Beliefs and Values
Beliefs and Values (RE) is a statutory subject that aims to promote tolerance and understanding of others through the exploration of different faiths, beliefs and traditions, as well as helping students to reflect upon their own ideas and opinions in response to ‘big questions’ and moral issues.
Staff
| Ms Z Brotherton | Head of Beliefs and Values | |
| Ms R Battishill | Teacher of Belief & Values | |
| Dr K Bawn | Principal |
Year 7
Beliefs and Values is taught as part of the Integrated Humanities program. This provides a transition period for our students coming up from Primary into Secondary school. Each term we explore a different concept/theme and a big question through the 3 Humanities disciplines. As part of this, students will investigate a variety of worldviews, including Christianity, Paganism, Islam and Eastern religions.
Year 8
This is very much a foundation year for GCSE (which students begin to study in Year 9). Students learn and develop key skills such as analysis and application through the exploration of topics like ‘Poverty’, ‘Animal Rights and the Environment’, and ‘Myself, My World’ – which looks at a variety of topical issues such as immigration, and racism. We end this year exploring the Holocaust and its impact on modern society. Students explore Christian and worldviews surrounding these issues.
Year 9
In Year 9 we begin the GCSE in Beliefs and Values. Students will explore the Eastern religion of Sikhism before moving on to our first theme of ‘War, Peace and Justice’. Students will explore Christian and Eastern religious views towards this topic.
At Key Stage 4 all students have the opportunity to gain a qualification in Religious Studies AQA Specification A. All students will obtain a full GCSE in this subject.
The course is examined by two exams of 1hr 45min each at the end of Year 11. There is no coursework component.
In Year 10 we study our second Eastern religion Buddhism. Later in the year, we explore our second theme ‘Crime and Punishment’. Students will explore Christian and Eastern religious responses to this topic.
In Year 11 we explore our final two themes, ‘Religion and Life’ and ‘Human Rights and Social Justice’. Students will explore Christian and Eastern religious views towards these topics.
At Key Stage 5, the department offers a popular A level course (OCR) studying Philosophy of Religion and Eastern Thought. Students attend two philosophy and ethics conferences each year to hear contemporary philosophers explaining and debating a variety of theories and moral issues.
All Post 16 students take part in a conference organised by the department titled ‘The Day of Evil’. Students spend the day debating and taking part in different philosophical activities as well as listening to a variety of visiting speakers, where students will debate and explore religious and secular responses to the concept of evil, and whether evil really does exist.
An exciting new addition to the Humanities Department at KS5 is the introduction of A-level Sociology from Sept 2017.
We will be following OCR specification (H580).
Students will study the following components:
Year 12 – Component 1 – Socialisation, Culture and Identity (Section A)
Component 1 – Youth Subcultures (Option 2)
Component 2 – Researching and Understanding Social Inequality
Year 13 – Component 2 – Understanding Social Inequality
Component 3 – Crime and Deviance (Option 1)
Course leader: Z Brotherton