RE
Welcome
Welcome to the Religious Studies department.
In our department you will find Mrs Loten (Head of Department), Miss Crozier, Miss Bostock and Mrs Dempsey
“Religious education provokes challenging questions about the ultimate meaning and purpose of life, beliefs about God, the self and the nature of reality, issues of right and wrong and what it means to be human. It develops pupils’ knowledge and understanding of Christianity, other principal religions, other religious traditions and other world views that offer answers to questions such as these. It offers opportunities for personal reflection and spiritual development. It enhances pupils’ awareness and understanding of religions and beliefs, teachings, practices and forms of expression, as well as of the influence of religion on individuals, families, communities and cultures.
Religious education encourages pupils to learn from different religions, beliefs, values and traditions while exploring their own beliefs and questions of meaning. It challenges pupils to reflect on, consider, analyse, interpret and evaluate issue of truth, belief, faith and ethics and to communicate their responses.
Religious education has an important role in preparing pupils for adult life, employment and lifelong learning. It enables pupils to develop respect for and sensitivity to others, in particular those whose faiths and beliefs are different from their own. It promotes discernment and enables pupils to combat prejudice.”
‘The non-statutory national framework’ – QCA, Dfes.
RE at The Ravensbourne School is taught with an emphasis on the philosophical and cultural basis of the six major religions found in Britain today. However, we also study a variety of alternative and ancient faiths as well as looking at contemporary actions evolving through faith. Students are not expected to be religious, but are encouraged to learn through questioning the beliefs of those people who are.
Students study a number of units, each one lasting about ½ term:
| Year 7 RS topics | |||||
| Introduction to Religious Studies | Private Peaceful | The Sleeping Saviour | Circles of Life | Messengers of God | Religion in The Simpsons |
| Year 8 RS topics | |||||
| Jesus - Man or Myth? | Jesus - Mad, Bad or Sad? | Just A Story? | The Ancient Afterlife | Becoming Buddha | Walking for God |
| Year 9 RS topics | |||||
| Bloody RE | A History of Jewish Persecution | Where Was God in WW2? | The Catholic Church and Rwanda | GCSE Begins... | |
Students are expected to progress through the 8 levels of increasing difficulty. The expected attainment for each key stage are as follows:
End of key stage 2 (at age 11) - Level 4
End of key state 3 (at age 14) - Level 5/6
Students are assessed throughout each unit and awarded a level. There are eight level descriptions of increasing difficulty, plus a description for exceptional performance above level 8. Each level description describes the types and range of performance that pupils working at that level should demonstrate.
The levels are in two categories, Attainment target 1, learning about religions, and attainment target 2, learning from religions although teachers award just one level, based on a general judgement of the students ability.
In the summer term, students in year 9 start the GCSE Edexcel short course. Students will then begin to be assessed against the GCSE grade descriptors and students cover the topics that are set out in the EDEXCEL syllabus for unit 2.
Aims of the GCSE
The specification aims to give students opportunities to:
- acquire knowledge and develop understanding of the beliefs, values and traditions of one or more religions
- consider the influence of the beliefs, values and traditions associated with one or more religions
- consider religious and other responses to moral issues
- identify, investigate and respond to fundamental questions of life raised by religion and human experience, including questions about the meaning and purpose of life
- develop skills relevant to the study of religion.
| Unit 2: Religion and life according to Christianity | ||||
| Believing in God | Matters of life and death | Marriage and family life | Religion and Community Cohesion | |
Some students will complete this short course in year 10 and are then given the opportunity to study a further module to provide students with a Full GCSE:
| Religion and Society according to Christianity and Islam | ||||
| Religion and social responsibility | Religion and the environment | Peace and conflict | Crime and punishment | Religion and science |
Each unit has a separate examination paper divided into five sections (100% external
assessment - 4 sections for current Year 10 students).
Each section requires candidates to answer one question out of a choice of two.
Each question is subdivided into parts structured on an incline of difficulty.
Religious Studies papers are not tiered and give access to the full range of grades, regardless of whether students do the short course or the full course.
Grade descriptions are provided to give a general indication of the standards of achievement.