Religious Education

RE is an important curriculum subject. It is important in its own right and also makes a unique contribution to the spiritual, moral, social and cultural development of pupils and supports wider community cohesion. The Government is keen to ensure all pupils receive high-quality RE.

At Ashwell School, we follow the “Hertfordshire Agreed Syllabus of Religious Education”. This scheme enables pupils to develop as tolerant young people with respect and understanding of the views of others, including the beliefs and practices of religions and other world views.

Purpose of Study

The Hertfordshire Agreed Syllabus for RE aims to enable schools to achieve high quality Religious Education for all. Teaching needs to provide pupils with a systematic knowledge and understanding about Christianity, principal religions and worldviews1, which give life value. RE aims to enable pupils to become religiously and theologically literate2 so they can engage in life in an increasingly diverse society. It is not about telling pupils what religious views they should have but rather assists them in gaining shared human understanding, developing personal identity and searching for meaning in the context of evaluating different viewpoints.

Aims

This curriculum for Religious Education aims to ensure that all pupils develop knowledge and understanding of sources of wisdom3 and their impact whilst exploring personal and critical responses.

A. Sources of wisdom and their impact

All pupils should:

know, understand and explore the significance and impact of sacred texts, other sources of wisdom and ways of expressing meaning
express ideas and insights about the nature of beliefs, values and practices and their impact upon the identity of individuals and communities
recognise and explore the diversity which exists within and between religious traditions

B. Personal and critical responses

All pupils should:

express with increasing discernment their personal reflections, critical responses and connections to faith and belief enquiring into philosophical, moral and ethical issues
engage with the questions and answers offered by religions and worldviews concerning ultimate questions and human responsibility
develop the skills required to engage with others in dialogue and to cooperate in society with respect and compassion

RE Downloadable Documents

The following documents are to help parents understand what we teach, when we teach it and why we teach it:

To view the Religious Education in English schools: Non-Statutory guidance 2010 please see here: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/190260/DCSF-00114-2010.pdf