Religious Education

The following aims are the foundation of the work undertaken by the RE department:

  • to develop knowledge and understanding of Christian teaching and practice, both of the Roman Catholic Church and other Christian denominations.
  • to consider Christian and secular responses to moral issues.
  • to identify, investigate and respond to fundamental questions of life raised by religion and human experience, including questions about the meaning and purpose of life.
  • to help students to deepen their knowledge and understanding of and respect for themselves, others and the world.
  • to stimulate a personal interest in the person of Jesus Christ, and to see the relevance of his mission for today’s world.

Importantly, it is not expected that pupils entering year 7 will have a deep knowledge of Christianity. Pupils coming from non-Christian primary schools, or those whose families do not attend church, will not be disadvantaged.

Members of the department:
Miss L. Vaughan-Neil Head of Department
Mrs M.Meatcher RE teacher, Head of Chaplaincy, Head of Upper School
Miss W.Grantham RE teacher, Senior Teacher

Key Stage 3 (Years 7-9)
Pupils follow the new curriculum followed in the majority of Catholic schools, known as ‘Icons’. This approach is modular in nature, and aims to gradually inform pupils of:

i) Jesus Christ; ii) the Church, iii) sacraments, iv) Christian teaching, v) personal morality.

At every stage the onus is on how the pupils respond to these ideas. Staff encourage pupils to develop their own ideas about issues which are important to them. It is not our aim to indoctrinate or to reject individual thinking.

Key Stage 4 (Years 10 & 11)
All pupils follow the GCSE full-course Religious Studies. This is split into two sections. The first is ‘Christianity’, which examines what it means to be a Christian. The second is ‘Christian Perspectives on Personal, Social and World Issues’, where the pupils are asked to consider how having a Christian faith might influence one’s moral choices.

Key Stage 5 (Years 12 and 13)
AS and A2 level: The course we have chosen is called ‘Philosophy and Ethics’. This course takes all that has been learned in GCSE concerning Christianity, and builds on this from a philosophical perspective. Many scholars’ writings are considered and discussed, with a view to deepening one’s understanding of a belief system which has had considerable influence on the philosophy and ethics of the entire western world.

General RE: The sixth-form years can feel quite pressurised due to the academic burdens faced and concern over difficult choices for the future which have to be made. In response to this, RE is part of the sixth-form syllabus for all pupils. During this weekly lesson, pupils take part in discussion groups, where opinions on important issues such as lifestyle choices, relationships and moral issues can be addressed and developed.

Expectations
As has been already mentioned, it is not an expectation that pupils have come from a religious family background, nor that they are regular church attendees. What is expected though, is that all pupils will have respect for those people who have chosen to follow a faith, and that they are free to express their opinions.

Chaplaincy
The Marist gives many opportunities for spiritual and faith development. This is done firstly on a ‘cross-curricular’ level, where all teachers, no-matter what subject, support and develop each person’s spirituality. In addition, all year groups have mass in the school chapel once a term, which they themselves devise. All Catholic holy-days and celebrated by a whole-school mass in the main hall.
In Years 10-13, all pupils are offered the opportunity to be taken on retreat to a local retreat centre near Newbury. For 3 days, they take time-out to think about their response to their faith, and to consider their relationship with family, friends and God. Many pupils find this to be a very rewarding experience, and everyone who goes ends up going back one day.

ICT in RE
ICT is used in RE mainly as a research tool, where the teacher guides the pupils in what to research and in how to research a particular topic. This is especially useful in seeing how Christianity is practiced in different areas of the world, and in seeing what effect Christianity has had on individuals or communities who have embraced its teachings. Pupils are encouraged to submit work which has been word-processed. All GCSE coursework has to be produced using ICT.