Religious Education
The aim of the RE department is to follow the Great Commission of Jesus Christ, ‘Go forth and make disciples of all nations.’
Name of Department: RE
Head of Department: Mr D Edwards
Year 7: Creation and Covenant, Prophecy and Promise, Galilee to Jerusalem, Desert to Garden, To the Ends of the Earth, Dialogue and Encounter
Year 8: Imago Dei, Prayer, Covenant, Prophets, Jesus, Judaism Today, In Search of Wholeness, Redemption, Stewardship, Jesus as Saviour, The Sermon on the Mount, The Kingdom of God.
Year 9: Vocation, Authority, Reformation, John’s Gospel, Sacrifice, Love, Resurrection, Philosophy of Religion, Islam
GCSE: AQA Religious Studies B
Catholic Christianity Paper: Creation, Incarnation, Triune God, Redemption, Kingdom of God, Eschatology
Other Religions: Judaism Beliefs, Judasim Practices
Themes: Human Rights and Social Justice, Religion, Relationships and Families
Our approach to the Religious Education curriculum
The aim of the RE department is to follow the Great Commission of Jesus Christ, ‘Go forth and make disciples of all nations.’ We aim to make disciples through our curriculum which supports the wider pastoral and catechetical work in the school family. The aim of the curriculum is to provide opportunities for encounters with Christ in line with the Bishop’s desire to make Christ known and loved. The curriculum provides a variety of doorways to that encounter. The doorways to Christ that permeate the curriculum are:
The Word of God – this underpins everything that we do as it is the teaching and example of Christ Himself. Almost every lesson involves biblical teaching and pupils know many verses by heart.
The study of the sacraments – the sacraments are the presence of God among us. Pupils study sacraments in every year group.
The presence of one another – the discussion within the classroom is a vital part of this subject area. Sometimes it reveals the difficulty that an individual has with the issue being taught; yet, often, God’s presence is revealed even within that difficulty. A pupil recently thanked his RE teacher at the end of year 11 saying, ‘You have taught me to understand that there are more opinions than my own.’
Challenging moral issues – The Church’s views on marriage and family, sexual relationships, equality and justice can be challenging for some of our pupils. All of these issues provide a doorway for pupils to consider these questions from a variety of viewpoints and to inform their own views.
We also aim to provide a link to our local heritage. Pupils study local saints such as St Margaret Clitherow and Blessed Nicholas Postgate. They study denomination with reference to the huge number of denominational churches in Scarborough. When they study church architecture they refer to the Catholic parish churches in Scarborough. We are blessed to have the most diverse school in Scarborough with pupils from the Philippines, Kerala and Poland. These cultures are also referred to in lessons e.g. the Polish religious practice of cleaning graves and picnicking at the cemetery is referred to in the KS4 lesson on memorials of the dead.
Pupils are prepared for the future in their ability to discuss challenging moral issues where they become aware of the view of others. In their study of other faiths, we challenge any stereotypes and pupils are taught to have knowledge of and respect for the views of others. They are further prepared for their future both vocationally, through discussion of different Catholic vocations, and through their developing awareness of their God given talents.
Above all, we endeavour to instil within pupils the desire “not to have more, but to be more” Saint Oscar Romero
Curriculum content
Key Stage 3
Year 7 have completed the first topic of the new RED. The comprises 6 areas of study that will then be studied in Years 8 and 9 with cumulative knowledge: Creation and Covenant, Prophecy and Promise, Galilee to Jerusalem, Desert to Garden, To the Ends of the Earth, Dialogue and Encounter. Year 7 have completed Creation and Covenant. At this point the CES has recommended that we do not go on any further with the new RED as the Bishops are considering considerable changes. We will therefore revert to our previous SOW outlined below.
The knowledge covered in this year’s Year 7 includes an outline of Christian beliefs of God as Creator (first person of the Trinity)- following God in Jesus (2nd person of the Trinity) - Baptism - Advent and Christmas.
Pupils then build on this by studying Jesus in greater depth - his miracles, his parables of forgiveness, and the events of Holy Week. They then study Pentecost and the Holy Spirit (3rd person of the Trinity) and how these affect the lives of Christians as they live in community and engage in prayer and mission.
Year 8 focus on the dignity of the human person as imago Dei and the responsibilities this places on them e.g., to care for the environment, to give to the poor. They also consider how God enables them to do this by studying prayer, pilgrimage and the sacraments of healing.
Autumn Term: Begin with a study of Imago Dei and how this belief affects Catholic Social Teaching. This leads to three units which show how God works in a Christian’s life – Prayer, Covenant and Prophecy (this last unit also prepares them for Christmas).
Spring Term: They begin with a study of Jesus and his culture; this then leads to Judaism today (with comparisons made to Judaism at the time of Jesus). They then study redemption and the sacraments of healing as a preparation for Easter.
Summer Term: They study the teachings and example of Jesus in Luke’s gospel, and in the Sermon on the Mount. They study the application of these ideas in units on stewardship and Kingdom of God.
Year 9 is bookended with the theme of vocation; at the start of the year, they study priesthood and religious life, at the end of the year they study marriage and family. In between they study views on authority as a preparation for their study of Reformation. They reflect on the liturgical seasons in their study of John’s gospel (preparation for Christmas; the feast of the Incarnation) and in their study of Eucharist and the Emmaus story (preparation for Easter). They also engage in thematic studies, in particular abortion and euthanasia – this lays the groundwork for the GCSE and helps them to gain maturity through discussion of challenging topics.
Autumn: Study different views on authority and the issues of the Reformation.
Prepare for Christmas with a study of Incarnation in John’s gospel.
Spring: Study the theme of sacrifice and different views on the Eucharist – this leads to Easter and a study of the Emmaus encounter.
Begin thematic studies with euthanasia and a unit on Christian love (includes abortion – your unborn neighbour?)
Summer: They then study Philosophy of Religion – arguments for the existence of God as a preparation for studying the first GCSE unit.
Pupils are supported through and by the assessment process with revision lessons received prior to assessment and thorough feedback afterwards. This helps the teacher to know the pupils’ needs
Targeted questioning in lesson helps to support pupils and the departmental lesson plans assist pupils through scaffolds/ sentence starters etc.
Work is appropriate to the pupils’ ability with a variety of versions of the lesson plan. Pupils are given homework booklets to assist them with memory recall tasks.
Key Stage 4
KS3 RE
GCSE RE gives pupils a detailed knowledge of one religion and its viewpoints (Catholic Christianity) on creation, incarnation, Triune God, redemption, Kingdom of God and eschatology. They can then evaluate those beliefs held by considering the views of other Christian denominations.
• It gives a detailed introduction to a second faith (Judaism – beliefs and practices).
• It encourages pupils to consider views on a range of themes from a variety of viewpoints: marriage, divorce, contraception, family life, equality, human rights, money, poverty. This informs their own viewpoint and gives them the skills to analyse and evaluate the views of others.
Pupils are supported through and by the assessment process with revision lessons received prior to assessment and thorough feedback afterwards. This helps the teacher to know the pupils’ needs
Targeted questioning in lesson helps to support pupils and the departmental lesson plans assist pupils through scaffolds/ sentence starters etc.
Work is appropriate to the pupils’ ability with a variety of versions of the lesson plan. Pupils are given homework booklets to assist them with memory recall tasks.
How you can find out more about the Religious Education curriculum:
KS3:
KS4:
Faculty Leader contact: dedwards@sasyorks.org