Intent

Religious Education at St Gregory’s is based on the Religious Education Directory published by the Catholic Bishops of England and Wales in 2023. The RE curriculum fosters an appreciation of Catholic beliefs, values and ethical perspectives which are countercultural and challenge us to consider our morals and values in the diverse society in which we live.

Our role is to help our students understand their purpose in making the world a better place. Our students have a holistic education guided from the core of core subjects: Religious Education. There is a desire for our students to be ambassadors in our local community and society. We will equip them with the tools to do this. We want pioneers of social justice, those who act to support the poor and disadvantaged. We would like our students to make the community we live in a vibrant, healthy, positive, environmentally friendly place. Our students must take pride in who they are, where they are and why working to support the local community is important.

Working collaboratively with our Diocese, Parish community and other faith traditions, we provide a range of activities which reinforces learning and demonstrates the importance of Religious Education in society today. The Religious Education department uphold the values of Catholic education, so students can work to make the world a better place guided by the example of Christ as the perfect teacher.

Students are challenged to think independently, arriving at their own conclusions and gain a deeper knowledge of who they are as individuals. Students are encouraged to become religiously literate and develop an appreciation of the faith and non-faith perspectives in our world today.

Within lessons, students are encouraged to develop their knowledge, understanding and evaluative response to the Catholic faith, Christian traditions and other world religions. Students are assessed through end of unit tests and assessed tasks. This informs teachers of progress and areas for development.

Purpose

Key Stage 3

In Years 7 to 9, students in Religious Education have their curriculum organised around the Religious Education Directory (RED) - ‘To know you more clearly,’ from the Bishops Conference of England and Wales 2023. This is an exciting time of change, challenge and development. Students are given the opportunity to develop their skillset (including soft skills) with the diverse content and task opportunities to aid students to succeed in Religious Education. The change in curriculum content is more demanding and fulfilling and will prepare students of all faiths and none more fully for the Core Religious Education GCSE programme which is undertaken by all students in a Catholic School.

The titles of the units of work for Key Stage 3 are listed below:

• Creation and Covenant
• Prophecy & Promise
• Galilee to Jerusalem
• Desert to Garden
• To the Ends of the Earth
• Dialogue and Encounter

(This will be fully implemented by September 2024.)

Key Stage 4 GCSE Religious Education

GCSE begins in the summer term of Year 9 where students complete 25% of their GCSE in the study of Judaism. This is revisited later as part of revision to reinforce and remind students of the topics covered.

The units of work covered are:

• Jewish Belief
• Jewish Practice

In Year 10 students complete the Catholic component of the GCSE worth 50% of their GCSE. It is when we study these modules the Catholic life of the school and the theory match up and students, particularly those from non-faith backgrounds begin to understand the theory and the practice.

The units of work covered are listed below:

• Catholic Christianity
• Beliefs and Teachings
• Practices
• Sources of Wisdom and Authority
• Forms of Expression and Ways of Life

Year 11 comprises of Ethics and Philosophy where students begin to mature, see the relevance, challenge and academic demands of the subject. Students enjoy the range of philosophical arguments, begin to have confidence in themselves and realise they can think for themselves.

The units of work covered are:

• Arguments for the existence of God
• Religious Teachings on Relationships and Families in the 21st Century.

Key Stage 5 A Level Religious Studies & Core Religious Education

A Level is an academic challenge and hugely rewarding. Students will tell you it is like completing 3 A Levels in one – a big contrast from GCSE. Many students who wish to enter Russell Group Universities will choose Religious Studies A Level because of its reputation and emphasis on a variety of soft skills offered within one subject area.  At present we use Excel Pearson examination board.

There are three components:

• Philosophy
• New Testament Studies
• Ethics

‘Spiritual Development’ is the title given to our Core RE programme at Sixth Form level. We have used the topic descriptors from the new RED published by the Bishops of England and Wales. Each topic begins with a scriptural foundation in order for students to gain an understanding and appreciation of the centricity of the Word.

The topic titles are below:

• Creation to Covenant
• Prophecy to Promise
• Galilee to Jerusalem
• Desert to Garden
• Vocation

Creation to Covenant covers Stewardship where students are encouraged to consider their role and responsibility to environmental concerns. Prophecy to Promise looks particularly at the theme of Social Justice with a closer look into the work of the Bakhita Trust. Galilee to Jerusalem considers Morality and Ethics covering various moral issues our young people are exposed to in secular society. Desert to Garden invites the students to consider their charitable contributions to society and generate fund raising activities for the Common Good. Finally, the topic of Vocation challenges students to discern their own vocation. We are fortunate to host the Franciscan Friars of the Renewal who engage and provoke positive responses from our student body.