion certainly featured in pupils’ overall perceptions of terrorism.
• Most pupils thought religion the most likely motivation for terrorism.
• Pupils generally associated it with Abrahamic religions, especially Islam.
• Though some considered terrorism an ‘act’ of religion, others considered religion a ‘shade’ for the real causes, such as hatred or politics.
• ‘Extremism’ was sometimes used to mean an element of religion, at other times a point of differentiation from it.
• In discussing links between Islam and terrorism, some pupils focused on jihad, but others Islamophobia.

Relevance to RE

• The research shows the complex nature of pupils’ views on the relationship between religion and terrorism.
• It also shows how pupils are able to discuss the issue, critically.
• They were more confident to do so when equipped with good background knowledge – when discussing Christianity, they were more able to explain the problems with associating religion with terrorism.
• RE teachers therefore need to be equipping pupils with good religious literacy, so that they can understand the scope of these discussions. There needs to be attention to terminology, including terrorism, belief, extremism, religion.

Generalisability and potential limitations

This was a fairly large sample, including 264 pupils in a first session and 73 in a second. The schools are in a fairly small, largely white and middle-class area of central England, though close to major urban centres.

Find out more

Angela Quartermaine (2019) Pupils’ perceptions of the religious links to terrorism, British Journal of Religious Education, 41:1, 67-77.

https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/01416200.2017.1361381?journalCode=cbre20

Research Summary

This article explores the interpretation and influence of Genesis 1-2 – the biblical Creation accounts – in relation to Christian responses to contemporary ethical issues. It invites GCSE/A-level students and teachers to engage in a careful and critical examination of the texts. This is essential for a nuanced understanding of the variety of ways in which the texts have been interpreted. The article explores how Genesis 1 and 2 have been influential in forming a variety of Christian responses to such issues as gender equality, animal rights and environmental care. The article offers a partner piece to the newly updated ‘Beyond Stewardship’ resources produced by the University of Exeter for use in GCSE/A-level RS.

Researchers

Professor David G. Horrell & Dr Helen C. John

Research Institution

University of Exeter

What is this about?

This article explores the interpretation and influence of Genesis 1-2 – the biblical Creation accounts – in relation to Christian responses to contemporary ethical issues. It invites GCSE/A-level students and teachers to engage in a careful and critical examination of the texts. This is essential for a nuanced understanding of the variety of ways in which the texts have been interpreted. The article explores how Genesis 1 and 2 have been influential in forming a variety of Christian responses to such issues as gender equality, animal rights and environmental care. The article offers a partner piece to the newly updated ‘Beyond Stewardship’ resources produced by the University of Exeter for use in GCSE/A-level RS.

What was done?

The article begins with a close examination of the texts themselves, including an accessible comparison of the two accounts side-by-side. It then goes on to illustrate the enduring influence of these creation stories in the ethical debates in which appeals to these texts are made (often on opposing sides). The article outlines the biblical creation stories, noting the context of and differences between the two. It then considers what these texts have to say about (i) human status and the image of God; (ii) gender and equality; (iii) non-human animals and the question of vegetarianism; and (iv) human responsibility for the environment.

Main findings and outputs

This article – alongside the website resources – emphasises that the biblical texts have a complex legacy: there is no simple, singular ‘Christian’ response to gender equality, animal rights, or environmental issues. Appeals to Genesis 1 and/or 2 have been made to support or deny gender equality, to support or deny the rights of non-human animals, to support or reject vegetarianism, and to support stewardship or to support the domination of the natural world. The article offers insight into how and why those polar opinions have been supported by the biblical creation accounts.

Relevance to RE

This article would make excellent background reading for teachers and could be used as a think piece with A-level classes (or higher ability GCSE classes). It relates to issues of gender equality, animal rights, vegetarianism and environmental care.
The accompanying website resources, developed within the University of Exeter’s ‘Beyond Stewardship’ project, are designed for use in RE/RS classrooms when tackling issues related to environmental ethics. They encourage students to think beyond a simple equation of ‘Christian ethics’ with ‘stewardship of the environment’. Resources are available under the following subtitles:

1. Is Christianity to blame?
2. Origins of stewardship
3. History of stewardship
4. Contemporary Christian views
5. Catholic teaching explored further
6. The Future of Earth
7. Criticisms of stewardship
8. Alternatives to stewardship
9. The Exeter Project
10. Humans and (other) animals

Generalisability and potential limitations

The article and resources are primarily aimed at teachers and KS5 students. However, able KS4 students will find them useful as stretch and challenge materials and/or revision activities. They focus solely on Christian perspectives but do tackle the considerable variety therein.

Find out more

The article is entitled ‘Creation, Humans, Animals, and the Environment: Understanding the Influence of Genesis 1–2’ and appears in the November 2018 edition (Issue 51) of Dialogue magazine (pp. 3-8).

http://humanities.exeter.ac.uk/theology/research/projects/beyondstewardship/

Research Summary

Sixty-five secondary school students are encouraged to develop the dialogic skills of consensus building through cumulative talk and constructive criticism through exploratory talk. With a stimulus of two texts – one based on science and the supernatural and the other on New Testament scholarship – the students from ten UK secondary schools engage with paired conversations. Their conversations are recorded and transcribed and subsequently analysed for quality.

Researchers

Dr Antony Luby

Research Institution

University of Glasgow

What is this about?

Research Question 1
To what extent do the students remain on task when their conversations take place out with the visible control of the teacher?

Research Question 2
To what extent does this intervention promote participation in cumulative talk and exploratory talk by the students?

Research Question 3
To what extent does dialogic RE promote a deep approach to students’ learning?

Research Question 4
How might the development of dialogic skills become a regular feature within classroom life?

What was done?

10 secondary schools selected by opportunity sampling – 9 in England (East Midlands & South Yorkshire) and 1 in Scotland.
4 are faith schools (2 Anglican; 2 Catholic); 5 are academies and 1 is a comprehensive school.
Overall then, taking together the four criteria of type, location, affluence of catchment areas and performance levels, the opportunity sample can be criticised on three grounds:
1. There is an over-representation of faith schools and academies;
2. The school locations are biased towards cities and towns; and
3. It skews towards schools performing at the lower end of the Ofsted spectrum.
Nonetheless, there is still a broad representation of schools given that:
a) The three most common types of schools are well represented;
b) All four kinds of location (city, town, semi-rural and rural) are represented;
c) There is a broad diversity of catchment areas spread throughout the deciles spanning from ‘most deprived’ to ‘least deprived’; and
d) All four categories of Ofsted performance levels are covered within the sample.

65 students were selected by the heads of department for paired conversations. 61 students participated from Y10-Y13 and 4 students from Y9. There was a wide range of religious and non-religious backgrounds i.e. the students self-declared as:
Agnostic = 22
Atheist = 14
Christian Catholic = 8
Christian Other = 12
Deist = 2
Muslim = 2
Non-religious = 4
Sikh = 1

The paired conversations were recorded, transcribed and then analysed for quality.

Main findings and outputs

The findings from the academies are particularly encouraging in that twenty-seven out of twenty-eight conversations are rated as either high quality or mid quality. High quality requires a minimum of 700 words and 70% cumulative talk and exploratory talk.

Further, using a series of 10 test items for the survey questionnaire it was ascertained that, to a high degree of statistical significance, the students claim that paired conversations promotes a deep approach to learning.

Also, the students clearly enjoyed the experience since from the sixty-two responses only two are negative; seven are mixed; and fifty-three are positive. Typical students’ comments include –

“I think this approach is generally helpful for learning in RE as it makes me question my opinion and the opinions of others when learning.”

“Useful for reinforcing information and critically analysing the information.”

“I think this way of learning is beneficial as it makes you engage in a subject and broadens your understanding through worked examples; it encourages openness.”

Some transcripts were viewed by two experienced heads of department of RE and elicited the following:

“You are getting pupils to really engage in the topic and I think it’s very difficult in a class situation where pupils can express their views clearly… I think honestly it’s just excellent, it’s so nice to see them doing critical thinking…”

With regard to future research –
The community of enquiry identifies software like Book Creator, GarageBand and i-Tunes U as having the capacity to offer pedagogic strategies whereby students can have a degree of privacy for their conversations before sharing these with teachers and peers. Such technologies should feature in future interventions and research intended to promote the development of dialogic skills in RE.

Relevance to RE

A good place to start would be with A-level students and 6th formers. With no safeguarding issues to consider, they can be assigned easily to a room / place in the school to undertake their paired conversations.

Alternatively, tech savvy RE teachers could use GarageBand, Book Creator or i-Tunes U for paired conversations within the classroom that can then be shared with the rest of the class.

Generalisability and potential limitations

The research findings are both indicative and relatable as they are based on a sample of 10 schools that skews towards the lower end of both the socio-economic spectrum and Ofsted ratings. The 65 students who participated are primarily in KS4 and KS5.

Find out more

Luby, A. 2019. Dominican Thomist Pedagogy for a Post-Secular Society: Developing Dialogic Skills in RE for Students in UK Secondary Schools. Unpublished PhD thesis. Glasgow: University of Glasgow.

http://theses.gla.ac.uk/41201/