Religious Studies
Subject Leader: Mr Matt Hatcher - m.hatcher@lavington.wilts.sch.uk
RE at Lavington School - KS3 and 5
Year 7
What are we studying?
The aim of RS is to enable pupils to gain a better understanding of the people in the world in which we live. We start the year looking at an introduction to different world religions and worldviews; we introduce the 6 most globally followed religions plus the non-theistic worldview of humanism. We will then explore Christian beliefs about the Bible and Jesus, Hindu beliefs that affect the way they live their lives, and finally explore how an Abrahamic and a Dharmic religion tackle the issues surrounding the environment.
In all these units, pupils will get the opportunity to look at different beliefs, evaluate their own ideas and look at the impact for the believer on their life.
How are we assessed?
At the end of each unit pupils will be required to write an extended piece of writing so that we can gauge their understanding for that unit. Criteria will be given beforehand, and pupils will have access to this marking criteria throughout the assessment. Throughout each unit, smaller pieces of work will be produced, with feedback given, to enable the pupil and teacher to check their progress.
How we provide for the SEN and most able pupils
Differentiation and challenge are incorporated into all lessons. SEN students will be supported appropriately by the class teacher and teaching assistants.
How are we grouped?
All humanities subjects are taught in mixed ability groups.
What homework are we expected to do?
Homework will be set as appropriate every 3-4 lessons. It may be a short written homework, a piece of research or the learning of key words and ideas, of no more than 30 minutes. Homework arrangements are flexible to reflect the fact that students will only have one lesson per week of RS.
What can parents do to help?
RS is about gaining a better understanding of the world. Please encourage your child to have an open mind about events and stories from around the world, and please engage them in conversations to discuss the religious and ethical issues that arise. Homework that is set will be relevant to the lesson just completed, or to a topic that will be discussed in a future lesson, so please help your child by encouraging them to do this task to the best of their ability; it will help them make maximum progress in class as a result.
Useful resources and equipment
All students should have the following in all RS lessons: a black pen, a green pen, pencil, ruler and rubber. Pupils will also find it useful to have coloured pencils in some lessons. We would also encourage all students to bring their own glue and scissors to school.
The main BBC website and the BBC Bitesize pages have useful resources about many of the topics that we cover.
Year 8
What are we studying?
The aim of RS is to enable pupils to gain a better understanding of the people in the world in which we live. We start the year looking at Sikhism and the idea of equality. We will then explore different beliefs about life after death, followed by an exploration of Buddhist philosophy and beliefs. We end year 8 with applying these ideas and beliefs to a global issue; pupils will be able to explore different responses, both religious and non-religious.
In all these units, pupils will get the opportunity to look at different beliefs (both religious and non- religious), evaluate their own ideas and look at the impact for the believer on their life.
How are we assessed?
At the end of each unit pupils will be required to write an extended piece of writing so that we can gauge their understanding for that unit. Criteria will be given beforehand, and pupils will have access to this marking criteria throughout the assessment. Throughout each unit, smaller pieces of work will be produced, with feedback given, to enable the pupil and teacher to check their progress.
How we provide for the SEN and most able pupils
Differentiation and challenge are incorporated into all lessons. SEN students will be supported appropriately by the class teacher and teaching assistants.
How are we grouped?
All humanities subjects are taught in mixed ability groups.
What homework are we expected to do?
Homework will be set as appropriate every 3-4 lessons. It may be a short written homework, a piece of research or the learning of key words and ideas, of no more than 30 minutes. Homework arrangements are flexible to reflect the fact that students will only have one lesson per week of RS.
What can parents do to help?
RS is about gaining a better understanding of the world. Please encourage your child to have an open mind about events and stories from around the world, and please engage them in conversations to discuss the religious and ethical issues that arise. Homework that is set will be relevant to the lesson just completed, or to a topic that will be discussed in a future lesson, so please help your child by encouraging them to do this task to the best of their ability; it will help them make maximum progress in class as a result.
Useful resources and equipment
All students should have the following in all RS lessons: a black pen, a green pen, pencil, ruler and rubber. Pupils will also find it useful to have coloured pencils in some lessons. We would also encourage all students to bring their own glue and scissors to school.
The main BBC website and the BBC Bitesize pages have useful resources about many of the topics that we cover.
Year 9
What are we studying?
The aim of RS is to enable pupils to gain a better understanding of the people in the world in which we live in. We start the year with an introduction of philosophical questions such as ‘What is reality?’ and ‘Is there a God?’. We explore ethical dilemmas and ethical theories in our next unit, with pupils looking at a number of different responses to modern day ethical issues, including new technological advancements. To end the Year 9 course we will explore a number of the main beliefs and practices within Islam.
In all these units, pupils will get the opportunity to look at different beliefs, evaluate their own ideas and look at the impact for the believer on their life.
How are we assessed?
At the end of each unit pupils will be required to write an extended piece of writing so that we can gauge their understanding for that unit. Criteria will be given beforehand, and pupils will have access to this marking criteria throughout the assessment. Throughout each unit, smaller pieces of work will be produced, with feedback given, to enable the pupil and teacher to check their progress.
How we provide for the SEN and most able pupils
Differentiation and challenge are incorporated into all lessons. SEN students will be supported appropriately by the class teacher and teaching assistants.
How are we grouped?
All humanities subjects are taught in mixed ability groups.
What homework are we expected to do?
Homework will be set as appropriate every 3-4 lessons. It may be a short written homework, a piece of research or the learning of key words and ideas, of no more than 30 minutes. Homework arrangements are flexible to reflect the fact that students will only have one lesson per week of RS.
What can parents do to help?
RS is about gaining a better understanding of the world. Please encourage your child to have an open mind about events and stories from around the world, and please engage them in conversations to discuss the religious and ethical issues that arise. Homework that is set will be relevant to the lesson just completed, or to a topic that will be discussed in a future lesson, so please help your child by encouraging them to do this task to the best of their ability; it will help them make maximum progress in class as a result.
Useful resources and equipment
All students should have the following in all RS lessons: a black pen, a green pen, pencil, ruler and rubber. Pupils will also find it useful to have coloured pencils in some lessons. We would also encourage all students to bring their own glue and scissors to school.
The main BBC website and the BBC Bitesize pages have useful resources about many of the topics that we cover.
Years 10 and 11
What are we studying?
This is an exciting opportunity to study the effect of belief on peoples’ lives. It gives students the chance to get to grips with philosophical questions such as ‘is there a God?’ and ‘what happens when I die?’ and to debate the rights and wrongs of many social issues such as abortion, capital punishment, war and euthanasia. Students will study the beliefs, teachings and practices of both Christianity and Islam and in doing so will gain a real understanding of the motivation behind these two religions. The course encourages a dialogue between religions and non-religious beliefs and attitudes, and encourages the students to share their own views about all that is studied.
Students follow the AQA Religious studies GCSE course. One part of the course concentrates on the understanding of the two religions of Christianity and Islam. The other part of the course studies religious, philosophical and ethical issues. There are links made between both sides of the course throughout.
How are we assessed?
The GCSE course is examined at the end of Year 11 with two exams, each 1 hour and 45 minutes long.
Exam Paper 1:
Question 1: Christianity: beliefs and teachings (including beliefs about God, life after death, judgement, good and evil).
Question 2: Christianity: practices (including Easter, places of pilgrimage, persecution and the work of charities).
Question 3: Islam: beliefs and teachings (including Angels, the difference between Shi’a and Sunni Muslims and predestination).
Question 4: Islam: practices (including the Five Pillars, jihad, prayer and festivals).
Exam Paper 2:
Question 1: Religion and Life (including the ethics surrounding the use and abuse of animals, euthanasia, abortion and the relationship between scientific and religious ideas about the universe and humanity).
Question 2: Religion, peace and conflict (including the ethics surrounding war, weapons of mass destruction, terrorism, justice and the use of violence).
Question 3: Religion, crime and punishment (including the ethics surrounding the use of capital punishment, corporal punishment, forgiveness, reasons for crime and the aims of punishment).
Question 4: Religion, human rights and social justice (including issues surrounding prejudice and discrimination, the status of women, the use of wealth, the motivation behind and the impact of charities and other issues surrounding human rights)
Each topic is assessed using the same format which enables students to really get to grips with what the examiners are looking for. Each question is subdivided into 5 parts:
Part 1 – 1 mark
Part 2 – 2 marks
Part 3 – 4 marks
Part 4 – 5 marks
Part 5 – 12 marks
The total marks for each question is therefore 24, with 12 of the marks being allocated for knowledge and understanding (parts 1-4), and 12 of the marks allocated for analysis and evaluation (for part 5).
Students will practice these types of questions throughout the 2 year course, receiving feedback on how to improve and how to manage their time as effectively as possible. This will enable students to gain in confidence in approaching these questions, and will enable progression in their skills.
How are we grouped?
Students are placed in mixed ability sets based on their option block choices.
What homework are we expected to do?
Home learning will be set once a week. It may involve research or completion of a task started in a lesson. It may not always involve writing as it may be that students need to watch a relevant section of the news or a documentary. It may be that the homework is more creative inspired by the issues or questions raised in the lessons. It may be practising an exam style question or just writing notes on a particular topic or issue. It may be revision for an end of topic GCSE practice question.
What can parents do to help?
Encourage your child to have an open mind and to discuss what they have learnt each week. Engage them in conversations about religion and ethical issues when related items appear on the news or in television programmes or films.
Useful resources and equipment
All students should have the following in all RE lessons: a black pen, a green pen, pencil, ruler and rubber. Pupils will also find it useful to have coloured pencils and highlighter pens in some lessons. We would also encourage all students to bring their own glue and scissors to school.
The main BBC website and the BBC Bitesize pages have useful resources about many of the topics that we cover.
