| RE must be provided for all pupils in state funded schools in England. This is a legal requirement and is also a necessary part of a ‘broad and balanced curriculum.’
The RE curriculum is determined locally by the Oxford Diocese Board of Education (ODBE) known as the Oxfordshire Agreed Syllabus, in line with the requirements of the Standing Advisory Council for Religious Education (SACRE). We follow the ODBE scheme of work as outlines below. |
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Intent
The purpose of our RE Scheme of Work is to give pupils from EYFS through to Year 6 a coherent picture of Christian and a range of other worldviews as appropriate to the Locally Agreed Syllabus. It takes pupils on a journey through a range of concepts driven by three core strands: Beliefs and questions, Community and identity and Reality and truth. These strands create connections between substantive and the disciplinary knowledge, and the units will include opportunities for the development of personal knowledge. The aim is to develop curiosity in pupils and equip them for future learning about, as well as enabling them to make sense of, the complex world of religious and non-religious worldviews.
Beliefs and questions focus on theology, looking at the core beliefs and diverse interpretations of text, symbols and teachings of the chosen religions and worldviews. Community and identity will focus on Human and Social Science and using data and other sources to examine practices and human expressions of religious and non-religious beliefs. Reality and truth will focus on philosophy and ethics, looking at how people decide what is true and reliable drawing on the worldviews covered in the other units. It is in these units that pupils will have the opportunity to explore the wider concept of what a worldview is and how people reach these ideas.
Implementation
The scheme of work has units of work that focus on the core content and the disciplinary lens appropriate to that unit. Prior learning and future learning is included to ensure that every lesson is clearly part of the overall aim. Depth is largely, but not exclusively, through the teaching of Christian worldviews. Within each year group the concepts explored in the worldviews units links with the Christianity units as well as ideas from the previous year’s teaching.
RE is taught in blocks through whole RE days and lead in/lead out afternoon sessions. By delivering RE through specially appointed days, we create a ‘special time’ for RE that feels different to the rest of the curriculum. Children are encouraged to consider the big questions in life and to reflect on what is important to them. Below are links to our schemes of work and curriculum map.
Impact
Pupils will be able to give an age-appropriate, coherent account of Christianity and the other worldviews covered. They will be able to ask questions, use a range of sources and skills to explore the traditions taught and have developed curiosity about how and why people think and act. They will know that there is more to learn about religious and non- religious worldviews and have developed the skills to research further. Pupils will understand that there are different ways of interpreting texts, and that different people reach different
conclusions about what is true, good, right, and wrong. Outcomes, progression, and
improvement information will be contained within the scheme and can be adapted to suit
individual school expectations.
Assessment
Assessment is ongoing and informs future teaching building a picture of the child’s attainment and progress over time. It is guided by the assessment outcomes outlined in the Oxfordshire Agreed Syllabus. RE knowledge sequence organisers are used as session by session ‘check-ins’ and at the end of each unit against the knowledge being taught. This gives teachers and the subject leader the information needed to assess the impact of the curriculum and to adapt the curriculum to provide support and challenge where needed.
Right to Withdraw
Parents have the right to withdraw their child from RE lessons or parts of it and should talk to the Headteacher if this is their intention. Whilst we respect this right, we hope parents can see our curriculum does not promote or encourage a certain set of beliefs and contributes to children’s development in many valuable ways.