Religious Education

Intent

According to the R.E. Council, ‘the ability to understand the faith or belief of individuals and communities and how these may shape their culture or behaviour, is an invaluable asset for children in modern day Britain.’ At Burnhope Primary School, in line with Durham Agreed Syllabus for Religious Education, R.E. lessons will provoke challenging questions about meaning and purpose in life, beliefs about God, ultimate reality, issues of right and wrong and what it means to be human. We will encourage pupils to learn about religious and non-religious worldviews in order to discover, explore and consider different answers to these questions. They will learn to interpret, analyse, evaluate and critically respond to the claims that religious and non-religious worldviews make. Pupils will learn to express their insights and to agree or disagree respectfully. The Durham Agreed Syllabus for Religious Education and in turn, Burnhope Primary School aim to:

• develop deepening knowledge and understanding about a range of religious and non-religious worldviews so that pupils can:

  • describe and explain beliefs and theological concepts

  • describe and explain some sources of authority and teachings within and    across religious and non-religious traditions

  • describe and explain ways in which beliefs are expressed

  • know and understand the significance and impact of beliefs and practices on individuals, communities and societies

  • connect these together into a coherent framework of beliefs and practices

 

• gain and deploy deepening understanding of specialist vocabulary and terms;

• know and understand about religious diversity within the region, as well as nationally and globally;

• know and understand how religion can be defined and what is meant by the term “religious and non-religious worldviews” and with increasing clarity know that these worldviews are complex, diverse and plural;

• gain and deploy skills that enable critical thinking and enquiry in relation to the material they study;

• reflect on their own thoughts, feelings, experiences, ideas, values and beliefs with increasing discernment.

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Durham SACRE promote RE across the County, assist in the development of good teaching of Religious Education in schools and support community cohesion. At Burnhope Primary School, we are committed to providing our children with an exciting and positive learning environment, in which they have the opportunity to develop their knowledge and understanding of religions while contributing to their spiritual, moral social and cultural development.

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Implementation

R.E. is taught in a weekly lesson, by each class teacher. Discovery R.E. is the programme used to support the teaching of R.E. KS1 follows a 2 year rolling programme while KS2 follows a 4 year rolling programme to ensure even and thorough coverage of the key religions as set out in the Durham Agreed Syllabus. Work is recorded in R.E. books and is evidenced using a variety of outcomes as suggested by the agreed syllabus.

Religious Education taught at Burnhope Primary School (as set out in the new Durham Agreed Syllabus- launched in 2020)

• offers opportunities for personal reflection and pupils’ spiritual, moral, social and cultural development as it encourages pupils to examine the significance of their learning in relation to themselves and others.

• enables pupils to explore their own beliefs (whether they are religious or not), ideas, feelings, experiences and values in the light of what they learn.

• encourages empathy and respect.

• enables pupils to develop their own sense of identity and belonging.

• promotes respect for the right of others to hold different beliefs, values and ideas.

• develops an aptitude for dialogue so that they can participate positively in our society with its diverse religious and non-religious worldviews.

• enables pupils to have a nuanced and informed understanding of political, social and moral issues that they will need to face as they grow up in an increasingly globalised world.

• helps pupils deal positively with controversial issues, to manage strongly held differences of belief and to challenge stereotypes and prejudice.

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As such Religious Education at Burnhope Primary School is central to good local, national and global citizenship. It makes a significant contribution to the active promotion of mutual respect and tolerance of others’ faiths and beliefs, a fundamental British value. It prepares pupils for life in modern Britain.

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Durham SACRE continues to work with teachers in improving the quality of teaching and learning of RE by providing training, and publishing updated schemes of work and materials and guidance to develop and support SMSC, Assessment for Learning and effective teaching and learning strategies.

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Impact

At Burnhope Primary School, we seek to ensure that all pupils in our school are educated to develop spiritually, academically, emotionally and morally to enable them to better understand themselves and others and to cope with the opportunities, challenges and responsibilities of living in a rapidly changing, multicultural world. Regular assemblies and celebrations of religious and non-religious festivals and events, implemented alongside weekly R.E. lessons, will help to celebrate the diversity of the wider community in Durham, including their beliefs, traditions, culture, language and history.