Religious Education

REFLECTIONS AND RELIGIOUS EDUCATION

Welcome to the Religious Education and Reflections Department at Rushcliffe School

Introduction

Rushcliffe School is a multi-cultural and multi-faith community. This is reflected in the aims of Religious Education to create a better understanding about other religions and belief systems in a student friendly and happy environment. Last year, we decided to change the name of R.E. at Key Stage 3 to Reflections as we feel it is important for students to be given time and space to reflect on their own lives and beliefs whilst comparing these to the lives and beliefs of others.

Religious Education remains a compulsory part of the curriculum in England and at Rushcliffe School all students in Year 7, 8 and 9 have a one hour lesson of Reflections each week. Last year, the decision was made to make Religious Education an option at Key Stage 4.

Location

We have a specialist Reflections/R.E., room 130, located in A Block and it is well known for its bright and colourful displays. All our resources are located in this room for easy access and the room is also equipped with a digital projector and interactive whiteboard.

Staffing

Curriculum Leader: Miss C Taylor

Reflections Teachers: Mr Smith, Miss Richardson, Miss Pollard, Mr Rick, Ms Jenkins and Mr Roberts

Key Stage 3 - Year 7, 8 and 9

In Year 7 the students start by thinking about New Beginnings. They then complete a project in groups on the 6 major world religions and each group becomes an expert in the religion they study for the remainder of Key Stage 3. Other topics in Year 7 include 'Investigating stories' – looking at the role of stories in our lives and how they can impact us; 'What matters to me?' – considering what is important in our lives and the nature of worship in religions; 'Sacred Spaces' – reflecting on places that are special to us and to others – such as places of worship, pilgrimage sites and areas of natural beauty; 'Who am I?' – considering our identity and our hopes and dreams for the future.

Students in Year 8 follow the theme of 'My place in the world' throughout the year. They will create a portfolio of work including a collage entitled 'Where do I fit in?'. They will produce further portfolio tasks linked to topics which include 'Inspirational people', 'Issues of Wealth and Poverty', 'Rights and Responsibilities' and 'Media influence on my role in the world'.

In Year 9 pupils create a Portfolio of work during the year that includes artwork, music and written tasks. During the year, pupils study units on: Ultimate Questions – We look at how our beliefs affect our answers to questions about life and existence, focusing on the whether we believe in God or not; Christianity - We examine the moral guidelines within Christianity and study the life and teachings of Jesus through art. Jesus' teachings on love and forgiveness are examined in more detail and pupils do a personal reflection of these ideas; Islam – Pupils have an introduction to the key beliefs and teachings of Islam; Other Belief Systems – In groups, pupils research different belief systems, aside from the six major religions we study, and present their findings to the class.

All units in KS3 are assessed in a positive way using the Eight-Level scale (adapted for individual tasks from the Nottinghamshire Agreed Syllabus).
Key Stage

Key Stage 4 - Years 10 and 11

In Key Stage 4, pupils have the option to take GCSE Religious Studies. We study the OCR GCSE Religious Studies B: Philosophy and Ethics - J621 syllabus.

Within this syllabus, pupils study the following units:
Ethics 1 (Unit B603) – Relationships, Medical Ethics and Wealth and Poverty
Ethics 2 (Unit B604) – Peace and Justice, Equality and Media
Philosophy 1 (Unit B601) – Deity, Religious and Spiritual Experience, End of Life
Philosophy 2 (Unit B602) – Good and Evil, Revelation, Science.
This is perfect for those students who enjoy debating and discussing the big questions of life.

Assessment at KS4

In both Year 10 and 11 pupils will complete exam questions on each unit that they study.

There is no coursework in Religious Studies. To gain their GCSE grade, pupils will sit a total of four one hour exams, to be completed at the end of the course (Year 11).

Sixth Form - AS/A2

We introduced the A'Level course at Rushcliffe School in 2005 and were delighted with the results that the students achieved.

Students follow two main strands throughout the AS and A2 course:

• Philosophy of Religion
• Religious Ethics

We follow the OCR Religious Studies - H172 H572 syllabus. Students can access the syllabus and past papers on the internet at http://www.ocr.org.uk/qualifications/type/gce/hss/rs/index.html

If you have any questions concerning Reflections or Religious Education at Rushcliffe School please contact the Curriculum Leader of Reflections and Religious Education, Miss C Taylor

.