Religious Education gives you the chance to ask big questions such as “Was the universe created?” “Does human life have a purpose?” “Why is there evil and suffering in the world?” “Are some actions always wrong?” “Is there a life after death?” In the context of Catholic Christianity, we explore all of these issues and more, taking into account various worldviews and perspectives and improving your understanding of the many contemporary and religious issues that arise in societies across the world today. RE is often experiential, creative and engaging. However, as an academically challenging subject it will also help you to learn key skills such as evaluation and critical thinking, that can be transferred to a range of subjects and help you to be successful in any number of different fields
Key Stage 3
Our Key Stage 3 learning follows a spiral curriculum based on the brand new Catholic Religious Education Directory (RED). It has 6 branches: Creation and Covenant, Prophecy and Promise, From Desert to Garden, From Galilee to Jerusalem, To the ends of the earth, and Dialogue & Encounter. Each year we add more leaves to each branch, building on prior knowledge by addressing new questions in the context of that topic.
Year 7
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Who is God and why are we here?
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How does God reveal himself?
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Who is Jesus and what difference does he make to the world?
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How does the Church express beliefs about Jesus?
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Who is the Holy Spirit?
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What is Islam?
Year 8
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What is the human condition?
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Who are the prophets and what is their message?
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What is the Kingdom of God?
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Why does God allow suffering?
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Is there an afterlife?
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What is Hinduism?
Year 9
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What is human dignity?
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Who is Mary and why is she significant?
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What does a disciple look like?
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How can one man’s death save so many?
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How are we all connected?
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What is Sikhism?
Key Stage 4
In Year 10 and 11 we follow the Eduqas Route B GCSE in Catholic Christianity with Judaism. This culminates in three exam papers in which students are required to define, describe, explain and evaluate religious and other worldviews. The three components are:
Component 1: Foundational Catholic Theology -37.5% (1 ½ hour exam on Theme 1 and 2)
Component 2: Applied Catholic Theology - 37.5% (1 ½ hour exam on Theme 3 and 4)
Component 3: A study of a World Faith - Judaism - 25% (1 hour exam on Beliefs and Practices)
Year 10
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Judaism (Beliefs and Teachings)
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Judaism (Practices)
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Theme 1: Origins and meaning
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Theme 2: Good and Evil
Year 11
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Theme 3: Life and Death
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Theme 4: Sin and Forgiveness
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Reviewing all units and exam preparation.
Key Stage 5
The RE Department offers OCR A Level in Philosophy, Ethics and the Development of
Christian Thought. For exam structure see Assessment below*
Philosophy of religion – 33% (2 hour exam; three questions from four)
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ancient philosophical influences: Plato & Aristotle
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the nature of the soul, mind and body
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arguments about the existence or non-existence of God
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the nature and impact of religious experience
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the challenge for religious belief of the problem of evil
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ideas about the nature of God
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issues in religious language.
Religion and ethics – 33% (2 hour exam; three questions from four)
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normative ethical theories: Natural Law, Situation Ethics, Kantian Ethics & Utilitarianism
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the application of ethical theory to two contemporary issues of importance: Business Ethics & Euthanasia
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ethical language and thought: Metaethics
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debates surrounding the significant idea of conscience
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sexual ethics and the influence on ethical thought
Developments in Christian Thought – 33% (2 hour exam; three questions from four)
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Insight
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Augustine’s Teaching on Human Nature
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Death and the Afterlife
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Foundations
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Knowledge of God’s Existence
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The person of Jesus Christ
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Living
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Christian moral principles
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Christian moral action
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Development
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Religious pluralism and theology
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Religious pluralism and society
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Society
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Gender and society
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Gender and theology
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Challenges
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The Challenge of Secularism
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Liberation Theology and Marx
Key Stage 3
Each unit of work is assessed by written graded assessments on a termly basis (6-8 weeks). These assessments follow the examination technique required for success at GCSE and as such are an excellent grounding for KS4.
Key Stage 4
Every student takes GCSE RS. They complete an assessment at the end of each of the modules covered over the two years and complete two mock exams, one in the June of Year 10 and the other in November of Year 11. In addition to these formal assessments, students are regularly tested on key words and given at least one practice exam question each lesson. These are designed to prepare them for two final GCSE exams taken at the end of Year 11.
Key Stage 5
Students who choose to take Philosophy and Ethics are prepared for their A Level exams through practice essays at the end of each topic listed in the OCR specification. The A Level contains three mandatory units (outlined above) which are externally assessed. Each unit counts for one third of the overall Grade. A Level students are examined in all the topics listed above and sit three 2 hour exams.