Religious Education

Intent

At Penwortham Priory Academy we believe that Religious Education is a key element to the education of all pupils. We aim to give each pupil the opportunity to apply and develop their prior understanding and show initiative skills across a wide range of topics and tasks throughout the key stages. Pupils are encouraged to develop their confident in a safe environment, with the understanding and tolerance of all religious and worldviews whilst challenging and developing their own personal perspectives. With the knowledge that the Religious Education Curriculum will continue to form a major part in their life at home, in further education and places of work, we ensure the experiences and abilities that the pupils are equipped with at Priory; such as leadership, organisation and communication skills, are effective and resilient learners such as critical thinking and the use of eternal sources.

Through religious education, students build on prior learning from Key Stage 2 to broaden their understanding and appreciation of different world views. They are challenged to learn through the use of ‘BIG Questions’ and are required to think hard in lessons using ‘higher order’ skills such as analysis and evaluation. The curriculum encourages them to develop their leadership and organisational skills in the practical tasks and through opportunities to lead and organise food-based events with support. Students are expected to show resilience whilst articulate beliefs, values and commitments clearly in order to explain why they may be important in their own and other people’s lives.

Knowledge underpins our curriculum therefore learning about and from religions is given equal weighting. Pupils are given an overview of their learning journey at the start of their unit of work so that they know what they’ll be learning, the skills they’ll develop, why they need to know this and how they’ll learn it; this helps them develop their schemata and helps them understand how this subject links to others.

The curriculum is sequenced to build on existing knowledge and incrementally develop new knowledge. Pupils understand the sequence and what they’re required to learn as a result of using personal learning checklists. Spaced retrieval, low stakes testing, and repeated practice are used to ensure that concepts are understood, and knowledge remembered.  We place emphasis on the acquisition of subject specific vocabulary, modelling and explaining this in our teaching and facilitating exposure to it using ‘real-life’ application of their learning.

In addition to the diverse and rich opportunities offered through the teaching, we value opportunities to take pupils out on trips and welcoming visitors to the school to enhance the Extra-curricular opportunities such as church groups are offered to pupils and staff.

Teachers of Religious Education

Lead Teacher of RE – Mrs K Ham

Lessons

Year 7 – 1 hour a week

Year 8 – 1 hour a week

Year 9 - 1 hour a week

Year 10 – GCSE x 3 hours a week / Core Faith Day

Year 11 - GCSE x 3 hours a week / Core Faith Day