RE

What is Religious Education?

Religious Education provokes challenging questions about the ultimate meaning and purpose of life, beliefs about God, the self and the nature of reality, issues of right and wrong and what it means to be human.

Through studying RE at Claremont your child will develop their knowledge and understanding of how major world religions offer answers to these challenging questions. It also offers opportunities for personal reflection and their own spiritual development. The topics studied in RE make a significant contribution to every child's social, moral, spiritual and cultural development. Our teaching encourages all students, religious and non religious to express their views in an open and comfortable environment without prejudice or judgement. It is through the Outstanding teaching and learning that our department is consistently one of the top performing subject areas at Claremont. An achievement we are very proud of!

 

An Overview

Religious Education is a critical component of the curriculum which makes a fundamental contribution to the education of the whole child.  Religious Education enables students to explore diverse belief systems and cultures so they are able to gain a deeper understanding of our religiously plural society.   Religion itself can encourage people to question the very meaning of their existence or postulate whether there is a transcendent power that exists beyond earth, and big questions such as this are not always easily answered with the application of scientific fact or theory.   Religion itself is a highly relevant and topical subject, and the variety of ways in which it can fully engage pupils is immeasurable. 

When unpacking the richness of Religious Education teachers must engage students with complex religious ideologies and encourage them to vocalise their own understanding and opinions in an intelligent manner.  In order to come to their own informed conclusions students must obtain knowledge and develop mutual respect for one another through the means of analytical discussion. It is essential for learners to think, question and discuss things in such a way that satisfies their own curiosity and Religious Education undoubtedly provokes much of this.  Discussion enables students to not only ask questions, but for who belong to a particular faith system, it allows them to share their expert knowledge with their peers, and for students this is a completely empowering experience.   Discussion is not only a vital element in the process of learning as a whole but also in the exploration of religion and truth. 

Year 7 - Does God exist overview

Year 7 - Hinduism overview

Year 7 - The sanctity of life overview

Year 7 - Who am I overview

Our Department

Within the RE department we have specialist staff from a range of backgrounds including Theology, Philosophy and  Sociology. Calling upon our individual expertise allows us to deliver the subject in a multitude of ways and from a number of different perspectives. We enable pupils to compare, interpret, and develop an understanding of religion, look at universal themes and the role of religion in society. We also have a strong focus on philosophy and ethics across all key stages; this allows pupils to question the ultimate meaning and purpose of life and question theirs and others moral ideas of right and wrong. We study with OCR exam board for GCSE and Edexcel at A Level.

  

What our students have to say

'RE is an opportunity to discuss current events and voice your opinions' 

Irum Year 11

'RE is an amazing subject. We have learnt a lot about many religions. We also have a Philosophy Club every Friday lunchtime'

Aishwarya Year 11