The RE Council of England and Wales (REC) has produced a draft code which aims to complement the GTC’s general code for teachers. When that code was being drawn up, there was some concern about the implications of ‘demonstrating respect for diversity and promoting equality’ and whether that principle might ever come into conflict with a teacher’s sense of integrity in relation to his or her own beliefs.
This proposed code for teachers of RE is designed to help reassure teachers of RE themselves as well as pupils, parents and colleagues that a professional approach to such issues can and will be observed.
This draft has been drawn up by an RE Council working group with representation from NATRE, AREIAC, NASACRE and several religious/non religious belief traditions. The group would be very grateful for any help you can give in making sure this code is as helpful and useful as possible.
This code will of course be a voluntary one. It will be published on the website of the RE Council of England and Wales and if desired in other places as well. It will be accompanied by an annotated list of websites giving links to other relevant material, such as the Toledo Guiding Principles.
This week sees the launch of the National Curriculum website, which now includes the new primary curriculum and a range of tools and information to support it, including:
an interactive video tour of the site's highlights
a short introductory guide to the new primary curriculum
a tool to help teachers design and plan their own curriculum
an interactive tool which allows teachers to view selected curriculum areas side-by-side
new case studies which show how schools have used their curriculum to make real improvements in outcomes for their learners
The website is a big step forward in making the new primary curriculum come to life for headteachers and the school workforce, and makes the curriculum easily accessible for all. Schools and teachers now have the information and support to start planning for the introduction of this new curriculum. We will be adding more material to the site during 2010, including professional development materials, guidance and enhanced online tools.
The secondary part of the website now includes a section on evaluating your curriculum, more information on curriculum design and improved links from subject areas. We have worked with heads and teachers and with accessibility experts to help ensure that the website is useful, intuitive to use, and more accessible for disabled users.
Alongside web-based resources, QCDA has produced a new primary handbook and introductory guidance, which are being sent to all schools and local authorities during February.A team of regional primary curriculum network advisers will be working with local authorities to support the development of local programmes of support and identify and disseminate good practice.
I suggest you first take the curriculum tour for a succinct overview of the primary curriculum, and to learn more about the new features on the website.
QCDA and NASACRE announce that they are planning a major conference for SACRE members which will take place in London on Wednesday 24th March 2010, from 10.00am to 3.30pm.
The programme for the day will include:
An introduction to the new Primary Curriculum
How RE will relate to the new Primary Curriculum
Designing Agreed Syllabuses in the new context
The venue will be in central London, details to be confirmed. Further news of this will be posted on the NASACRE website.
A place will be reserved for one representative from each SACRE. Additional places may be available nearer the date when the take-up of places is known.
QCA has published new units of work for use at foundation stage and key stages 1, 2 and 3.
The units of work can be downloaded from this section using the left hand navigation and the users' guide can be downloaded from the 'Related documents' on the right.
The purpose of this guidance, produced by DCSF, is to support the provision of high-quality religious education (RE) in maintained schools in England. It provides clear non-statutory guidance about RE in the curriculum and the roles of those who have a responsibility for, involvement in or interest in the subject. The guidance is intended for:
local authorities (LAs), standing advisory councils on religious education (SACREs) and agreed syllabus conferences (ASCs)
governors, headteachers, curriculum planners, teachers and trainee teachers of RE and others in maintained schools
educational agencies, advisers, inspectors and consultants
providers of initial teacher training (ITT) and continuing professional development (CPD), trainers and mentors
representatives of religion and belief groups locally and nationally
RE professional bodies, national and local.
This guidance does not constitute an authoritative interpretation of the law; that is a matter for the courts.
The framework was developed by QCDA in partnership with the DCSF plus a wide range of faith and belief communities and professional RE associations. The framework sets out standards for learning and attainment and exemplifies the contribution of religious education to the school curriculum. The framework highlights the significant contribution religious education makes to pupils' spiritual, moral, social and cultural development and its important role in preparing pupils for life in a diverse society.
The guidance is designed to benefit all pupils by improving the quality of teaching and learning in religious education. It is aimed mainly at those with a responsibility for religious education in maintained schools in England, local authorities, agreed syllabus conferences (ASCs) and standing advisory councils in religious education (SACREs). It will also be of interest to faith communities, teachers, parents and pupils, school governors, managers and leaders, inspectors and advisers, further education providers and resources developers.
The non-statutory national framework for RE sets out standards for learning and attainment and exemplifies the contribution RE makes to the school curriculum. The framework highlights the significant contribution RE makes to pupils' spiritual, moral, social and cultural development and its important role in preparing pupils for life in a diverse society. The framework is designed to benefit all pupils by improving the quality of teaching and learning in RE.
The Cambridge Primary Review is an indipendent Enquiry into the condition and Future of Primary Education in England
The 3 overarching perspectives • Children and childhood today • The society and world in which children are growing up • The condition and future of primary education
The 10 educational themes • Purposes and values • Learning and teaching • Curriculum and assessment • Quality and standards • Diversity and inclusion • Settings and professionals • Parenting, caring and educating • Children’s lives beyond the school • Structures and phases • Funding, governance and policy
Reviewing initiatives in this area to establish their effectiveness is an important part of developing good practice. Pupils' own perceptions of the usefulness of provision, and their judgements about the levels of interest and learning produced, can be gathered through discussion or written self-assessment. The policy for RE should also be linked to the school's policy on gifted pupils.
Kindly be informed that the Buddhism Key Stage 1 and 2 books published by the Buddhist Education Foundation (UK) are now available for downloading from the following website:
Buddhistdoor.com --> English --> Community --> Reading Corner --> Digital Files Download --> Children Buddhist Books
The 4 books for downloading are:
Buddhism Key Stage 1 textbook
Buddhism Key Stage 1 workbook
Buddhism Key Stage 2 textbook
Buddhism Key Stage 2 teacher's guide
Although the Buddhist Education Foundation (UK) is no longer in operation, I would like to thank you once again for your previous support, and hope you'll find this message useful.
The IDP website is a free resource for reliable information about Silk Road history and its artefacts; many of which are now dispersed throughout the world. This web area has been created specifically for teachers and educators who wish to explore the culture, languages, religions and creativity of the Silk Road with their students.
The IDP site draws together a huge range of material from various institutions and as a whole represents the immense diversity and long term development of Silk Road life and its importance to world culture today. This area aims to help teachers access relevant material easily: on this page you will find links to various key topics and resources created by IDP.
We are currently developing this area and always appreciate your comments and suggestions to help us improve these pages. For information on a specific topic not covered here, please contact us and we will do our best to help. Email:
This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it
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CfSA & NATRE : Resources for RE and Community Cohesion
The CfSA has produced a review of resources which support community cohesion. There are eight resources for each curriculum subject, including RE. You can access the resources by logging onto the CfSA’s website or from the home page of NATRE’s website.
'We are a Buddhist audio-visual media project and a UK registered charity; our work is an expression of Right Livelihood, the fifth limb of the Buddha's Noble Eightfold Path.'
A guide to generating positive local media coverage for religious education. The guide includes ideas for stories; tips for news releases; and for avoiding pitfalls.
This consultation seeks views on major changes to the primary curriculum; personal, social, health and economic education across both primary and secondary phases; subject-level descriptions; and updated non-statutory guidance on religious education.
Religion and Place is a Building Exploratory initiative, which aims to increase knowledge, understanding and awareness of places of worship in East London. To date we have visited and researched more that 200 buildings in Hackney and Tower Hamlets as part of two innovative community projects.
Religion and Place in Tower Hamlets explored all buildings used as places of workshop in Tower Hamlets with five artists and students from five schools in the borough. Places of Worship 2009: Hackney and Tower Hamlets investigated the condition and significance of listed places of worship with a volunteer survey group.
Our interest in places of worship is ongoing and we provide building visits for school groups and adults, to find out more please visit our website.
Please click on the links below to find out more about these projects.
Standing Advisory Councils for Religious Education (SACREs) bring together RE professionals, community leaders and faith/belief representatives on each Local Authority. QCDA is committed to working with SACREs in support of better RE outcomes, community cohesion and personal wellbeing.
SACREs are required to report annually on the advice they have given. The annual reports from SACREs help to develop this partnership by forming a major channel of information and interaction, and are therefore greatly valued by QCDA. Moreover, they make a substantial contribution to QCDA’s evidence base about the curriculum, informing resource and policy judgments, and influencing the development of work in progress and in prospect. This section includes annual analyses of SACRE reports for 2007, 2006, 2004 and 2003.
Strong SACRE, good RE is a summary of findings compiled from the three national developmental workshops offered for SACRE members by the QCA, National Association of Standing Advisory Councils on Religious Education (NASACRE) and the Religious Education Council of England and Wales (REC) in November 2006.
