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Religious Education
RE-NEWS!
Each term a newsletter from the RE department is produced for students and parents. This newsletter outlines current topics of study, up to date news of events and activities and is a vital way of informing parents of upcoming events.
Click the links below to view the corresponding News Letter
vOLUME 2 / ISSUE 1 | ISSUE 2 | ISSUE 3 | ISSUE 4
WELCOME TO THE RELIGIOUS EDUCATION DEPARTMENT!
We have an enthusiastic and dedicated staff and pride ourselves on having four specialist RE teachers.
The department comprises of:
Mrs J Smith – Head of Religious Education
Ms N O’Neill – Teacher of RE, Head of Citizenship
Mr A Dulston – Teacher of RE
Mr P Douglas – Teacher of RE
As a department we are fully committed to teaching and learning, encouraging students to learn about and learn from the variety of religious concepts introduced to them.
We aim to:
- Provide knowledge end understanding of the Catholic faith
- Give opportunities to explore key beliefs and issues from other major religious traditions
- Develop appropriate skills, concepts and attitudes as they relate to the study of religion
- Help recognise the value of religion and how it relates to the study of religion and people’s lives
- Enable students to grow to their full religious and spiritual maturity by allowing them the opportunities to question, develop and discuss issues of faith and to help them make informed choices
- Provide opportunities for self-reflection on each student’s personal faith journey
- Challenge students to identify ultimate questions and their connection with religious beliefs
- Be true to Gospel values by enabling students to gain an awareness and understanding of the local, national and global Christian responsibility towards others
- Be dedicated to realising the potential of each individual and to celebrate success in all its forms.
MISSION STATEMENT
The Religious Education Department at BRJ exists to equip all students with the skills to make moral choices and to help them engage in the quest for meaning and purpose in their lives. The department hopes to foster a deep respect for each individual recognising them as unique human beings created in God’s image and likeness. The department recognises that as Christians we have a responsibility to the poor and marginalised. We seek to do this by highlighting justice and forgiveness, by promoting a Catholic world-view underpinned by Gospel values. Also we would seek to develop an understanding of different religious traditions and cultures.
In all that we do we aim to work with the college in contributing:
“towards a Christ-centred community”
CURRICULUM
The department follows the Diocesan Framework for Religious Education and topics include:
KEY STAGE 3
Year 7
- Welcome/Belonging
- Called By Name
- I am God’s Work of Art
- Ways of Prayer
- Sikhism
Year 8
- Pilgrimage
- Judaism
- Pentecost and Confirmation
- Choices on the Journey
- Respect for the Earth
Year 9
- A sense of Justice
- Islam
- Faith challenges
- Learning to Love
- Who is my Neighbour?
GCSE
Year 10
- Believing in God
- Matters of Life and Death
- Marriage and the Family
- Social Harmony
- Religion and the Media
Year 11
- Beliefs and Values
- Community and Tradition
- Worship and Celebration
- Living the Christian Life
- Christian Vocation
Students currently study Papers C and J of Edexcel’s GCSE Religious Studies course. One 2 hour exam is taken at the end of Year 10 and the second exam at the end of Year 11. Each exam counting as 50% of the GCSE grade.
AS/A LEVEL
Year 12
- Meta-Ethics
- Natural Law
- Moral Relativism
- Plato
- Aristotle
- Judaeo-Christian concepts of God
Year 13
- Freewill and Determinism
- Conscience
- Religious Ethics
- Life after Death
- Body and Soul
- Religious Experience
- Religious Language
Students currently follow OCR’s Philosophy and Ethics course at AS and A2 Level.
The department is particularly proud of its 100% pass rate at both AS and A2 for well over a decade, with numerous students going on to study Philosophy at degree level.
YEAR 7 RE-TREAT DAYS
Each year, Year 7 students are invited to attend an RE-TREAT day at Shrewsbury Cathedral. The aims of the day are to provide our students with an opportunity to ‘acquire insights into their personal existence’. This is achieved in a variety of ways from ‘icebreaker’ games to guided meditations, group activities and individual time. The day culminates in a celebration of Mass and this year Fr Jonathan Mitchell, our school chaplain, celebrated Mass with us.
