Religious Education

Vision

As a Federation of church schools, Religious Education (RE) underpins all that we do. We believe that it is vital to develop the children's 'religious literacy' so that they may become religiously literate and will have the ability to 'hold balanced and well-informed conversations about religion and worldviews.' To enable them to do this, we provide a safe and stimulating environment where they can explore, improve their understanding of, and show respect for different faiths and cultural diversity. This will enable them to develop a knowledge and acceptance of religions and worldviews with the skill to debate respectfully. By encountering RE through the three lenses of the Norfolk Agreed Syllabus and the Understanding Christianity resources, our children will develop as theologians, philosophers and human/social scientists.

We aim to deliver creative, well-planned lessons to allow children to enquire and appreciate a range of beliefs and faiths within our multicultural society and understand how these shape lives and behaviour. We aim to open our children's eyes to the wider world through visits and visitors and through the Global Neighbours Project. Children are encouraged to be reflective on their own beliefs and to be understanding of the beliefs of others around them both in their local community and worldwide.

Intent

Through the teaching of RE, children will have a knowledge and understanding of:

The major world religions and non-religious worldviews
Theology: key texts and traditions; beliefs, teaching/ doctrines and sources; practices and ways of life/ forms of expression; identity and belonging
Philosophy: how religion has influenced humanity's search for meaning and purpose
Human/ Social Science: investigate and observe lived religious practices within local, national and international contexts; and consider how they have shaped and continue to shape society

Through the teaching of RE, children will have skills:

As theologians:

To analyse a range of primary and secondary sources
To understand symbolic language
To use technical terminology effectively

As philosophers:

To interpret meaning and significance
To evaluate and reflect on beliefs and ethics and how they impact upon the lives of others and themselves
To refine the way they think about the world and their place in it
To consider moral principles, including the nature of good and evil

As human/social scientists:

To respectfully critique and value the wide range of beliefs and cultural influences that have shaped their own heritage and that of other, considering bother differences and commonalities
To recognise bias and stereotypes
To represent a range of views other than their own with accuracy

The curriculum may also develop the following:

a moral compass - recognise the difference between right and wrong and readily apply this
reflection upon their own beliefs and cultural practices
making informed personal choices
empathy with and an understanding of others

Implementation

We will implement the Norfolk Agreed Syllabus through the use of enquiry questions and a rolling programme (see NVF Curriculum Overview below) that allows the children to build upon and extend their experiences, learning and knowledge in RE. Units are deliberately sequenced to build knowledge and skills not only in RE but also across the wider curriculum. For example to maximise pupil understanding, the Y56 B Science unit on Evolution and Inheritance is deliberately taught before the Y56 B RE unit Creation and Science- conflicting or complementary?

RE is usually taught weekly as a discreet subject but is sometimes delivered through a class topic, an RE day or it may be blocked. Lessons are planned and delivered in a variety of ways ensuring that all children can access and participate. Wherever possible, we plan interactive and practical activities in order to encourage the children to discuss their ideas and extend their understanding of challenging concepts and 'big questions'.

Impact

The impact of our RE curriculum is monitored in a variety of ways. Regular book looks, pupil voice conversations and informal learning walks are used by the subject leader to gain an insight into the quality of RE teaching in our Federation. When talking to children about their learning in RE, the subject leader will ask age-appropriate questions to ascertain whether the intended knowledge and skills have been taught, whether the children can recall their learning using appropriate vocabulary, and whether the children are able to make links with prior learning in RE or with other subjects being taught.

Assessment of Attainment and Progress in RE

"Pupils' progress is assessed in relation to the purpose and aims of the subject. Therefore, this primarily concerns how well pupils are able to hold balanced and well-informed conservations about religion and worldviews." (pg 32 Norfolk Agreed Syllabus).

Staff use the non-statutory age-related expectations, the Federation's RE Skills Progression (see documents below), Norfolk SACRE exemplars and guidance in Understanding Christianity to inform their planning and assessment. End of year teacher assessments for RE are recorded on Arbor and progress is reported annually to parents in the end of year report.

Collective Worship

Our Collective Worship is Christian in content; encourages the worship of God and allows time for guidance leading to positive thought and development on spiritual, moral, social and emotional issues. It also offers an opportunity for quiet reflection and exploration of self.

We have close links with our local churches and local church groups, and regular visits are made to the schools by local ministers. More information about our local church can be found here.

Parents have the right to withdraw their child from collective worship. Any parent or carer who wishes to discuss our RE curriculum or our Acts of Collective Worship, please make an appointment to speak with the Head of School.

Spirituality in our Curriculum

Spirituality is developed, nurtured and promoted throughout Religious Education by experiencing wonder and joy through learning about and from stories, celebrations, rituals and different expressions of religious and world views. This is also supported by asking and responding to questions of meaning and by exploring spiritual practices such as worship and prayer and considering the impact of these on believers as well as any relevance to the children's own lives.