Religious Education

Rationale

At The John Wallis Academy, the Religious Education curriculum inspires our pupils to explore what people believe about their spiritual existence and what difference this makes to how they live.

This means our pupils can gain the knowledge, understanding and skills needed to handle the ‘big’ questions raised by religion and belief, such as ‘why are we here?’ and ‘what happens after death?’ Pupils reflect on their own ideas and ways of living. Pupils can develop key skills in areas such as discussion and debate around some sensitive issues, such as euthanasia and abortion and learn how to partake in these conversations without provoking offence whilst maintaining sensitivity. Pupils learn about other key areas that impact their daily lives, such as Human Rights, with a view of looking at these from a variety of religious and cultural attitudes across the world, which deepens their understanding of the wider world.

Aims

The John Wallis Church of England curriculum for RE aims to ensure that all pupils can:

• Make sense of a range of religious and non-religious beliefs, so that they can; identify, describe, explain and analyse beliefs and concepts in the context of living religions, using appropriate vocabulary.
• Explain how and why these beliefs are understood in different ways, by individuals and within communities.
• Recognise how and why sources of authority (e.g. texts, teachings, traditions, leaders) are used, expressed and interpreted in different ways, developing skills of interpretation.
• Understand the impact and significance of religious and non-religious beliefs, so that they can; examine and explain how and why people express their beliefs in diverse ways.
• Recognise and account for ways in which people put their beliefs into action in diverse ways, in their everyday lives, within their communities and in the wider world.
• Appreciate and appraise the significance of different ways of life and ways of expressing meaning.
• Make connections between religious and non-religious beliefs, concepts, practices and ideas studied, so that they can; evaluate, reflect on and enquire into key concepts and questions studied, responding thoughtfully and creatively, giving good reasons for their responses;
• Challenge the ideas studied, and allow the ideas studied to challenge their own thinking, articulating beliefs, values and commitments clearly in response.
• Discern possible connections between the ideas studied and their own ways of understanding the world, expressing their critical responses and personal reflections with increasing clarity and understanding.