Viewing archives for Young people and religion

For the last two years, the team at Culham St Gabriel’s have supported teachers in four primary schools across England to explore how their children can engage with, and learn about, Freedom of Religion or Belief (FoRB). This report summarises the outcomes and the experiences of those teachers and their children from Phase II of the project. The report explores how teachers can develop a ‘FoRB lens’. Teachers are then able to support their children to apply that lens when teaching existing units of work or lessons. In other words, this approach does not necessarily require the development of new units of work or lessons, rather the application of an approach.

The report builds on the Phase I report which established clear FoRB learning outcomes for EYFS, KS1 and KS2. Additionally, taken together the reports include examples and ideas which other teachers may wish to try out in their own classrooms.
This research strand is arguably the first attempt from anywhere in the world to explore how children in schools can learn about FoRB and FoRB principles.

In your school or in your local group or network or across your multi academy trust

• Ensure that pupils are enabled to reflect on their own backgrounds, values and positions as part of religious education.
• How could you apply a ‘FoRB lens’ to the RE lessons that you are teaching?
• What are the implications of implementing FoRB principles across RE?
• Consider the recommendations on page 13 of the report below

Researchers from Coventry University, Durham University and the Woolf Institute have been researching how the experience of school- based RE prepares young people for the religious diversity of University life. The research explores the relationships between UK university students’ religious literacy, their experiences of religious education (RE) at school, and what the researchers call their ‘interfaith learning and development’, a multidimensional concept representing students’ ability to engage with, and relate across, religion and worldview difference.

This research represents the first step in exploring how different types of RE might prepare students for the challenges of university and beyond, in which they are often faced with a variety of identities different from their own.

A briefing paper Worldviews, religious literacy and interfaith readiness: Bridging the gap between school and university on the research was published in October 2024.

As you read the briefing paper you may find the following questions helpful to consider:

• Which of the 4 policy recommendations are relevant in your setting? Who do you need to share them with?
• Research suggests a religion and worldviews approach to RE engenders greater religious literacy in some cases, but this potential is not fully realised. How might teachers develop their approach to RE so that it can be?
• How are you developing pupils’ ability to recognise diversity within religious and non-religious worldviews?
• Do pupils have the opportunity and skill to take part in inter-worldview dialogue? Are teachers trained and supported in these dialogue facilitation skills?

In February 2024, prior to the publication of the policy briefing Professor Matthew Guest and Dr Lucy Peacock shared the following information on their research:

Research Summary

This is a study of the lived religious identity and practice of Hindu teenagers in the UK. Utilising an ethnographic approach, it investigates how Hindu teenagers in the UK experience their religion at home and at school. There is found a contrast between these teenagers’ home life and school experience. Hindu teenagers experience a strong sense of cognitive dissonance pertaining to their religious identity: their home life being a healthy relationship with their religion but their school experience being a sense of anger and shame. There is an outline of what the teenagers themselves believe is lacking in the RE classroom and what they regard as the key features of their Hindu faith.

Researchers

Joseph Chadwin

Research Institution

University of Vienna

What is this about?

• How do Hindu teenagers in England experience their religion, at home and at school?
• Are there contrasts between these two arenas?
• What do Hindu teenagers in England see as the key features of Hindu faith?
• What do they believe is lacking, or would like to see more of, in the RE classroom regarding Hindu tradition?

What was done?

There was a prior survey of existing relevant literature, and an ethnographic study of 30 London secondary pupils who self-identified as Hindu. The ethnographic study consisted of a series of semi-structured interviews.

Main findings and outputs

• There is immense variety within the category of Hinduism; researchers should accept the multiplicity and fluidity of lived religious identities and experiences.
• Such acceptance characterises much recent RE literature but Hinduism is still a ‘blind spot’ sometimes significantly mishandled in school RE.
• 12 of the pupils were apathetic to their Hindu identity, 18 highly engaged with Hindu beliefs and practices. 25 stressed how Hinduism is highly internally diverse. 28 were unhappy about absence from or superficial treatment of Hinduism within the school curriculum. Only 1 was happy; the school in question received visits from Hindu community members. The unhappiness is a source of anger for them and means that Hinduism, in their view, is really for the home.
• A ‘secularised’ ‘yoga-for-relaxation’ type of activity offered in school added to the Hindu teenagers’ sense of anger.

Relevance to RE

The findings include the Hindu teenagers’ views on what is lacking (or needed) in school RE:

• 26 referred to the importance of Hindu values, and the need to reflect these in curriculum coverage: equality, honesty, non-violence and love.
• These can be, but should not be, obscured by attention to Hinduism’s ‘strangeness’ or exotic appearance.
• Informed teaching about the meaning of yoga is lacking, but should be included; the same also applies to puja.

Generalisability and potential limitations

The author acknowledges that his is a small and localised sample. However, he argues that the ‘small window’ of the ethnographic data is much needed, providing an in-depth examination.

Find out more

The original article is available on an open-access basis: Joseph Chadwin (2023) The lived religious beliefs and experiences of
English Hindu teenagers at home and at school, British Journal of Religious Education, 45:3, 251-262, DOI: 10.1080/01416200.2023.2184326

Research Summary

The main article reported here focuses on the emergence of online versions of the Guru Granth Sahib, their impact on the transmission of Sikhism, and on religious authority. It looks at the consequences of the emergence of online translations and issues faced in engaging with the ‘digital Guru’. The second article, more briefly covered, presents some more, general, related findings from the same research project as the first.

Researchers

Jasjit Singh

Research Institution

University of Leeds

What is this about?

How has the digital environment impacted on the relationship between Sikhs and the Guru Granth Sahib? How has the evolution of the online environment changed the ways in which the Guru Granth Sahib is presented; and how have technological changes affected the ways in which Sikhs engage with and relate to the Guru Granth Sahib? Also, in general, how has the internet affected the practice of Sikhism?

What was done?

The research was carried out though an online survey (645 respondents), interviews, focus groups and participant observation. As a whole, the study was of religious transmission among 18-30-year-old Sikhs in Britain.

Main findings and outputs

• For over 20 years, the digital environment has impacted on the ways in which British Sikhs engage with their religious tradition.
• It enables them to engage with the Guru Granth Sahib but in a very specific way. English translations mean more of them can read the text but the pros and cons of translation are little-discussed.
• Traditional authorities (preachers, gurdwara officials) can be bypassed – but inner, deeper meanings, that depend on sound and poetry, can be lost in translation. Strictly, the Guru Granth Sahib cannot be translated. Accurate, nuanced translations are needed, as far as possible, but many British Sikhs not taught Punjabi as children learn it as adults, in order to understand their tradition.
• More general findings: the internet enables Sikhs to know different views on Sikhism than those held by their families, though this can be confusing. It brings more Sikhs into a personal relationship with the Guru Granth Sahib, because a hukamnama (‘order’) can be received from the Guru Granth Sahib whenever wished, without needing to visit a gurdwara. Finding out about sangat (congregation) events is easier, as is finding and purchasing religious resources or looking into the legal position on e.g. turban wearing, or mobilising on social or religious issues.

Relevance to RE

There are several messages for teachers to bear in mind from this research:

• The importance of language within religious traditions, and how it is used, e.g. poetically rather than literally – and the need to devise ways for pupils to grasp this.
• The need to listen to and not just read texts.
• Issues of translation, and how teachers should try not to simply impose meanings from English / Christianity on to non-Christian worldviews (e.g. God, heaven, hell, angels are reported as sometimes imposed on to the Sikh tradition).
• The need to include the effect of the internet on religion & worldviews in the curriculum.

Generalisability and potential limitations

According to the author, the study, or specifically the survey part, did not seek to represent young British Sikhs as a whole but gather the views of a number of individuals to highlight possible trends.

Find out more

The original articles reported (main one first) are:
Jasjit Singh (2018): Lost in translation? The emergence of the digital Guru
Granth Sahib, Sikh Formations, DOI: 10.1080/17448727.2018.1485355

Jasjit Singh (2014) Sikh-ing online: the role of the Internet in the religious lives of young British Sikhs, Contemporary South Asia, 22:1, 82-97, DOI: 10.1080/09584935.2013.870974

Research Summary

This academic paper presents an analysis of a small-scale research project, investigating how best School X can promote the religious tolerance of the students attending. The paper explores current literature and adopts a reflexive approach, in which the paradigm of the research is explored and new knowledge is presented. Data was collected through questionnaires and interviews and the findings suggest that by teaching more KS3 RE, and making use of speakers and classroom religious adherents, student religious tolerance can be improved. The paper argues that a change in curriculum is necessary to improve student religious tolerance and that a model of distributed leadership and continuous change is best in implementing new policy at the school. Other findings are discussed but, at present, remain the subject of later research.

Researchers

Milo Bellamy

Research Institution

N/A

What is this about?

Defining best practice to best improve the religious tolerance of students at school.

What was done?

Student attitudes were evaluated with what they best think promotes tolerance and what hinders the promotion of tolerance in the school. This was achieved through questionnaires, gathering both quantitative and qualitative data from students and follow up interviews with multiple students.

In addition, a test group was given a short course on Islam, whilst a control group were not. Associations with Islam were investigated in both groups through questionnaires that allowed students to discuss word associations following teaching, or not teaching, a small module on Islam. Interviews were also utilised to triangulate the data.

Main findings and outputs

Religious tolerance can be improved by

1. teaching more KS3 RE
2. making use of speakers and classroom religious adherents.

Relevance to RE

A discussion concerning the aims of RE in schools and how best to facilitate and promote tolerance of diverse faiths.

Generalisability and potential limitations

By virtue of the nature of research that takes place in one school it should be recognised that context of other schools may be different from that of school x. The context of School X is an outer London state school, facing challenges to gain adequate teaching time, starting the GCSE course a year early, and not given the same number of hours other humanities are given. The school does, however, commit all students, unless withdrawn, to the Religious Education GCSE. The limitations of the GCSE may also hinder the aim of generalised religious tolerance, especially in the case of rising islamophobia.

The research is generalisable as all schools in the UK should give some provision to Religious Education. Further, it is an aim of the government to improve religious tolerance in schools. As such, most schools would benefit from implementing the findings of this paper in order to improve religious tolerance.

Find out more

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1aZY7hScNnk6zmA4K92V-TIVrg5ogYkMKZVFE6UgTca4/edit?usp=sharing

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

LAR-D provides participating schools with a link faith practitioner from a selected religion, and funds each of them to develop an ongoing dialogue over time, ideally using the RE-searchers pedagogic approach. The project is funded by the All Saints Educational Trust.

Researcher

Mark Plater, 6 participating schools, St Philip’s Centre, Leicester

Research Institution

Bishop Grosseteste University

What is this about?

Does linking a faith practitioner to a school for an extended period of time provide educational benefits above what is gained from single visit opportunities?
In what different ways do schools make use of the RE-searchers pedagogy when given training, but then left to choose or reject it?

What was done?

Schools selected and funded to participate in the programme.
Selected faith practitioners linked with schools (schools chose the religion to be studied).
RE-searchers pedagogy training provided by Rob Freathy as a possible method of engagement.
School-faith practitioner partnerships allowed to develop by mutual agreement over 12 months.

Main findings and outputs

Developing teacher confidence and subject knowledge.
School communities enabled to engage with living religion and alternative cultures.
Study ongoing, but significantly affected by corona-virus shut-down.

Relevance to RE

Note the concept and methodology: an ongoing link with a selected, trained and supported faith practitioner, enabling a friendship relationship to develop over time….
i.e. quality of link rather than quantity.

Generalisability and potential limitations

This is a funded project, with schools being reimbursed for participation.
At present only 6 schools are participating (3 primary/ 3 secondary).
Being partway through, full benefits have not yet been assessed.

Find out more

Update information sheets developed and available from mark.plater@bishopg.ac.uk

https://www.bishopg.ac.uk/bgu-team-win-15000-grant-to-support-new-re-learning-initiative/

Research Summary

The open-access article begins by summarising the findings of 2018 report from the Commission on Religious Education (CoRE), which we use here as a case study to illustrate current issues in Religious Education more generally. The CoRE report suggested that the subject name be changed from ‘Religious Education’ (RE) to ‘Religion and Worldviews’ (RW), which leads us to explore the meaning(s) of the term ‘worldview’, outline the distinction between institutional/organised and personal worldviews, and give an overview of academic debates about the ‘worldviews’ issue. This is followed by a discussion of some of the challenges and implications of the proposed change from RE to RW, addressing concerns that have been raised about dilution of the subject and decreased academic rigour. The article then suggests ways of using a ‘Big Ideas’ approach to the study of religion(s) and worldview(s) to engage students in discussion of ‘worldview’ as a concept and worldviews as phenomena. It explains the ‘Big Ideas’ approach (Wiggins and McTighe 1998; Wintersgill 2017; Freathy and John 2019) before discussing how Big Ideas might be used to select curriculum content, also considering what the implications of this might be for teachers and teaching.

Researchers

Prof Rob Freathy & Dr Helen John

Research Institution

University of Exeter

What is this about?

The article focuses on the issue of worldviews in Religious Education, asking the following questions:

1. What does the 2018 report from the Commission on Religious Education (CoRE) suggest about worldviews in RE?
2. What is meant by the term ‘worldview’? Is a religion a worldview? Does everyone have a worldview?
3. What is the difference between an ‘institutional worldview’ and a ‘personal worldview’?
4. What are the benefits and challenges of incorporating worldviews into RE?
5. What are ‘Big Ideas about the study of religion(s) and worldview(s)’ (Freathy and John 2019)?
6. How might ‘Big Ideas about the study of religion(s) and worldview(s)’ help teachers to explore worldviews in the RE classroom? What are the implications for teachers’ professional development and for the classroom?

What was done?

This theoretical article is an academic response to the key findings of the final report of the Commission on Religion Education (CoRE 2018), which was sponsored by the Religious Education Council for England and Wales. It focuses particularly on the proposal to change the title of Religious Education (RE) to Religion and Worldviews (RW). It explores the meaning of the term ‘worldview’ how worldviews might be selected for inclusion in the curriculum. The article discusses the report’s recommendations for greater focus on multi-disciplinary, multi-methodological and reflexive, encounter-driven approaches. It suggests that teachers might use the ‘Big Ideas about the study of religion(s) and worldview(s)’ (Freathy and John 2019) to achieve closer alignment between RW in schools and the academic study of religion(s) and worldview(s) in universities.

Main findings and outputs

The authors argue that key to the successful delivery of ‘a new and richer version of the subject’ (CoRE, 3) is generating in school students a better understanding of the concept ‘worldview’. Although there is disagreement over precise definitions of the term (just as there is with the term ‘religion’), Freathy and John suggest that this imprecision is something to be embraced. Teachers should explore the complexity of the terms and concepts with their students – focusing explicitly on their contested and imprecise nature – in order to further the students’ understanding of the term and of worldviews themselves. They argue that the report’s distinction between institutional and personal worldviews is a helpful one, albeit with some limitations, and will assist students in appreciating the diverse sources upon which they draw in the ongoing development of their own dynamic ‘worldview web’. Investigation into the institutional/personal distinction could also help students to be sensitive to diversity within institutional worldviews, based on individual and contextual lived experience. A better understanding of the fluid concept of ‘worldview’ will enrich and add rigour to the curriculum, as the report suggests, not act to ‘dilute’ it or to decrease its rigour, as critics have suggested. Building upon earlier research (Freathy and John 2019), the authors suggest that focusing on features of the academic study of religion(s) and worldview(s) – studying how we study – will enable teachers to incorporate the new ‘worldviews’ approach into their teaching without diluting the curriculum. Using these ‘Big Ideas about’ would involve encouraging students to consider explicitly:

Relevance to RE

This article would make excellent background reading for teachers who (a) need a brief summary of the final report from the Commission on Religious Education; (b) would like to know more about the ‘worldview’ concept; (c) want to know more about the Big Ideas framework; and/or (d) wonder how they might incorporate into their classroom practice a greater focus on ‘worldviews’.
The open-access article is entitled ‘Worldviews and Big Ideas: A Way Forward for Religious Education?’ and appears in Nordidactica 2019, Volume 4.

It builds on a previous article by the same authors (search ‘Introducing ‘Big Ideas’ to UK Religious Education’ for equivalent RE:Online Research Report), in which they reflect on the application of the Big Ideas of Science Education project to the UK Religious Education curriculum: Rob Freathy and Helen C. John. 2019. ‘Religious Education, Big Ideas and the study of religion(s) and worldview(s).’ British Journal of Religious Education 41.1: 27-40. DOI: 10.1080/01416200.2018.1500351

Useful resources for a Big Ideas/Worldviews approach to RE/RW

A curriculum package for teachers to use to introduce ‘Big Ideas about the study of religion(s) and worldview(s)’ will follow in 2020.
A ‘Big Ideas about’ approach can be seen in the secondary textbook called ‘Who is Jesus’, which is available online at <https://socialsciences.exeter.ac.uk/education/research/networks/religionandspirituality/publications/ and in the ‘RE-searchers’ approach (primary), which can be found at RE-searchers approach
You might also find the original ‘Big Ideas for RE’ (Wintersgill, ed, 2017) report helpful:
https://tinyurl.com/y7ra365d

Please contact R.J.K.Freathy@exeter.ac.uk for further information about the ideas found in the article and the additional resources, or to get involved with the trialling the RE-searchers (Primary) or ‘Big Ideas about’ (Secondary) approach.

Generalisability and potential limitations

The article is primarily aimed at teachers and RE researchers and considers theoretical perspectives. However, it also gives an insight into practical resources available for ‘worldviews’ teaching at primary and secondary level (see details below).

Find out more

The open-access article is entitled ‘Worldviews and Big Ideas: A Way Forward for Religious Education?’ and appears in Nordidactica 2019, Volume 4.

https://www.kau.se/nordidactica/las-nordidactica/nordidactica-20194-kjerneelementer-og-store-ideercore-elements-and

Research Summary

This post provides an overview of the Religious Education Teachers and Character: Personal Beliefs and Professional Approaches Research Report. The report details a study comprised of an initial phase of life-story interviews with 30 participants followed by a survey with 314 respondents.

Researchers

James Arthur, Daniel Moulin-Stozek, Jason Metcalfe & Francisco Moller

Research Institution

Jubilee Centre for Character and Virtues, School of Education, University of Birmingham

What is this about?

The research goals of this report and study are:

1. How do RE teachers’ personal beliefs and worldviews relate to their professional motivations?
2. How do RE teachers negotiate religious diversity?
3. What do RE teachers think about RE and pupils’ character development?
4. What differences in beliefs about pupils’ character development are there between RE teachers holding different worldviews?

What was done?

This study explored the lives of RE teachers using a mixed-method design, comprising an interview phase followed by a survey. This approach allowed for inductive inferences to be made from the interviews, which could be then substantiated through the deductive testing of preliminary hypotheses with the construction of the survey instrument. For each phase, a separate non-probabilistic sample of practising RE teachers who taught RE as their main specialism was recruited through professional organisations and advertisements, including social media.

The first, qualitative phase of the study was inspired by the narrative identity paradigm (McAdams, 1996; 2013; McAdams and Guo, 2015). This uses semi-structured interviews to explore participants’ self-understandings of the development of the course of their lives. In addition to standard questions used in this paradigm, the interview schedule also included questions about teachers’ perspectives on RE and character development.

The second, quantitative phase, was designed drawing on initial analyses of the interviews and employed measures of religious practice and style, as well as individual items about RE teachers’ perceptions of character education. The data generated from these questions allowed for analyses of the relationships between RE teachers’ worldviews, their perspectives on character education and their professional motivations.

Main findings and outputs

1. Personal worldviews informed RE teachers’ approaches in the classroom: RE teachers working in faith and non-faith schools were found to have a diverse range of personal worldviews – from atheism to theism, and all positions in between – but each kind of worldview supports a particular vision of what RE should be, and therefore generates an individual’s motivation to be an RE teacher.
2. RE teachers were found to have fair and tolerant views of other religions and worldviews: RE teachers who did or did not have a religious faith, in faith and non-faith schools, were found to have a fair and tolerant approach to religious diversity. However, this study’s findings suggest that RE teachers that have a religious faith were more open to interreligious dialogue and learning from other religions.
3. There was strong agreement among teachers with a religious faith that RE contributes to character education, and RE teachers should act as role models for their pupils.
4. RE teachers that have a religious faith were more likely to think religions promote good character: There were significant differences in perspectives between RE teachers who reported belonging to a religion, and those who did not. The former were found to be more likely to think that religious traditions provide a source of good role models; they were also more likely to care about their impact on pupils’ religious beliefs and to believe pupils emulate their religious views.

Relevance to RE

The findings of this study confirm the importance of teachers’ personal beliefs and experiences to their professional lives. It is proposed that more opportunities be made available for RE teachers to further reflect on their own worldviews and consider the implications of their personal views for practice. Professional literature and guidelines about RE could be revised to sensitively advise teachers on the best ways to incorporate their own commitments and orientations in their approach to religions in the classroom; these should acknowledge the diversity of teachers’ personal worldviews. Given the widely held belief found among participants regarding the contribution of RE to pupils’ character development, this report provides evidence to suggest that schools and LEAs should develop coherent rationales and syllabi for RE lessons to create further opportunities for developing character. This would strengthen the provision that RE can make in schools, and also help cultivate the character growth of pupils of all faiths and those of none, through RE.

Generalisability and potential limitations

The sampling was, for both qualitative and quantitative phases, non-probabilistic and dependent on participants’ self-selection. There may be bias in both samples, which comprise RE teachers who volunteered in response to advertisements in particular venues. They therefore may be more committed, better networked and more enthusiastic than teachers who did not respond to advertisements to participate in the study.

Find out more

https://www.jubileecentre.ac.uk/userfiles/jubileecentre/pdf/Research%20Reports/RE_Teachers_and_Character.pdf

Research Summary

There already exists a large knowledge base about teaching and learning related to the origins, diversity and history of life on Earth. We know less about teaching and learning related to wider issues pertinent to both religion and science; so in this research, wider issues of student perceptions of religion and science were investigated. There were many instances where students used language that conveyed a misconception of the different bases of, or epistemic distinctions between, religion and science. The research shows that RE needs to attend to this problem – to help students develop what the researchers call epistemic literacy – so that students avoid misconceptions and develop insights into the specific knowledge forms manifested in religion(s).

Researchers

Jo Pearce, Alexis Stones, Michael J. Reiss & Tamjid Mujtaba

Research Institution

University College London, Institute of Education

What is this about?

• Teaching and learning about religion and science.
• ‘Epistemic literacy’ – how can teachers help students to understand that religion(s) and science have different bases for the claims that they make?
• A series of lessons (6 RE, 6 Science) was developed and taught, with these aims in mind; the research is also about what these lessons contained, what students said when reflecting on them and how their own perspectives changed.

What was done?

• There was a literature review on different accounts of the religion-science relationship (e.g. conflict, complementary).
• 40 students in years 9/10 took part in interviews before and after a specially designed series of 6 RE and 6 Science lessons.
• The interview data were analysed, conclusions drawn and recommendations for school and for RE practice identified.

Main findings and outputs

• Most students’ views on the religion-science relationship changed; of these 21, 18 moved from a view that religion and science are incompatible to a view that they are compatible.
• 8 within this group moved to a view that religion and science answer the same question in different ways.
• 5 referred to what the researchers call ‘coalescence’, i.e. that there can be a ‘cross-section’ between ‘belief and evidence’.
• 13 students expressed their appreciation of the opportunity to discuss and reflect on the natures of religion and science, and their relationship(s). Some mentioned that they did not usually get this opportunity in RE, and they considered the approach effective.
• RE teachers already deal with religious difference, so are well placed to ask students to consider questions such as whether or not religion and science are competing for the same explanatory space.
• In some ways. subject compartmentalisation does not help students to grasp these issues.

Relevance to RE

RE teachers could seek opportunities with science colleagues for cross-curricular collaboration, to follow up the ideas presented through the research. The researchers also recommend that the religion-science questions are addressed in more areas than the origins of life and the universe; e.g. medical ethics and artificial intelligence are good areas in which to consider the contributions of religion and science together. RE teachers could also work with students to identify criteria can be used to evaluate religious and scientific explanations, and offer students different models of the religion-science relationship to evaluate.

Generalisability and potential limitations

The sample of 40 students and number of 12 lessons are fairly limited, but evidently sufficient to generate interesting findings, which teachers are invited to follow up in innovative ways that should engage and challenge their students.

Find out more

Jo Pearce, Alexis Stones, Michael J. Reiss & Tamjid Mujtaba (2019): ‘Science is purely about the truth so I don’t think you could compare it to non-truth versus the truth.’ Students’ perceptions of religion and science, and the relationship(s) between them: religious education and the need for epistemic literacy, British Journal of Religious Education.

https://doi.org/10.1080/01416200.2019.1635434